Webkinz toys come to life online
By Dolly A. Butz, Journal staff writer | Posted: Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Angel, a stuffed Webkinz Pegasus with a shiny pink mane and glimmering wings, sat lifeless next to a computer keyboard. On the monitor, Angel's virtual self came to life before her owner, Grace Schiltz's, very eyes. With a few key strokes and a click of the mouse, Angel moved about the screen in a virtual room Grace had furnished. She opened her closet and peeked at a cropped jacket, hair bow and teddy bear. She ate a bushel of bananas and responded with an "Mmmm good!" although Grace said Angel prefers cupcakes.
Grace, 9, of Sioux City, said her Webkinz Pegasus and horse are her favorite toys.
"You don't have to get out anything. You don't have to put anything away."
Grace's mom, Julie Schiltz, said Webkinz are a big hit at her house. Her sons Will, 9, and Tommy, 7, are also crazy about Webkinz. Will owns a bulldog, and Tommy has a cocker spaniel.
"You kind of have the real thing here and then see the little cocker spaniel playing on the merry-go-round on the monitor. It gives them some kind of a connection to it," she said. "They actually have it in their hand. It's not so remote on the computer screen."
Webkinz, a line of plush animals released by the Ganz gift company in 2005, have exploded in popularity over the past year. A secret code attached to the animal's foot, hoof or paw allows the owner to log on to the Webkinz World Web and combine real life play with online activities such as virtual room designing, arcade games, trivia quizzes and chatting.
Webkinz animals are flying off the shelves at Northwest Iowa specialty stores. To give everyone a fair shot at buying one of these cute, furry toys, Coach House Gifts at the Southern Hills Mall is enforcing a purchasing limit.
Assistant manager Erica Schmeckpeper likens the Webkinz frenzy to the Ty Beanie Baby craze of the late 1990s.
"A lot of people turn around and sell them on eBay for two or three times what we sell them for," she said. "We'll have a new release and they'll want to buy all of them, so we have to kind of limit it so everybody can get into a new release."
At Coach House Gifts, top sellers are the Dalmatian, Clydesdale and chocolate Lab. The most popular Littlekinz, smaller versions of Webkinz, are the panda, white terrier and rabbit. Webkinz retail for $12.99, and Littlekinz are $9.99.
Schmeckpeper said Webkinz are popular with consumers between the ages of 8 and 12.
"It's a huge collector thing," she said. "I think both of my kids have four. That's minor. Some people come in saying that they have 23 each for each of their kids and have two or three kids, so basically they have all of them."
Webkinz are so popular at the Sugar Bowl Gift Shop in Storm Lake, Iowa, that owner Molly Wilson decided to block off a downtown street and throw a party for her Webkinz fans.
"I think it's something new and innovative for kids that ties in the Internet, which kids love," Wilson said. "It's safe and it's educational, so the parents are really letting their kids explore it and have computer time to do this."
Wilson formed a Webkinz Kids Club soon after she began selling the toys in February. She currently has 150 members from around Western Iowa and surrounding states who receive regular e-mail updates about Webkinz.
"Now we have kids that are e-mailing us on a regular basis," she said. "For a business it's fun to see young customers that are having fun shopping and building a relationship with us in the store."
On a recent Saturday morning outside the Sugar Bowl, more than 50 kids were busy building houses out of cardboard boxes for their stuffed Webkinz .
Alli Turnquist, 11, of Alta, colored a pink piece of paper with a magic marker while Grace Dierenfield, 10, and sisters Erika and Rylee James, 11, all of Storm Lake, added a dash of glitter to a neon pink posterboard fence.
Dierenfield said her favorite Webkinz is a racoon because he is "soft and cute."
"It's like having a real pet because you have to take care of them and feed them," she said. "They're less work than having a real pet."
Erika James said her Webkinz bunny, lion and dog are unlike any other toy she has.
"There's not a lot of toys you can do online," she said. "You can play online and play with them in your house."
Teaching responsibility
When she logs on to Webkinz.com, Grace Schiltz is responsible for keeping the virtual version of Angel happy and healthy. A status bar reports Angel's happiness is 100 percent.
"It was at 88, and I didn't feed her," Schiltz said.
Just like a real pet, Angel requires food, attention, exercise and care. Failing to log on to the Web site and meeting Angel's needs won't result in her death, but it will require a trip to the virtual doctor's office for some special medicine.
"They have to check in on them," Julie Schiltz said. "They can't forget for a few days. They have to make sure that they're fed and make sure they're not getting sick."
In the Webkinz World, just like the real world, food, medicine and furniture comes with a price tag attached. By completing quizzes, playing games in the arcade and working a virtual job, kids can earn Kinzcash to buy items for their pets.
Tommy and Will Schiltz are saving up to remodel a room for their Webkinz. The switch from a baseball room to a wizard room will cost the brothers an estimated $2 million.
"I don't know if they learn money management, but they start to learn the fact that you have to have enough money to buy something," Julie Schiltz said. "You can't have everything you want by clicking the button. You have to actually earn your money to acquire the room you want."
Site safety
With predators lurking in chatrooms, the Internet can be a dangerous and scary place for children. Ganz, the maker of Webkinz, claims the KinzChat portion of its Web site is kid-friendly and safe. Ganz states, "When using KinzChat, members select pre-constructed messages from chat menus. Members cannot type in their own messages. KinzChat is a very safe way to chat, especially for our younger members."
Julie Schiltz said she is more concerned with the amount of time her kids spend on the Webkinz World Web than the safety of the chat room.
"I'm not too worried because it's designed for kids and it's real kid-friendly," she said.
Schiltz limits each of her children to 20-minute intervals online. They check on their virtual pets when they get up in the morning, in the afternoon and before they go to bed.
Schmeckpeper said she is concerned about her 10- and 12-year-olds spending too much time online, so she also limits them to half an hour in the morning and half an hour at night.
"My kids don't get to do it daily," she said. "Their time online is limited, also, because otherwise I think they'd sit there all the time."
Managing your child's time online
Webkinz.com has a "parents' area" that includes tips for managing your child's time in Webkinz World, such as:
* Allow your child to play on the Webkinz World Web only after chores and homework are completed.
* Reward good behavior with a few extra minutes online.
* Decide how much time your child should spend on Webkinz.com. Set a timer. When it goes off, turn off the computer.
* Encourage play away from the computer.
* Encourage your child to play with real friends in the real world.
Grace, 9, of Sioux City, said her Webkinz Pegasus and horse are her favorite toys.
"You don't have to get out anything. You don't have to put anything away."
Grace's mom, Julie Schiltz, said Webkinz are a big hit at her house. Her sons Will, 9, and Tommy, 7, are also crazy about Webkinz. Will owns a bulldog, and Tommy has a cocker spaniel.
"You kind of have the real thing here and then see the little cocker spaniel playing on the merry-go-round on the monitor. It gives them some kind of a connection to it," she said. "They actually have it in their hand. It's not so remote on the computer screen."
Webkinz, a line of plush animals released by the Ganz gift company in 2005, have exploded in popularity over the past year. A secret code attached to the animal's foot, hoof or paw allows the owner to log on to the Webkinz World Web and combine real life play with online activities such as virtual room designing, arcade games, trivia quizzes and chatting.
Webkinz animals are flying off the shelves at Northwest Iowa specialty stores. To give everyone a fair shot at buying one of these cute, furry toys, Coach House Gifts at the Southern Hills Mall is enforcing a purchasing limit.
Assistant manager Erica Schmeckpeper likens the Webkinz frenzy to the Ty Beanie Baby craze of the late 1990s.
"A lot of people turn around and sell them on eBay for two or three times what we sell them for," she said. "We'll have a new release and they'll want to buy all of them, so we have to kind of limit it so everybody can get into a new release."
At Coach House Gifts, top sellers are the Dalmatian, Clydesdale and chocolate Lab. The most popular Littlekinz, smaller versions of Webkinz, are the panda, white terrier and rabbit. Webkinz retail for $12.99, and Littlekinz are $9.99.
Schmeckpeper said Webkinz are popular with consumers between the ages of 8 and 12.
"It's a huge collector thing," she said. "I think both of my kids have four. That's minor. Some people come in saying that they have 23 each for each of their kids and have two or three kids, so basically they have all of them."
Webkinz are so popular at the Sugar Bowl Gift Shop in Storm Lake, Iowa, that owner Molly Wilson decided to block off a downtown street and throw a party for her Webkinz fans.
"I think it's something new and innovative for kids that ties in the Internet, which kids love," Wilson said. "It's safe and it's educational, so the parents are really letting their kids explore it and have computer time to do this."
Wilson formed a Webkinz Kids Club soon after she began selling the toys in February. She currently has 150 members from around Western Iowa and surrounding states who receive regular e-mail updates about Webkinz.
"Now we have kids that are e-mailing us on a regular basis," she said. "For a business it's fun to see young customers that are having fun shopping and building a relationship with us in the store."
On a recent Saturday morning outside the Sugar Bowl, more than 50 kids were busy building houses out of cardboard boxes for their stuffed Webkinz .
Alli Turnquist, 11, of Alta, colored a pink piece of paper with a magic marker while Grace Dierenfield, 10, and sisters Erika and Rylee James, 11, all of Storm Lake, added a dash of glitter to a neon pink posterboard fence.
Dierenfield said her favorite Webkinz is a racoon because he is "soft and cute."
"It's like having a real pet because you have to take care of them and feed them," she said. "They're less work than having a real pet."
Erika James said her Webkinz bunny, lion and dog are unlike any other toy she has.
"There's not a lot of toys you can do online," she said. "You can play online and play with them in your house."
Teaching responsibility
When she logs on to Webkinz.com, Grace Schiltz is responsible for keeping the virtual version of Angel happy and healthy. A status bar reports Angel's happiness is 100 percent.
"It was at 88, and I didn't feed her," Schiltz said.
Just like a real pet, Angel requires food, attention, exercise and care. Failing to log on to the Web site and meeting Angel's needs won't result in her death, but it will require a trip to the virtual doctor's office for some special medicine.
"They have to check in on them," Julie Schiltz said. "They can't forget for a few days. They have to make sure that they're fed and make sure they're not getting sick."
In the Webkinz World, just like the real world, food, medicine and furniture comes with a price tag attached. By completing quizzes, playing games in the arcade and working a virtual job, kids can earn Kinzcash to buy items for their pets.
Tommy and Will Schiltz are saving up to remodel a room for their Webkinz. The switch from a baseball room to a wizard room will cost the brothers an estimated $2 million.
"I don't know if they learn money management, but they start to learn the fact that you have to have enough money to buy something," Julie Schiltz said. "You can't have everything you want by clicking the button. You have to actually earn your money to acquire the room you want."
Site safety
With predators lurking in chatrooms, the Internet can be a dangerous and scary place for children. Ganz, the maker of Webkinz, claims the KinzChat portion of its Web site is kid-friendly and safe. Ganz states, "When using KinzChat, members select pre-constructed messages from chat menus. Members cannot type in their own messages. KinzChat is a very safe way to chat, especially for our younger members."
Julie Schiltz said she is more concerned with the amount of time her kids spend on the Webkinz World Web than the safety of the chat room.
"I'm not too worried because it's designed for kids and it's real kid-friendly," she said.
Schiltz limits each of her children to 20-minute intervals online. They check on their virtual pets when they get up in the morning, in the afternoon and before they go to bed.
Schmeckpeper said she is concerned about her 10- and 12-year-olds spending too much time online, so she also limits them to half an hour in the morning and half an hour at night.
"My kids don't get to do it daily," she said. "Their time online is limited, also, because otherwise I think they'd sit there all the time."
Managing your child's time online
Webkinz.com has a "parents' area" that includes tips for managing your child's time in Webkinz World, such as:
* Allow your child to play on the Webkinz World Web only after chores and homework are completed.
* Reward good behavior with a few extra minutes online.
* Decide how much time your child should spend on Webkinz.com. Set a timer. When it goes off, turn off the computer.
* Encourage play away from the computer.
* Encourage your child to play with real friends in the real world.
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raven wrote on Mar 20, 2008 9:16 PM:
k wrote on Aug 21, 2007 12:12 PM:
KINZGRL wrote on Aug 16, 2007 5:09 PM:
Greg wrote on Aug 15, 2007 2:00 AM:
Lila Plambeck wrote on Aug 14, 2007 4:36 PM: