It’s National Pet Week, and what better way to celebrate your pet than with a stuffed version? I raved about Budsies back in December, after I used a drawing from my niece to make a doll for my daughter as a Christmas present. Then I heard that Budsies also owns Petsies, a company that makes custom stuffed toy versions of your pets. We got a puppy in December, and I really wanted to see what a custom version of our maltipoo Hamilton would look like.
We were not disappointed! Stuffed Hamilton arrived just in time for National Pet Week this week, and they did such a great job with him! And they happen to be pretty much the exact same size, which gave real Hamilton pause. Our Petsie was so good that the real Hamilton gave his doppelganger some of the most serious side-eye we have ever seen.
Then he gave the imposter a good sniff.
And then he decided to keep his distance.
Real Hamilton wasn’t quite sure what to make of this new family addition, but he did warm up to him in the end. And I thought he was fantastic. We received a Petsies Forever doll, which costs $199 but has more realistic details and airbrushing to get your pet just right. The fur is soft, and they got his coloring almost perfect, especially the brown streaks around his nose. My daughter loves to snuggle with him (even though it’s the slightly less expensive Petsies Huggables that are made to cuddle). Unlike the real thing, this Hamilton lets her just wrestle him to the ground with hugs and kisses.
This isn’t the first company to do custom stuffed pets, but they’ve been in business since 2013. GeekMom Patricia reviewed Cuddle Clones a few years ago, and it’s about the same $199 price tag to make your custom pet. But Petsies has a more sophisticated website, and the lead time for your custom pet is shorter than Cuddle Clones (Petsies told me it takes 5-6 weeks, and Cuddle Clones currently says it takes 7 weeks). It’s not cheap, but the quality is fantastic. If you’ve lost a pet, or if you just love the idea of a stuffed replica, Petsies is great. After working with Budsies and Petsies, I can’t recommend them enough.
GeekMom received a sample product for review.
Hamilton was adopted from Waggytail Rescue, a 501c3 animal rescue group in NYC. More info about them at http://www.waggytailrescue.org!
I totally didn’t realize that the toy was a toy!! I had to do a big double take.
Please tell me your honest opinion, which replica did you feel is more life-like and similar to the real dog; Cuddle Clone or Petsie? I want to order one too.