Toys R Us Advertises Zhu Zhu Pet Sale, Forgets to Stock Zhu Zhu Pets

For months now, Zhu Zhu Pets have been touted as the hot toy of the Christmas season. The little interactive hamsters run around on a track, zoom down slides and spin around in their little hamster wheels. Promoted as "so real without the mess," the tiny rodents are at the top of lots of children's Christmas wish lists this year.

Of course, for many kids, Zhu Zhu Pets will remain an unfulfilled wish. As with other hot holiday gifts of the past, Zhu Zhu Pets are in demand and hard to find, which is why a Toys R Us email advertisement promising early-bird customers the opportunity to buy a Zhu Zhu Pet was met with such excitement.

A screen-shot on The Consumerist shows the ad, which proudly proclaims "We've Got 'em" and has details on how to get the hottest toy of the year. Guaranteeing the first 50 households the chance to buy one on Sunday, November 8, the ad encourages customers to "get there early."

A man named Arnold went to great lengths to get there early and was surprised to find that his local Toys R Us wasn't even open. What's more, when it did open, there were no Zhu Zhu Pets to be found. After double-checking that his store was in fact a participation location, Arnold realized he'd been had.

What happened? Was this part of an evil plot to increase the demand for the toy rodents even more? Or just a localized mistake? Whatever it was, one thing is for sure: the Zhu Zhu Pets phenomenon is out of control. The $10 toys are selling for around $30 on E-bay and closer to $50 on Amazon.

Have you got your Zhu Zhu Pets yet?