Toy maker creates pet plushies for grieving owners


Gone but not forgotten: A worker trimming the fur of a realistic pet plushie at the Pampanga Teddy Bear Factory in Angeles City, Pampanga province. — Reuters

Toy maker David Tan is flooded with orders from grieving pet owners who want to memorialise their dogs, cats, hamsters and rabbits with stuffed toys or “plushies”.

Tan and a team of 20 employees use photos sent by customers to create life-like replicas of their deceased pets using synthetic fur that is airbrushed to recreate colours and markings of the animals.

The process is different from taxidermy, which preserves the body of the animal, said Tan, owner of Pampanga Teddy Bear Factory.

“It removes that ‘ick’ factor. This is actually 100%, genuinely a stuffed toy,” he said.

Each plushie costs about 3,500 pesos (RM286), which 38-year-old dog lover Jaja Lazarte said is a price worth paying for the memory of her Shih Tzu.

“Although his ashes are here, and his memories are here, it’s so much better to see something that really resembles him,” Lazarte said. — Reuters

Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for breaking news alerts and key updates!
   

Next In Aseanplus News

Blinken to attend G7 meeting in Italy, US State Department says
'Abang Adik' wins Best Film at the 10th Asian World Film Festival held in Los Angeles
Dr Wee is set to address key issues at the 11th GLA Conference in Bangkok
Asean News Headlines at 10pm on Friday (Nov 22, 2024)
Aaron-Wooi Yik, Pearly Thinaah bow out of China Masters
Japan government approves mammoth US$140bil stimulus with aims putting more cash into peoples' pocket
Man killed after public place shooting in Sydney's inner city
Gold bars, cash bundles in kimchi boxes: Millions seized from S. Korea tax dodgers
Action star Jackie Chan recalls earning his first HK$4mil pay cheque and buying 7 luxury watches in one go
Singapore raises 2024 growth forecast as recovery takes hold in good manner this year

Others Also Read