Fur-Real Friends come in many sizes, they are made by Hasbro. The one I bought for this project is one of the least expensive ones...but they have huge horses and dogs with more complex robotic processes. Check out the website here (they have videos for each animal, I highly suggest you watch the commercial for the horse, Butterscotch)
IS U FUR'REAL??
Title: Is U Fur-Real?
Description: I purchased this 'Furreal Friend' newborn piglet (creepy) from K-Mart, he is a little cutie pie and actually I found myself becoming quite attached to him after playing for a little while. I even named him Piggie Smalls.
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Title: Another perspective
Description: When the button on his back (hidden by fur) is triggered, this piggie will move his legs and snort and squeal. He has two settings, one is 'active' and one is 'calm.' The 'calm' mode is enacted when the trigger on his back is held down for a longer period of time.
Title: First slice!
Description: I cut along the seams to learn how these plush animals are structured. We were surprised to discover that his skeleton was made of plastic.
Title: Smoked Pork Butt
Description: This photo reveals the mechanism that controls his behind and makes his little tail wiggle. The piece of plastic moves back and forth as the motor/gears control it.
Title: Touch - sensor
Description: The large blue/purple area is the mechanism that triggers the touch sensor. It expands a vast area so that when a child (or adult like me) pets the piggie, it will surely cause him to react.
Title: Pork feet stitches
Description: The stitching in this toy was very elaborate compared to other plush animals I've taken apart. The plastic inner frame had different sections that were directly threaded to the fabric. Each leg, as seen in this photo, was stitched multiple times.
Title: Snout
Description: When triggered, his snout moves as well. However, it was difficult to get the fabric off of the area surrounding the snout and the eyes. I think this was another way the ensure the fabric was secure.
Title: Furry-real
Description: This is a closer depiction of the mechanism that moved the snout back and forth. Although there were no actual mechanics in the head, there were plastic parts that worked together with the body to cause this movement.
Title: Someone needs Rogaine
Description: Here we can see the full skeleton of the pig without his fabric, except the pieces still dangling on the face and facial features. He looks rather silly at this point.
Title: Battery pack
Description: Here you can see how the batteries are placed in the holder. They were under another piece of plastic that was held to the body with a screw, so as to be child-proof.
Title: Pig guts!
Description: This reveals how it all works. There is a controller on one side and a speaker on the other side.
Title: Push the button
Description: This is how it all happens. This button causes the motor to run, triggering the sounds and causing the gears to move and motivate other pieces.
Title: Pork belly (sorry for all the pig puns...)
Description: Here is blurry image of the underside of the controller. It was difficult to get this back together without the gears going out of whack....so I didn't pull it out further.
Hope you enjoyed my dissection!
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