Webkinz craze has kids buying, caring for pets

Kaelyn Horn spent $8,000 on a TV.

She's spent thousands more on furniture and accessories to decorate her 35 rooms.

She even bought a bowling alley.

But, lucky for her mom, the 8-year-old Mobile girl isn't spending real money.

She's using her KinzCash to shop online.

KinzCash is currency used on Webkinz World, the online community for the popular Webkinz stuffed animals that come with a secret password that allows you to put the pets to bed, feed them and play games.

You earn points, which are converted into currency, by playing games, answering trivia questions and logging in with a new pet. There's even an employment office where you can complete a job to earn KinzCash.

The Webkinz toys have been in area retail stores for more than a year, and the stuffed pets are a hit among kids.

"We still sell a ton of them," said Jennifer Myrick, store manager for Page and Palette, a bookstore in Fairhope, who started carrying them about a year ago. "We couldn't keep them in or get them in fast enough and it still continues to a degree.

"We still have phone calls and people come in daily to purchase them."

Myrick said the newness never wears off because a new Webkinz is released each month.

She said there are more than 100 different styles, everything from penguins, puppies and cats to seals and a pink pony.

The toys, which are produced by the Ganz Co., sell for around $12 at gift and specialty stores.

Brooke Guesnard, owner of Sassafras Make Believe Makeovers in Mobile, who said she was one of the first to sell Webkinz in the area, has seen sales at her business level off.

"From Christmas to Easter last year it really peaked," said Guesnard.

But when other stores started carrying them, her Webkinz sales slowed down.

Guesnard said she's seen a shift in the age group interested in buying the toy.

"Last year I had sixth graders calling my cell phone daily to see if any had come in," she said.

Now she's seeing a younger crowd interested in the pets. But she's also had grandmothers purchase Webkinz so they can play the computer games.

"I think it's such a craze with kids because it is 'Can I get more than you?'" said Guesnard
Fourth grader Jillian Lieber's Webkinz collection has grown to 105, which includes Lil' Kinz, smaller versions of the stuffed animals.

She started collecting two years ago when she got her first Webkinz from a friend in Philadelphia.

Jillian said her dad, Chicago Cubs pitcher Jon Lieber, looks for new Webkinz when he travels to different cities.


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Webkinz craze has kids buying, caring for pets
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Fourth grader Jillian Lieber's Webkinz collection has grown to 105, which includes Lil' Kinz, smaller versions of the stuffed animals.

She started collecting two years ago when she got her first Webkinz from a friend in Philadelphia.

Jillian said her dad, Chicago Cubs pitcher Jon Lieber, looks for new Webkinz when he travels to different cities.

"He calls me and tells me which one they have and I tell him what I want," said the Mobile girl.

Kids can use the KinzCash they earn to decorate their rooms with anything they want, including trampolines and swimming pools.

Jillian said she likes to buy plants and decorate the backyards. She also enjoys decorating rooms with different kinds of beds and shopping for TV's.

Kaelyn, who has 48 pets, said she likes meeting new friends in the Webkinz Clubhouse online and playing games.

Baldwin County mom Pam Denham doesn't worry about her 9-year-old daughter Hannah chatting online with new friends she's met in Clubhouse Chat.

The Web site has safeguards that prevent anyone from exchanging personal information. Members cannot type in their own messages, but have to "select pre-constructed messages from chat menus," according to the Webkinz site.

"It's very controlled," said Denham.

Parents say Webkinz is educational.

"It does kind of teach them to take care of things," said Kaelyn's mom, Karen Horn.

Denham said it's helped her daughter learn communication skills and how to budget money.

She said it's also taught her about responsibility.

"Sometimes friends who are going out of town will ask her to watch their Webkinz while they are away," said Denham. "She's been able to apply a lot of life skills to it."