Gendy AlimurungCats will eat your eyeballs if given half the chance. Now they can eat severed legs. Karen Brazell is a 38 year old graphic designer. She makes catnip toys that look like severed legs and sells them for five bucks a pop.
How many severed leg cat toys have you sold so far?
Coming up on 140 legs sold so far, through my Etsy website and also at craft fairs.
Where did the idea come from?
I got the idea while making a doll for my niece. When I reached for the legs, I noticed one was missing. I looked around thinking it had fallen from the table, and saw my cat Ashes slinking away with it in her mouth. She looked like a little mountain lion who had attacked a jogger and was making away with her prize. I immediately made more!
Have you ever thought of making severed arms? Or hands? Or other body parts?
I have thought about it, but I want to make sure all my cat toys are made to withstand many attacks, and the legs are by far the strongest toys I've made.
Have you ever heard talk about how house cats would eat their owners if they could? You know, those stories where the owner dies and the pet cat eats her eyeballs. If so, do you think it could happen? Would your cat do that to you?
Ha ha! It's already happening to me now and I'm still living! Every morning I wake up to my cat Shadow eating my earlobes, nibbling on my check and flossing with my hair. I guess he prefers his breakfast still warm and breathing.
Do you now make dolls with only one leg? Sort of as the companion piece?
No, but that's a good idea. I do have designs to make polydactyl cat dolls though.
Has anyone sent you pictures of their cat with your severed leg toy in its mouth?
Yes, that is my favorite thing in the world! I've received pictures of cats with it in their mouth, in their beds and in-between their claws. People have told me that their cats become very possessive of their new severed leg cat toys.
I love the detail of the red innards with the bit of bone. It's cute, but creepy. Do people ever get scared of the toy? Or think you are weird for making them?
I think most cat owners recognize the tiger in their own kitties, and see that the toy was created with love and with a sense of humor. They can be a bit creepy, but each one has it's own lovely little sock on it, and when you see a cat bring it to you, it becomes the most endearing severed body part you are likely to see. At least I hope so!
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