Joy Wanted! Very life-like stuffed piggy

[CavySpirit]

We need some new stuffed guinea pigs that look as REAL as possible for our Guinea Pig Market - Fleece Flippers, Cage Liners, Cozies for Guinea Pig Cages product shots. They need to be life-size, too.

The eyes and fur are the tricky part.

Any suggested links or resources welcome.

Thanks, Teresa

 

[SingMeAHarmony]

My niece (age 5) recently brought home these stuffed/plastic animals to play with. They're called Zhu Zhu Pets, I'm not sure why I hadn't thought of them before. They do have plastic on them because if you wind them back they'll roll on their own forward- like a toy car- but they bottom is plastic so I'm not sure if that's ok. They're a little small, closer to the size of a few week old guinea pig, but they look really life-like, actually. The first time I said it I thought it was real. Their official website is here ---> ZHU-NIVERSE

 

[NJPKL]

I recently bought a guinea pig hand puppet, but it is like double the size of a real pig.

 

[NJPKL]

Oooh I just found this: [video=youtube;eAzB_Lq2-84]

This is their site: (broken link removed)

 

[ellisa]

What about Morumoto? She's a member on GL, and I'm pretty sure she has an account here, too. You have probably already thought of her.
The model plushies you already are using are Morumoto's, right?

Unique Plushies for Small Animal Lovers 3 by Morumoto on Etsy
(broken link removed)
Morumoto | Facebook

 

[Aleks]

Some people on Etsy.com make really nice piggy stuffed animals.

 

[Paula]

It would depend on how much you want to pay, but Kosen has some awesome guinea pigs that are pretty well life sized. Steiff too.

I have a huge collection of stuffed pigs and I went researching just about every plush guinea pig you could imagine a couple years back.

Hansa makes some decent ones too and they aren't as pricey.

Here's Kosen's page:

(broken link removed)

Good luck!

 

[Paula]

Just for reference here are some photos of different commercially available stuffed guinea pigs. I'd say the Steiff and Kosen ones are the most "realistic," within reason.

 

[NM_MOM]

I love the way Morumoto's stuff looks! I also like the needle felted ones. I think this one looks a bit more like a mouse but if you send her some pictures maybe she will work with you and create a life size one as close to the image as possible? needle felted guinea pig custom felted animals by BinhMyPet Or (broken link removed)

 

[Inle_Rabbit]

I second, there are some good looking ones on Etsy.

 

[Paula]

Another good source on Etsy for needle felted animals is this one. I have a few guinea pigs she did and they're awesome, just really small.

 

[pinky]

I collect stuffed guinea pigs and have tons of them. I think Steiff has the most life like ones. They come out with a new one every few years. They're usually sold under the name of Swinny or Dalle but some are just sold as guinea pigs. I think some of their hamsters look more like guinea pigs than hamsters, too. Hansa and Kosen both sell them but they not of the same quality as Steiff. IKEA sells a large guinea pig that's cute but not as life like. Blockbuster sold "Blockbuster Ray" that talked and was really cute. Eden sold Amiable Guinea Pig. In the UK, All Creatures sold a pair of guinea pigs as part of a promotion for the RSPCA. Steiffs are my favorites, though.

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[pinky]

Teresa, you really got me thinking on this. You can find or make something that appeals to both a collector and someone who just wants a toy. The real appeal of Steiff is that you can have a lot of the "same" toy but over the years Steiff has changed the button, tag and slight variations of nose color, etc to make them different even though they look the same. What appeals to me in a toy is something that has either a date or a marker of some sort that will track it's origin and age. Eden dates their toys so you know when it they were made so that made them very collectible. Steiff is always expensive because you can track dates and value. Beswick made porcelain figurines and they've become highly collectible through that same strategy of having different backstamps. Beanie Babies were great until they overproduced them. I'd make your hang tag something really special and pretty; even adding a hologram if it's within cost limitations. Have a fabric tag that links it to your site and put the year on it. Make some slightly different but don't disclose that until after that one has been retired.... if you do that. You could have a few at a time and not disclose which will be retired. You'd have a lot of interest if you marketed them the right way. Keep them on the small side; like real guinea pigs. Small sells better than large. Have different materials like felt and fur, glass eyes, whiskers so they look nice. I don't even know if this is what you're looking to do but I'd thought I'd toss it out there since I collect toys.

 

[Inle_Rabbit]

You have made me curious. I think I am going to see what I can come up with... Challenge accepted! lol Kyle told me he wanted a Bacon stuffed animal anyway.

 

[BedfordCavies]

Hermann makes nice Guinea Pigs. I brought one when I was in Holland many years ago.

 

[Hhbean]

Morumoto can make a piggy that matches your real life piggy! @Morumoto, can you post some exsamples?

 

[CavySpirit]

Pinky, I'm currently just looking to find some to *use* in our product shots that look real. We have a LOT of products that need candids of guinea pigs in them. If we use the couple of real pigs that we have, a) it can take forever to get a decent shot and b) then all of the products that we use are no longer sellable due to guinea pig use (hair, etc). And our margins are thin as it is and we can't really afford to waste products like that.

BUT, interesting idea. If someone wants to make some for us and supply us, I'd be more than happy to market them on our store.

In fact, for any creative products or craft items (fleece, cozies, etc), if someone has a product that they'd like to sell through us (the market site), if you can supply us with a quantity of 6 to start (6 in each fabric, if multiple fabrics), AND we approve the quality and functionality of a sample product sent to us, then we pay you a percentage of the retail price upon receipt of the product. Products sold through the Market need to be exclusive to us and not sold elsewhere (etsy, ebay, private website, etc). If anyone is interested, please email me directly at [email protected].

 

[clb89]

@(broken link removed) does everything you sell in your store have to be made out of fabric?

 

[CavySpirit]

@(broken link removed) does everything you sell in your store have to be made out of fabric?

No, not at all. It just has to be good. You have to ship your products to us as we do the packaging and shipping out of Michigan and combine products into orders with other items purchased. Also, assuming your products sell (and that's the whole idea), then we need to able to count on you to do restocking orders as demand dictates.

 

[clb89]

No, not at all. It just has to be good. You have to ship your products to us as we do the packaging and shipping out of Michigan and combine products into orders with other items purchased. Also, assuming your products sell (and that's the whole idea), then we need to able to count on you to do restocking orders as demand dictates.

I am from Michigan, so that's kind of funny. I sent you an email. Thank you for the opportunity.