Gotta Go Flamingo Magic Feed Toy — Talking Plush Flamingo That Repeats You, Sings and Sits on Its Own Toilet
Gotta Go Flamingo Magic Feed Toy — Talking Plush Flamingo That Repeats You, Sings and Sits on Its Own Toilet
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The toy that answers back
You say something. A moment later a pink flamingo says it back to you in a silly warbling voice, and a four-year-old falls over laughing. That is the entire product, and it is extremely effective.
The flamingo is a soft plush bird with a long bendy neck and jointed purple legs, sitting on its own little toilet. You scoop food into its beak. Its neck wiggles and gulps as it swallows. It sings. And then, with a good deal of ceremony, it announces that it has to go, and its dinner reappears in the bowl underneath.
What it actually does
The food is the clever bit
The "food" is a fine coloured granule. Dry, it pours like sand. Once it has been through the bird it comes out wet and clumped in the bowl, and if you tip it out and leave it, it dries back into loose granules and you can feed it again. Nothing is consumed and nothing needs replacing, which is why a toy built entirely around a bodily function does not turn into a subscription.
It is also, unavoidably, a fine granule. It gets on the table, on the floor and into the carpet. Feed it over a tray or a placemat and your life will be easier.
Why it lands with small children
Two reasons, and neither of them is subtle.
- It talks back. A toy that repeats what you say invites a child to keep talking to it. Children who are shy with adults will often chatter happily at a machine that never interrupts them.
- Toilet humor is undefeated. For the three-to-six bracket, a bird that sings about needing the toilet and then visibly goes is close to the funniest thing in the world. If your household is at the stage where the potty is a subject of enormous interest, this toy is speaking the local language.
We will leave it there rather than tell you it teaches anything. Plenty of parents use it around potty training and find it helps the mood; we have no study, so we are not going to dress a running joke up as an educational program.
What we are not going to claim
This listing has previously stated that the toy is made of BPA-free ABS plastic. We cannot document that, and the bird is largely plush fabric rather than molded plastic in any case, so we have removed it rather than repeat a material claim we cannot stand behind. We do not publish a certified age grade, a safety certification or a battery specification for this item, because we do not hold the supplier documentation for any of them. If you need that paperwork before buying a toy — which is a reasonable thing to need — contact us first and we will tell you honestly what we have.
Safety, plainly
This toy includes a loose granular food, a small feeding scoop and small removable parts. It is a choking hazard and it is not suitable for children under three years old. Keep the food granules away from babies, toddlers and pets, and do not let a child eat them — they are not food. The toy is battery powered; an adult should fit and change the batteries, and the battery compartment should be kept closed and fastened. Swallowed batteries are a medical emergency. Adult supervision is recommended for young children throughout, and the toy should be kept away from water except for wiping the plastic parts clean.
Living with it
- It is loud, and it repeats. That is the point of it, and it is also the reason some parents quietly relocate it to a different room after a fortnight. Check whether there is a volume control you are happy with before you hand it over at a birthday party.
- Feed it over a hard surface. The granules travel.
- Let the food dry fully before you pour it back into its pot, or it will cake.
- Wipe the plastic, don't submerge it. There is electronics inside the body.
Who this is wrong for
We would rather you bought the right thing than the wrong thing here.
- Children under three. Small parts and loose granules. Not this one.
- Households that want quiet toys. This is the opposite of a quiet toy.
- Anyone who wants a tidy toy. The food goes everywhere. That is not a defect, it is the design.
- A child who is upset by toilet humor rather than delighted by it. You know which one you have.
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