The Collecta Ostrich and a Schleich Disappointment

(I've made sure that none of my pictures exceed 800 pixels. I recently found out that larger pictures can ruin some members' viewing experiences.)

For the last year or so, I've been acquiring animals from "alternative" brands -- alternative to Schleich that is. Well actually I've been collecting Papo for even longer than that. But Bullyland, Collecta, Mojo Fun, and even Safari are all these more recent developments. And yet, despite the fact that I've been branching out, I definitely remain firmly committed to Schleich before anything else.

Recently, however, introducing the CollectA Ostrich and one of its chicks to my collection drew my attention to a unfortunate flaw in the Schleich counterpart: the figures get the toes of the Ostrich seriously wrong.

Let me start with some pictures of the figures themselves. Here is the CollectA. It is a lovely set. (And I'm looking forward to eventually getting the other chick as well. It is sitting rather than running.)

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And now here is the Schleich:

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The CollectA gives the Schleich some stiff competition. It seems more realistic in making the legs more slender and the head smaller. The feathers on the adult are more detailed -- really impressive actually -- but the "melting" texture of the Schleich adult feathers is very pleasing as well. And even though this may not be "realistic," the proportions of the Schleich make the overall effect very nice and lively. I'm mainly talking about the adults here. I like the CollectA chick better than the Schleich, but would still choose the Schleich if I could only have one in my collection (I know that this is completely irrational.) It is the adults that compare particularly evenly to each other. Here is a picture of all of them together:

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But then, while I'm reading more about ostriches, I discover that only one of their two toes has a nail on it. CollectA's figure is in agreement with this apparently well known fact. But unhappily the Schleich models -- both adult and chick -- have nails on both toes. So disappointing. First the CollectA:

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Now the Schleich:

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Now a real ostrich:

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The babies have the same issue.

Schleich, you have let me down.

But, because I can't leave on such a sour note, I'll put up a picture of another recent CollectA purchase that does not, in my view, compare favorably to its Schleich counterpart.

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The Schleich (on the right) is so much better. This is perhaps unfair because the Schleich Black Angus Bull is one of my all-time top-ten favorite figures.

Scott,

Thanks for such an enlightening post. I exactly the same as you do on all accounts here. My heart does also belong to Schleich. But I collect other brands as well. But yes, Schleich comes first. I didn't know the fact about the ostriches toes, and that is disappointed to see.

I also agree about the Angus bulls. The Collecta is just bad, in my opinion. Bad enough that I'll forgive the two toe-nailed ostrich.

Thanks also for the comparison photos!

-Kristie

Thanks for this Scott, that is very interesting. This has helped me decide which Ostrich I'd buy... the CollectA, the chicks are so cute as well and I love their poses, especially the sitting one.
I love the Schleich cattle, this Angus bull is also on of my favourites, my absolute favourite is the Swiss cattle family.

Thankyou for a very interesting and valuable contribution, Scott

WOW, those Collecta ostriches just flapped onto my wishlist !

Funny about the toes. I didn`t know that, - and Schleich hasn`t helped me there
But now you did

Schleich did even worse than that, - at a time their ostrich had THREE toes , - and nails on them all

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About the bull, - IMHO cattle surely isn`t one of CollectA`s core-competences

The CollectA Ostrich is not too bad. However, I prefer the Papo Ostrich. Do you all think the Ostrich chicks are a bit to large(At that stage of development) to be in same set/placed with adult?

baltimore zoo wrote:

Do you all think the Ostrich chicks are a bit to large(At that stage of development) to be in same set/placed with adult?

They probably are a little too big, but they're so nice it doesn't bother me

HKHollinstone wrote:

baltimore zoo wrote:

Do you all think the Ostrich chicks are a bit to large(At that stage of development) to be in same set/placed with adult?

They probably are a little too big, but they're so nice it doesn't bother me

I agree with you Harriet, far too big but so nice I can't resist.

About real sized chicks, [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I made in the Planckendael zoo

SUSANNE wrote:

WOW, those Collecta ostriches just flapped onto my wishlist !

Same here! Funny how each day our wishlists get bigger! I really like the Collecta Ostrich (still missing the Female version, and their Australian and South American relatives, but that's already another topic)!!!

Congratulations on your Ostriches and Angus Bulls. I saw the Schleich Angus Cow and Bull last month in a store in Bratislava, but they were in a bad shape, otherwise they'd go home with me.

It seen like I can't resist Collecta Ostrich now!!

Thanks K for showing the photo of the Planckendael zoo Ostrich with the chicks. The chick figures maybe nice figures, but if they had made them smaller I think they would look much better when placed next to adult Ostrich figure. As an example, I like how they did the Papo Wild Boar family. They made the much smaller baby Wild Boars(Even putting them on a base/stand to make them sturdier since much smaller), and because of that, the Wild Boar family definitely look nice together, because they made them in relative proportion to each other.
I would have like to seen Ostrich babies done the same way(Smaller on a base/stand). Why didn't they?

You are right Balti, it was not so complicated since SCHLEICH already did it for penguins, ducks and gooses

Kikimalou wrote:

HKHollinstone wrote:

baltimore zoo wrote:

Do you all think the Ostrich chicks are a bit to large(At that stage of development) to be in same set/placed with adult?

They probably are a little too big, but they're so nice it doesn't bother me

I agree with you Harriet, far too big but so nice I can't resist.

About real sized chicks, [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I made in the Planckendael zoo

Oh, I'd forgotten just how small they were!!

SUSANNE wrote:

Thankyou for a very interesting and valuable contribution, Scott

WOW, those Collecta ostriches just flapped onto my wishlist !

Funny about the toes. I didn`t know that, - and Schleich hasn`t helped me there
But now you did

Schleich did even worse than that, - at a time their ostrich had THREE toes , - and nails on them all

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

About the bull, - IMHO cattle surely isn`t one of CollectA`s core-competences

Wow, thanks for the pictures Susanne. I can't believe those older ostriches have three toes. And I agree about Cattle. It's one of my favorite things about Schleich. I love their cattle.

baltimore zoo wrote:

The CollectA Ostrich is not too bad. However, I prefer the Papo Ostrich. Do you all think the Ostrich chicks are a bit to large(At that stage of development) to be in same set/placed with adult?

I'm ordering the Papo Ostrich as well! It looks great. Thank you B-Zoo.

Kikimalou wrote:

HKHollinstone wrote:

baltimore zoo wrote:

Do you all think the Ostrich chicks are a bit to large(At that stage of development) to be in same set/placed with adult?

They probably are a little too big, but they're so nice it doesn't bother me

I agree with you Harriet, far too big but so nice I can't resist.

About real sized chicks, [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I made in the Planckendael zoo

Christophe, great picture!! Wow, they really are so tiny relative to the adult. I agree with you and Harriet, I can't resist them and I am also getting the sitting chick by Collecta (and would get more by Schleich if they release variations), but I would be happy if they'd make them a little smaller.

(I won't say much more about this, lest we get carried away on a discussion about scale and holding to a consistent scale. It was hard for me though, when I first started collecting: It really distressed me when figures weren't to scale with respect to each other. I've relaxed a bit.)

Thank you everyone -- Kristie, Harriet, Bojan and Ken, as well -- for your comments!

(This community is such a pleasant part of my day. Thank you all!)

Wow, I really, really like that CollectA adult ostritch. Now since I see it in a picture it is much better than all my Schleich and Safari. God, can I allow myself to get a few more ostriches! the pain the pain!

Scott, a big thanks for such an interesting topic. I love this kind of things. :)
We not only can judge the figures in a funny way as also we learn something.
Schleich is fruitful in this kind of mistakes but also very successful touching the hearts of children and collectors.
Your heart is with Schleich but your sense is with what is right, what is really educational and what Nature give us.
My only modern ostrich is the 3-toed one, a funny gift from Susanne. I lent, some time ago, some of my figures to a Museum and the museologist noticed immediatly the wrong number of toes! But a funny ostrich indeed!
I never noticed about extra nail in Schleich ostrich, maybe because I never searched this species for my collection.
Honestly I think the Schleich Angus is nice but the CollectA one is not so terrible, much better than Schleich ostriches! Mainly the old one. I can see some points where the CollectA bull looks better.
CollectA is launching what looks a fantastic family of zebu cattle. So the brand is improving and that's nice.
I continue thinking the same. When brands considere theirselves as educational, is supposed some level of scientific quality. I know that large heads, chubby legs and cute factor helps selling better, even among collectors, but I'm not sure that crocodiles with extra-toes or ostriches with extra-nails sell better because of it.
It is hard to accept some flaws in a brand that make ostriches for 30 years ago!

HKHollinstone wrote:

Thanks for this Scott, that is very interesting. This has helped me decide which Ostrich I'd buy... the CollectA, the chicks are so cute as well and I love their poses, especially the sitting one.
I love the Schleich cattle, this Angus bull is also on of my favourites, my absolute favourite is the Swiss cattle family.

Harriet, I meant to respond to this earlier. Have you also seen the Papo Ostrich? Baltimore zoo (b-zoo) swears by it. I will post pictures when I get it.

Also, I have not been able to complete my Swiss cattle family (still missing the cow). The calf I got is in really good condition, but the Bull has more scuffs than any figure I've bought. I read somewhere that this set was especially prone to scuffs and rubs and paint chipping and that seems true. I've seen lots of Swiss Cows available, but they looks pretty banged up. I'm not sure whether to relax and just get one that has lots and lots of rubs, or to hold out for a nicer model.

SeanieP wrote:

Wow, I really, really like that CollectA adult ostritch. Now since I see it in a picture it is much better than all my Schleich and Safari. God, can I allow myself to get a few more ostriches! the pain the pain!

Sorry Sean-Shawn! (I don't know if you saw my earlier post on the really old Schleich Brown Bull (13219) I found in a shop recently (for $6), but I actually thought of you since you live in the area. The shop is Learning Express in Newton Center.

Roger wrote:

Scott, a big thanks for such an interesting topic. I love this kind of things. :)
We not only can judge the figures in a funny way as also we learn something.
Schleich is fruitful in this kind of mistakes but also very successful touching the hearts of children and collectors.
Your heart is with Schleich but your sense is with what is right, what is really educational and what Nature give us.
My only modern ostrich is the 3-toed one, a funny gift from Susanne. I lent, some time ago, some of my figures to a Museum and the museologist noticed immediatly the wrong number of toes! But a funny ostrich indeed!
I never noticed about extra nail in Schleich ostrich, maybe because I never searched this species for my collection.
Honestly I think the Schleich Angus is nice but the CollectA one is not so terrible, much better than Schleich ostriches! Mainly the old one. I can see some points where the CollectA bull looks better.
CollectA is launching what looks a fantastic family of zebu cattle. So the brand is improving and that's nice.
I continue thinking the same. When brands considere theirselves as educational, is supposed some level of scientific quality. I know that large heads, chubby legs and cute factor helps selling better, even among collectors, but I'm not sure that crocodiles with extra-toes or ostriches with extra-nails sell better because of it.
It is hard to accept some flaws in a brand that make ostriches for 30 years ago!

Roger, thank you for the nice and interesting comment! I agree entirely that Collecta is getting better and better. The planned 2012 releases all look great, especially all the antelope! The Sables, Eland, Gnu and Waterbuck! wow. I am also awaiting the red river hog, the striped hyena, the capybara and brahman cattle, among others. It is, I think, the best 2012 line up. If they all come out at once, I'm going to be quite poor.

Thanks again K for agreeing. Would like to see Papo make a female and some very small(In relative proportion) chicks. It would also be interesting to see Papo ad CollectA Ostrich's next to each other.

Scott, enjoy your Papo ostrich : )

scott wrote:

HKHollinstone wrote:

Thanks for this Scott, that is very interesting. This has helped me decide which Ostrich I'd buy... the CollectA, the chicks are so cute as well and I love their poses, especially the sitting one.
I love the Schleich cattle, this Angus bull is also on of my favourites, my absolute favourite is the Swiss cattle family.

Harriet, I meant to respond to this earlier. Have you also seen the Papo Ostrich? Baltimore zoo (b-zoo) swears by it. I will post pictures when I get it.

Also, I have not been able to complete my Swiss cattle family (still missing the cow). The calf I got is in really good condition, but the Bull has more scuffs than any figure I've bought. I read somewhere that this set was especially prone to scuffs and rubs and paint chipping and that seems true. I've seen lots of Swiss Cows available, but they looks pretty banged up. I'm not sure whether to relax and just get one that has lots and lots of rubs, or to hold out for a nicer model.

I've never seen the Papo ostrich in real life, I don't really like the plastic joining the legs together, I know it's for support. The model seems to lean forward [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I bought the swiss family before they were retired - I've seen the cow on eBay a few times, it's a shame because one went the other week in nice condition for a cheap price, if I'd known I could have got it for you!

baltimore zoo wrote:

Thanks again K for agreeing. Would like to see Papo make a female and some very small(In relative proportion) chicks. It would also be interesting to see Papo ad CollectA Ostrich's next to each other.

Scott, enjoy your Papo ostrich : )

I can't help because I don't have them but I can say the PAPO is bigger than the SCHLEICH.

HKHollinstone wrote:

I've never seen the Papo ostrich in real life, I don't really like the plastic joining the legs together, I know it's for support. The model seems to lean forward [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I bought the swiss family before they were retired - I've seen the cow on eBay a few times, it's a shame because one went the other week in nice condition for a cheap price, if I'd known I could have got it for you!

I didn't notice at all that they connect! This actually bothers me a lot. I didn't get the Schleich Male Ostrich for ages because they essentially put him on a stand (a piece of plastic ground) instead of having him support himself with his two feet. I don't know why this irritates me (it's aesthetic I suppose).

Another example (for me) are the farm animals like chickens and ducks. I waited a long time before collecting those because I didn't like the little mounds of plastic they stand on. We all have our pet peeves I suppose. I've only recently broken down and purchased the ducks and chickens, along with the baby-animal-"group" models like the raccoons and badgers and hedgehogs, which are all attached to each other by means of a common piece of plastic. It still kind of makes me shudder.

Thanks Scott for giving me the location of the Learning Express...I have been to the ones in Andover and Northbourough but not Newton. I will try that one. Did you get the Ostrich there???



-Shawn