This news probably wouldn’t be that impressive if it was about a parrot, although I’ve never heard of  one that knew the names of over 1,000 toys. And as smart as some people would like to think their dogs are, no one would expect a canine to know this much.

Chaser, a 6-year-old border collie, managed to learn the names of 1,022 different toys, which is more than any other animal has ever learned and around as much as a child around the age of three would be capable of learning.

Interested in how much of a vocabulary the dog would be able to develop, psychologists Allison Reid and John Pilley have worked intensively with Chaser for about three years. And their hard work certainly paid off, as they have proved that talking t your dog is not a waste of time.

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A Ukrainian IT company posted some photos of toys its staff created from various hard disk components, to show off their creativity. Vist officials also added they are very proud of their employees’ ingenuity, but this doesn’t mean they have too much free time on their hands. The toys were created during breaks and in-between creation and testing of company applications.

While they just look like cool metal models, the hard disk toys created by Vist are actually functional. The bird’s neck and legs are mobile, and the cool-looking quad has front and rear suspension and a small engine allows it to roll around.

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You might think a nice plush teddy bear is the ultimate Christmas gift, but for the savvy sociopath, there’s no better alternative than the ever so adorable roadkill toys.

Roadkill Toys are the brainchild of designer Adam Arber, who made sure they look like the kind of thing you’d normally find squashed on the highway, only slightly more adorable. His collection of roadkill plush creatures currently numbers three characters, Twitch the Raccoon, Grind the Rabbit and Splodge the Hedgehog, each with its very own body bag and name tags.

Complete with tire tracks across their backs, tongues rolled out, goggling eyes and guts coming out of their stomach,  roadkill toys are the perfect traumatizing gift for your child. Another cool thing about them is you can simply tuck in their innards and keep them there by pulling a zipper, so your kid doesn’t freak out the first time he sees them.

Adam Arber came up with the idea for his “Squash-plush” toys while looking at his mother-in-law’s ugly dog. One of his friend’s had taken some photos of roadkill, so he had all the inspiration he needed. He believes roadkill toys will appeal to anyone with a healthy sense of humor, and I tend to agree.

If you think this sort of toys are cute, you’ll love Martin Kittsteiner’s mentally ill toys.

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A German toymaker has designed a series of cuddly toys, each suffering from serious mental illnesses like depression and hallucination.

36-year-old Martin Kittsteiner, from Hamburg, says the idea to create the bizarre toys started from a joke between him and his girlfriend, who has a lot of stuffed toys, but he soon started to see the potential of the idea. Each of his cuddly toys has its own disease and symptoms, and comes with a medical history, referral letter and treatment plan. Martin hopes his unique creations will help families with children suffering from mental illnesses.

You can order your very own mentally ill toy from Martin Kittsteiner’s website, for $40 each. There, you can also play a mini-game and try to diagnose the toys’ problems.

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That’s how the owner of this unique car describes his creation on his Flickr stream, and the geek in me agrees with him 100%.

The Toy Car is a one-of-a-kind vehicle covered with thousands of toys that the owner most likely collected as a child. Probably eager to show off his massive collection, or just wanting to give his Saab a second life as a cool art-car, the man behind this crazy creation glued all these toys all over the body of  his old ride.

I’m sure he can’t go too fast in that car anymore, for fear of his toys flying off the hood, but who needs speed when you can just cruise around town flaunting your geek spirit for everyone to see.

Check out more photos of the awesome Toy Car on AzyxA’s Flickr stream.

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Toysaurus is the creation of Japanese artist, Hiroshi Fuji, a man with a ton of patience. That’s the only way to explain how he built that thing, one toy at a time.

Apparently, Hiroshi Fuji spent years collecting old toys, before he began working on this ferocious masterpiece. Toysaurus is on display, in Tokyo’s Rappongi District.

via Tokyobling

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Blasphemy, I say! This is blasphemy! Why someone thought making Star-Wars characters, that transform into vehicles, would be a good idea, is beyond me.

I stumbled across some photos from the Toy Fair 2010 event, and my eyes almost went blind when I saw Master Yoda looking all robotic, and ready to transform into an Attack Shuttle. Apparently, someone has tun out of ideas, and decided to capitalize on both Star-Wars and Transformers in one go. Brilliant idea Einstein, but I don’t think fanboys will go for it.

Scroll down to see even more Star-Wars meets Transformers abominations.

via ToyArk

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Adorned with almost 500 stuffed toys, Bruce Mitchelson’s Toyota Corolla has to be the craziest-looking car in Melbourne.

Bruce thought a great way to show his support for the Cronulla Sharks rugby team would be to paint his old Corolla in the team’s colors and stick on some plush sharks. This was back in 2008, but the Cronulla Sharks have barely won a game since.

But the idea of sticking toys to his car was so good that Bruce couldn’t stop. He kept buying toys at garage sales, and at one point he was adding up to 12 toys a day. Now he’s pretty much run out of space, but he estimates there are 300 stuffed toys on the outside, and around 200 on the inside of his Toyota Corolla.

And if you’re thinking the police might have something to say about Bruce’s toy car, you should know the man is totally in the clear. he has been pulled over several times, but as long as the license plate and side-mirrors are visible, he’s ok.

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No time to travel? That’s no reason to kill the globetrotting mood for everybody. At least. give your favorite plush toy the chance to see one of the world’s greatest cities.

Toy Traveling, a new travel agency in the Czech Republic, has come up with an original plan to keep afloat in times of economical crisis. The owners of this unique company were inspired by the 2001 French hit movie, Amelie. Basically they offer people the chance to send their favorite toys on a memorable journey through Prague.

Your stuffed animal will get to see memorable sights like Prague Casle or Charles Bridge, and get his picture taken at all the major landmarks in the city. This is just the basic package, if you want your toy to really have a good time, you can pay extra for a massage, aromatherapy and even a picnic.

Prices start at 90 euro and go all the way to 150 euro, with all the extra services. It’s not cheap, but your plush toy will love you for it.

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The first time I laid eyes on Maciej Drwiega’s LEGO trucks, I thought they were life-size, that’s how real they look. Of course the photo angle helped a lot, too.

Maciej Drwiega (let’s see you pronounce that) is a big LEGO fan who likes to build replicas of trucks, using the popular bricks. His 1:13 scale creations look as good as the real vehicles and even have detailed interiors and detachable hoods that reveal the engine. How cool is that? I wonder how long it takes the Polish LEGO master to build one of these babies.

Kenworth K100 Aerodyne

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If you think of yourself as a real-life superhero than you need to have an action-figure. Thanks to doll-crafting artist Cyndi Safstrom, now you can.

Cyndi at Be-a-Doll.com offers anyone the chance to own an action-figure of themselves, for just $180 plus shipping fees. All you need to do is send out two photos, one taken from the front and a profile shot, then wait 2-3 weeks for your doll to arrive.

The artist sculpts the head onto a vinyl doll and dresses it according to your desires. Some clients like to have the dolls outfitted just like them, while others prefer to be wear superhero clothes. Anyway you dress it, the doll will be unique, just like you.

Thanks Cyndi!

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If your favorite doll suffered serious damaged that you can’t fix yourself, jump on a plane to Lisbon and take it to the Doll Hospital. They’ll fix it right up.

Located in Figueira Square, Lisbon, the Doll Hospital has been “treating” dolls since 1830 and it’s not going to go out of business anytime soon. Equipped with an emergency and operating rooms, this bizarre establishment has experienced doll doctors and a wide range of spare parts, in case you’re doll needs something replaced.

If people ever stop having their dolls repaired, the Doll Hospital of Lisbon will donate its entire collection of abandoned dolls and spare parts to a local museum. I’m sure they’d fit better on The Island of the Dolls, but…

Photos by REUTERS

via Xinhua

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Using Polymer Clay, Colleen from Loopy Boopy creates some of the creepiest dolls I’ve ever seen. her creations do have human figures, but they give you a creepy feeling, sort of like the characters Tim Burton puts on screen.

Loopy Boopy dolls are a bit too creepy for my own taste, but if you’re into this kind of stuff, you can check Colleen’s store on Etsy and buy yourself something creepy for Halloween.

via Unknown Highway

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With Halloween not so far away, it’s time to think about this year’s horrible pranks and this hacked-up human body may be just what you need.

Made-of durable latex, the axed male body from Fright Catalog will scare the hell out of anyone who lays eyes on it. Hacked up into bloody bits and pieces, the hacked-up body also features a lot of disgusting guts, to add to the horror effect.

All the items are hand made, but some of the clients complained the models aren’t as detailed as they could be. Still, I’d buy one of these just to see my friends faces when they see me “hacking it up” in the bathtub.

I know of Disney’s acquisition of Marvel, but I had no idea they also had their eye on Hasbro, owner of the Transformers franchise.

Meet the adorable Donald Duck, like you’ve never seen him before. Takara Tomy, a famous Japanese toy manufacturer has decided to give the popular Disney character a radical makeover and turned him into a Transformer. Donald now turns from a skateboarder into a buggy-driving duck in seconds and might just steal Bumblebee‘s part in the new Transformers movie.

via Cool Buzz

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