Schleich vs holztiger

[BeachBum]

Which do you and your kids prefer and why? We have several schleich figures and have been happy with them. There are a very limited amount sold at my Target and that is why we have them. I wanted to expand, but if I'm going to have to shop online I might as well check out my options.

Anyone care to weigh in?

[sweetpea]

The Schleich ones are made in China, the Holztiger ones in Germany. I would go with Holztiger for that reason alone.


Dd has a huge number of Schleich animals and loves them, but now I wish I knew about Holziger before I started the Schleich collection.

[smilla653]

We have mostly wooden toys, but our animal collection is the Schleich stuff. It is nice that DS can pick one out by himself at Target or the zoo every so often. They are also smaller than the Holtztiger, and, for example, are the right scale to fit in our Melissa and Doug wooden barn. They are also cheaper, making it easier for us to have a lot of animals -- mommy, daddy, baby. The Schleich are also more detailed (authentic looking features, like those determining gender).

That said, the Holztiger are beautiful and whimsical. We have a few and they are nice. I am considering Holztiger or Ostheimer for knights and castles when DS is older. I am also always toying with the idea of getting woden forest animals.

[kayte]

We have the Schleich animals and they are played with every single day in our house. We have had some since DD turned one (MIL gave her a nice start to collection for her first birthday). I was a little concerned as they are made in China but the company itself is in Germany and make products to the stricter EU standards. I emailed the company anyway to ask about their safety standards considering that DD very often mouthed them (especially the pig, lol). Here is their reply.

Schleich GmbH believes that toy safety is a maximum priority. Schleich has an internal quality control department and it is supported by external test centres. Our products have always been made using materials which at the time of production were classified as safe. Schleich toy figures comply with all national and international guidelines and regulations, e.g. the strict provisions of the European Standard for Toys (EN 71) and the American Specification for Toy Safety (ASTM F963-03). We have also in-troduced our own regulations and test methods which are often more stringent.

We obligate our raw material suppliers and other suppliers to comply with these regulations. We also hire independent and authorized laboratories to carry out regular tests regarding the materials, the paints used for our products and the finished toys (saliva and migration tests, for example, are performed by these laboratories).

We hope that this information addresses your concerns regarding the safety or our toys and the steps we take to ensure this safe aspect of our toys. Thank you for your interest in Schleich products.

Also, as far as availability goes, I have found them at a local feed shop (Tractor Supply Company). They also have them at our Ace hardware, oddly enough. YOu might seek out some local sources (by phone) before paying shipping.

HTH

[MamaKath]

We like the Schleich ones. They are realistic and a good scale to go with a variety of other sets by different companies. My kids love choosing them by themselves at Target and the zoo/museums but most of all when we go to Tractor Supply.

On the off note- Even though they are made in China, they are one of the things that our family gets while in or sends from Germany. That and Playmobil but never Holztiger. Don't know why that is though.

[kayte]

If you like the realistic look of the Schleich animals but don't like the MIC aspect (also see my post about that above), there is also Bullyland. My daughter had several mixed in with her Schleich collection --they are the same size ratio. They are made in Germany and painted by hand. The company website says no PVC or phthalates. Here is a link to the animals they have...

http://www.bullyland.de/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=6&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=26

As for finding them ---a local game shop here sells them --side by side with their Schleich animals, as does our zoo. HTH

[Leeannpk]

I just received a shipment of Holztiger animals for DS for Christmas, and I am in love. They are truly beautiful. I chose Holztiger because they are made in Germany (not MIC is important to me) - if the Schleich ones were made in the EU or USA, I probably would have considered them, though, because they are super cute!

If you're on the fence, maybe buy one or two of each brand and put them in DC's stocking and see what get played with more.

Leeann

ETA - I just re-read and see that you already have some Schleich stuff... If it gets played with and you are happy with the quality, I'd stick with that since it's so widely available! Our Target has a huge selection, and so does our Michael's.