Toys'R'Us Stops Selling 'Planet Frog' at PETA's Urging

Live Animals Aren't Toys, Says Group 

For Immediate Release:
February 22, 2010

Contact:
Melissa Wilson 757-622-7382 

Wayne, N.J. -- After hearing from PETA about sales of a miniature aquarium called "Planet Frog," New Jersey-based Toys"R"Us has agreed to stop selling the product. Biologists and wildlife specialists agree that small cubes such as Planet Frog--a miniature aquarium that houses two frogs in crowded conditions--are inhumane and inadequate, confining energetic animals to cramped plastic boxes in which they are slowly poisoned by their own waste. Keeping frogs as "pets" can also be hazardous to children's health, exposing them to diseases such as salmonellosis, sparganosis, and psittacosis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 85 people from 31 states have become ill after exposure to water frogs since May 2009.

"The decision of Toys'R'Us to end its sales of Planet Frog sends the message that animals aren't disposable toys to be thrown out or stored in the closet when children get tired of them," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "Frogs should be allowed to live free in their natural habitats and should not be confined to a few square inches of dirty water."

Toys"R"Us joins Target, JCPenney, Rite Aid, Walgreens, and Albertsons, which have also discontinued sales of tiny tanks that contain frogs and fish. PETA is currently targeting Brookstone over its continued sales of the "Frog-O-Sphere," which is similar to Planet Frog. The Frog-O-Sphere confines two frogs to a small plastic cube. A recent PETA undercover investigation at a Brookstone supplier revealed rampant neglect, disregard, mishandling, and deaths of animals.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.