November
28, 2001
HandsOnToys,
Inc. of Wilmington, Mass. is voluntarily recalling about 100,000 rattles. The
rattle can break and expose the noisemaker inside the rattle handle, posing a
choking hazard to young children. HandsOnToys has received 11 reports of the
rattles breaking. A 9-month old girl was found with the plastic noisemaker
lodged in her throat. Her mother removed it by performing the Heimlich
maneuver.
The rattles were sold under the Wiggly Giggler brand name. The rattle can be
shaken stacked and rolled. The rattle is a 3-inch long tube with mushroom caps
on each end. It was sold in three-color combinations, green with purple caps,
orange with pink caps and purple with orange caps. The rattle contains a
noisemaker inside that produces a sound when the rattle is shaken. "Wiggly
Giggler™" is written on the tube of the rattle. Specialty toy stores
nationwide sold the rattles from May 2000 through September 2001 for between $2
and $3.
Consumers should immediately take these toy rattles away from children and
contact HandsOnToys at (888) 442-6376 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday
through Friday to receive a replacement toy. Rattles with a small number
"3" imprinted in the painted circle on the base of the mushroom end
cap, in the center of the four sound holes are not included in this recall.