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PennsylvaniaWe have a Bear living in our den who has developed an infestation! 
His name is "Toasty Bear" and he was made by a company called Sootheze.
Here is Toasty Bear's website: http://www.sootheze.com/toasty-bear-collection.php
Melanie and I were in the middle of a clean & fluff session when we noticed a mass of small, brown bugs and a bad musty smell in the vicinity of one Bear. We had to immediately go into emergency mode. Toasty Bear had to be isolated and the area around him had to be thoroughly cleaned.
I did some research and found out what the bug is. It's called the "lesser grain borer." (rhyzopertha dominica)
Website: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ig117
This is an insect that infests grain in silos. Since we are pretty conscientious about keeping our Bears free from pests like carpet beetles and moth larvae, we were perplexed as to why Toasty Bear would attract a grain eating insect. I did some more research at Toasty Bear's website and found that he is filled with flax seed. Aha! Grain!
I gave Toasty Bear a good going over with the vacuum cleaner. (He said it tickled! 
) Then I took him outdoors, patted him and brushed his fur really well to get any loose bugs out of his fur. Next he was wrapped in a plastic bag and, now, he is hibernating in our freezer. (He'll be okay. He's got fur to keep him warm. Besides, there are plenty of Popsicles for him to snack on! ) We are counting on the cold to kill any of the bugs that sneaked by the vacuum cleaner and the brush.
Does anybody have some advice on how to proceed? Since this is a den of over 1,000 Teddy Bears, this is NOT a trifling matter!
We sent an e-mail to his Bearmakers at Soothze.com but haven't heard back from them yet. If they don't answer soon, they are going to get a phone call from one very grouchy Teddy Bear collector!
As a side note, as a collector, I would advise any Bearmakers out there who are considering filling their Bears with anything that could become infested to think twice. If you adopt-out a Bear who gets infested he could end up doing a lot of damage in his new Bear Den!
That does sound alarming, and it's good that you've shared this information. There's been more than one discussion here about using various natural products such as rice or lavender flowers as filling. I'd never heard of flax seeds, though.
Your poor Toasty Bear! 
I'm afraid I don't have much in the way of advice beyond what you've already done. I assume you have all of your kitchen goodies (flour, oats, and so on) in sealed containers already. Perhaps Toasty will have to tolerate some quarantine time even after his freezer treatment to see if the bugs find him again? (I'm sure he'd be willing to do it for the good of the collective.)
Good luck,
Becky
Donna's Duin BruinsAlso be sure to empty the vacuum cleaner bag!
Sorry this happened. I had heard about the Toasty Bears. They were intended to be placed on a heat source and then given to someone who was ill or had pain. The warmth from the flax seed was to relieve the pain.
Donna
PennsylvaniaYes, you are supposed to heat them in the microwave oven but, when I gave it to Melanie, she said he would never see the inside of one of those contraptions.
However, as I have been reading, the most common way to control the grain borer is to fumigate the silos with gas but they are doing some research on using large microwave machines. Essentially you cook the little buggers. I might be able to convince Melanie to let Toasty Bear go into the microwave for a short period of time if it will kill off any of the pests.
Apparently, the Sootheze company will refill your Bear with new flax seed if it dries out and stops holding heat. I've been thinking about doing that but I am hesitant to do so if it will make Toasty Bear attract bugs again. It's not very nice to think that he would have to be microwaved every so often to keep him pest free.
As an alternative, I might just have him refilled with plastic pellets instead. That way he'll never attract bugs again.
Our vacuum is one of those bagless machines with the plastic dirt container. I took the container outside to empty it.
All of our dry goods in the kitchen are in Tupperware containers wherever possible. Plastic bags when Tupperware can't be used.
We also have pheromone-based bug traps in all the cupboards. They are little cardboard boxes with stickum inside with a pheromone bait patch inside. Bugs are attracted to the scent and get stuck in the stickum. (A lot like the old "Roach Motels.")
TC Folk OriginalsWow - what a terrible thing to happen to a little bear! 
I think I'd go with the re-stuffing with plastic pellets! Does he have any metal in him (like joints, eye loops or backing)? Not good in microwaves!
Re-stuffing! That sounds like the way to go. (Kind of a bone-marrow transplant for poor Toasty.)
Becky
I'm for restuffing! If he has metal joints in him he might burn in those areas in the microwave!
PennsylvaniaJust spoke to the company.
It was tough to get through to them. I was told they are in the middle of moving and are very busy.
I spoke to a guy who said he was the CEO of Dakin toys. He is the guy who designed the original Garfield plush character.
He has never heard of this occurring and he quickly offered to replace the Bear but I said that's not an option. Toasty is a member of the family.
We talked for a while and he offered to restuff the Bear at no cost. While this is a generous offer on his part, Melanie isn't sure. To be honest, I'm a little leery, too.
How do we know they aren't going to toss poor Toasty out and substitute another Bear? We're concerned that the person who restuffs him won't care and do a hack job on him. These things are really important because it's not just about the Bear. It's about provenance too.
Where did you get the Bear? When did you adopt him? Then there is the Bear's story... his memories.
If the person who fixes Toasty doesn't understand, Melanie doesn't want to send him away. I agree with her. It needs to be somebody who cares.
P.S. He does not have any metal in him. He was made to go in the microwave... but he'll never see the inside of one.
Braille TeddiesAww, poor bear. I would cry if anything like that happened to any of my babies.
PennsylvaniaHas anybody heard of Harry Nazamian?
He's the guy who I talked to. He was the CEO of Dakin before they were bought out by Applause Toys. Now he's in charge of Timeless Toys, the company who makes Toasty Bear.
I gather he's a big Kahuna in the plush character kingdom.
The creator of the first Garfield plush toys, is what I hear.
Posts: 298Gaah! I actually have a Toasty bear! Only mine is one of the older ones, and I think he's stuffed with buckwheat. How horrific to think that they can become infested! I actually don't use mine anymore, since I noticed that when I heated him he became pretty damp and yucky. I guess they only last so long. 
PennsylvaniaYou should probably microwave him every once in a while in order to kill any bugs that might have taken up residence in the grain.
According to the FAQ on Toasty Bear's website:
Q: My Sootheze product feels slightly moist after I heat it. Is this okay?
A: Yes, flaxseed contains natural moisture and heating the product causes some of that moisture to be released, especially in relatively new Sootheze products.
Newcastle, OntarioI'd restuff him with plastic pellets as well. Are you close to any artists who might do this for you at reasonable cost, and understand what Toasty means to you or might you buy the supplies and do it yourselves? I wouldn't be comfortable with a teddy with that sort of stuffing. It could do damage to our other bears, possibly.
PennsylvaniaUpdate: Toasty Bear is on his way to California to get restuffed.
I spoke to Harry Nizamian a while ago and he agreed to restuff Toasty if we would pay postage.
Melanie was hesitant to send him for fear she wouldn't get the same Bear back.
Harry phoned us back, last Wednesday evening, asking whether we were going to send Toasty back to the Bear hospital. I put Melanie on the phone with him and he promised to take good care of the Bear. She was finally convinced to send Toasty back.
We bought Toasty one of those metal dog tags you buy from the engraving machine at WalMart and tied it around his neck. Melanie sewed a tiny bit of red thread into the seam behind Toasty's ear so she could tell that it is the same Bear when he gets home. Then we put him in a plastic bag, boxed him up with a postal money order for return postage and sent him off yesterday, insured and with a tracking number.
Toasty's last check in was from the depot in Pittsburgh, heading west to California. Estimates are that he'll arrive on Monday.
Every night before we go to bed, we look up the tracking number and plot Toasty's location on Google Earth. When he's back from his trip, we'll have an exact record of his journey! :cool:
More updates when Toasty finally returns from the Teddy Bear Hospital.
Boechout, AntwerpUpdate: Toasty Bear is on his way to California to get restuffed.
I spoke to Harry Nizamian a while ago and he agreed to restuff Toasty if we would pay postage.
Melanie was hesitant to send him for fear she wouldn't get the same Bear back.
Harry phoned us back, last Wednesday evening, asking whether we were going to send Toasty back to the Bear hospital. I put Melanie on the phone with him and he promised to take good care of the Bear. She was finally convinced to send Toasty back.
We bought Toasty one of those metal dog tags you buy from the engraving machine at WalMart and tied it around his neck. Melanie sewed a tiny bit of red thread into the seam behind Toasty's ear so she could tell that it is the same Bear when he gets home. Then we put him in a plastic bag, boxed him up with a postal money order for return postage and sent him off yesterday, insured and with a tracking number.
Toasty's last check in was from the depot in Pittsburgh, heading west to California. Estimates are that he'll arrive on Monday.
Every night before we go to bed, we look up the tracking number and plot Toasty's location on Google Earth. When he's back from his trip, we'll have an exact record of his journey! :cool:
More updates when Toasty finally returns from the Teddy Bear Hospital.
I love what Melanie has done to ensure that she gets the same bear back, Randy! :thumbsup:
Any "normal" person would be happy to get a new bear instead of the old infested one, but I guess we are not "normal" persons (when it comes to our teddy bears). :D
I would probably do the exact same thing if it was one of my bears.
Keep us posted when Toasty arrives back from hospital.
PennsylvaniaThanks, Peter! :)
Toasty arrived at the Bear Hospital today. We're now waiting for news of his repairs and his safe return.
PennsylvaniaToasty came home yesterday! 
He's all clean and fluffed. His stuffing has been replaced with polyester fluff so he'll never have to worry about bugs again.
He still had his metal dog tag and his red security thread behind his ear.
Melanie made him brownies to celebrate his long trip. He had a snack with me before bedtime and he shared breakfast with us this morning.
Toasty is happy to be home and we are happy to have him back safe and sound!
Boechout, AntwerpI love a story with a happy ending! And Toasty will feel like a newborn bear. 
TC Folk OriginalsAbsolutely great ending for Toasty and I bet he's really happy to be home again where all the love is!!!!
