pitfaltina's Full Review: Littlest Pet Shop Sugar Glider With Pouch 214
*Sigh* My daughter's compulsion to get all the "unique" pets made the sugar glider a necessity. Hasbro's tendency to limit the number of "unique" pets they make makes getting the sugar glider a Herculean task. I searched in vain for eight months to find this particular pet and finally tripped over it one day at Toys 'R' Us when, ironically, I wasn't even looking for it.
Part of my problem in finding this particular animal is the fact that I was looking for the wrong kind of animal altogether. Every listing at the world's most popular auction website describes this toy as a bat. So I'm calling up toy stores and discount stores saying, "Do you have the Littlest Pet Shop bat?" and getting a universal, "Huh? No." Hasbro, could you make things a little easier on us moms next time? Instead of calling an animal by its proper name (sugar glider), why don't you call it what it is commonly known as, (flying squirrel) or maybe even what it actually is? (gliding possum) I wasted eight months of my life looking for a bat that is called a squirrel that actually looks more like a raccoon with wings but is actually a marsupial with winglike membranes. Talk about confusion!
The set consists of the bat/squirrel/raccoon/possum thingy, a carrying case, and a slice of watermelon. The basquicoon thingy stands nearly 2 inches tall and has a bobblehead and a magnet placed right about where you would think the racbatssum's butt should be. (That's gotta be uncomfortable!) The critter is light gray with a dark gray shock of molded plastic fur between stand-up bat-like ears. It has a dark gray squirrel-looking tail, pale gray "wings", and dark raccoonish circles around its eyes. Now do you see why I'm confused?
The case is blue plastic shaped like a purse with a window cut out so people can peer in and say, "Oh, that is SO cute! What the HECK is it?!" The case is hinged at the bottom and folds down to open. The case features yellow highlights around the window, a yellow handle, and an enormous pink plastic molded flower. The squibatcoon nestles comfortably inside with plenty of room to hold some tiny and ultimately useless plastic accessories.
You only get one ultimately useless plastic accessory with this set. A tiny green and pink slice of watermelon is included. The watermelon is a scant half-inch long and is very easy to vacuum up by mistake. I don't know why Hasbro is feeding the possquibat watermelon since these creatures live on tree sap, pollen, and bugs, but hey, why let reality intrude?
Of course, this pet is one of my daughter's prized possessions. When I finally stumbled across it, there were no occasions conveniently in place for gift-giving, as Easter and Valentine's Day were long gone, it wasn't Good Report Card Day, and the birthday and Christmas were months away. So, I did what I always do when I'm spoiling my daughter and don't want to be caught spoiling her. I invented my own holiday, which I dubbed "Australian Mammal Appreciation Day", gave a mini lesson about koalas and kangaroos and Tasmanian Devils (Yes, devils ARE real animals!), and then whipped out the present. She shrieked with glee and said, "You got me the bat!" Sigh. See how confusing this is?
My daughter christened this pet "Sugar" after I explained what it actually was and my daughter immediately lumped this animal in the Bird Colony of her Littlest Pet Shop because it flies. "Sugar" gets played with an awful lot, and is often found hanging upside-down bat-style from the underside of my cockatiel's cage. It has definitely been worth the $4.00 I paid and might even be worth 2/3 of a year of confusion, as I learned a lot about the animal in trying to figure out just what it was. Hey, these toys can teach parents, too!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 4.00 Type of Toy: Playscene
Age Range of Child: 6 to 8 Years
Adorable sugar glider figure with bobblin head comes with a take-along pouch, and a slice of watermelon for lots of pet-lovin fun on the run!, Manufac...More at Amazon Marketplace
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