Soft toys will be your child's best companions for a good period of their life. These snugly, cute and adorable balls of stuffing will go everywhere with your child at all times.  Care should, therefore, be taken when buying soft toys and choosing the soft toys distributor like Elka they are from. While cute or friendly may be the guiding principles with many distributors, some distributors go the extra mile and ensure you know all the safety concerns with soft toys. These are the good guys. For a new parent or even an experienced one, such information is invaluable to your child's well-being.

Avoid beaded toys

Today's soft toys distributor should only deal with toys that have embroidery for eyes and nose and other features. Unfortunately, this is not the rule. There are many soft toys out there with beads as eyes, buttons for noses and such features. Some even use small beads as stuffing! The dangers of these to your child are as clear as possible. Your child may rough these out and swallow some! For this reason, good toy makers today opt to sew the eyes and other features.

Buying new is better

With soft toys, it is probably better to buy a new toy as opposed to hand-me-downs and secondhand. The first reason for this is because older toys may contain some harmful components. Earlier toy making standards were not as strict as today.  Some toys came from parts of the world that probably never regulated the business at all. For instance, the type of fabric used on the toys was not fire retardant. Some toys were even painted with the old lead based paints before they were banned. Today's toys have been strictly regulated on the types of materials allowed. Fire retardant material is used. Other regulations in different regions include type of paints used and even the appropriate ages for different toy sizes.

Older soft toys may also be just a few tags away from falling apart. You neither want the mess nor having to find out exactly what material is inside and how clean it is.

Battery operated soft toys

Battery operated soft toys should be closely monitored. In many instances, the batteries are usually contained within the toy. Check the toy and ensure the batteries aren't leaking. It is obvious that a thorough soaking isn't the way to effectively wash battery-operated soft toys. Instead, use a piece of cloth or gentle bush, a soft detergent and water in a pallet to clean the toy thoroughly.  Douse the surface after washing with baking soda and leave for a few minutes before vacuuming off the powder. Finally you then thoroughly rinse the toy with the same technique. The baking soda eliminates odors.