Chia Pet

Chia Pets are a brand of collectible animal figurines manufactured and originated by the San Francisco, California based company Joseph Enterprises, Inc. Chia Pets achieved widespread popularity in the 1980s following the 1982 release of a ram, the first Chia Pet. Subsequent decline in popularity has relegated these objects to fad status. The catch-phrase related to the Chia Pet, sung in the commercial as the plant grows, is "Ch-ch-ch-chia!"

Chia Pets are grown by applying moistened seeds of chia (Salvia hispanica), the aromatic annual from whose common name the Chia Pet gets its name, to the clay, grooved figurine body. After three to five days consisting of filling and refilling the Chia Pet with water as well as discarding water that has accumulated in the provided drip tray, the seeds sprout, having formed a gelatinous coat that adheres to the Chia Pet's body. At this point, little effort is required to maintain the Chia Pet, whose plant counterpart grows into a verdurous covering.

Enough S. hispanica seeds are provided with the Chia Pet for three plantings. Additional seeds can be purchased for use with the Chia vessel, which is reclaimable. Several Chia Pet animals are currently available, including a turtle, pig, puppy, kitten, frog, and hippopotamus. Sculpted "Chia Heads" and "Licensed Chia Pets" based on popular cartoon characters like Garfield, Scooby Doo, Looney Tunes, Shrek, and The Simpsons can also be found.

Chia Collectibles Timeline

• 1982 Wave 1 Original Chiapet (later called Chia Ram) introduced.
• 198x Wave 2 Chia Bull, Chia Puppy, Chia Kitten, and Chia Tree introduced.
• 1993 Wave 3 Chia Bunny, Chia Turtle, and Chia Herb Garden introduced.
• 1995 Wave 4 Chia Pig, Chia Frog, Chia Hippo, and original Chia Head (later called Chia Guy) introduced. Chia Ram and Chia Bull discontinued.
• 1996 Wave 5 Chia Elephant, Chia Kid, Chia Professor, Chia Clown and Chia Terra Cotta Herb Garden introduced. Chia Herb Garden discontinued.
• 1998 Wave 6 Chia Cow and Chia Lion Cub introduced.
• 2000 Wave 7 Chia Dinosaur, Chia Elmer Fudd, Chia Taz, and Chia Tweety introduced. "Watch-Me-Grow Chia Cards" included. Chia Mr. T issued briefly for TV Land promotion.
• 2002 Wave 8 Chia Scooby-Doo, Chia Shaggy, and Chia Homer introduced. "Watch-Me-Grow Chia Cards" discontinued.
• 2003 Wave 9 Chia Bugs Bunny, Chia Daffy Duck, and Chia Bart introduced.
• 2004 Wave 10 Chia Shrek, Chia Donkey, Chia Garfield, Chia Cat Grass Planter, and Gourmet Chia Herb Garden introduced. Chia Terra Cotta Herb Garden discontinued.
• 2006 Wave 11 Chia Bear, Chia Alex and Chia Marty introduced, Chia Ram and Chia Bull reintroduced, Chia Kid, Chia Clown and Chia Lion Cub discontinued, Chia Alarm Clock included with all Chia Pets, Chia Heads and Chia Tree with "25th Anniversary" packaging, Cuddly Chia Puppy and Cuddly Chia Cub introduced.
• 2007 Wave 12 Chia Peters, When Chia Peters was introduced in the beginning of 2007, she was such an upset that the world bought one, there was no reason to truely produce Chia Peters but when her female reletive continued to buy a chia pet for her, the company decided to make a commemerative Chia Peters.

Account of types of Chia Pets

Chia Pets

All include seeds for three plantings and dipping tray. All include "Watch-Me-Grow Chia Card" as of wave 7, excluding Ram and Bull, which were discontinued with wave 4, and Chia Crocodile, which was introduced in wave 10. Watch-Me-Grow Chia Cards discontinued with wave 8. All include a Chia Alarm Clock during wave 11 to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Chia Pet in 2007.

• Chia Ram -- Original Chia Pet (1982), discontinued with wave 4, reintroduced with wave 11.
• Chia Bull -- Wave 2 (198x), discontinued with wave 4, reintroduced with wave 11.
• Chia Puppy -- Wave 2 (198x).
• Chia Kitten -- Wave 2 (198x).
• Chia Bunny -- Wave 3 (1993).
• Chia Turtle -- Wave 3 (1993).
• Chia Pig -- Wave 4 (1995).
• Chia Frog -- Wave 4 (1995).
• Chia Hippo -- Wave 4 (1995).
• Chia Elephant -- Wave 5 (1996).
• Chia Cow -- Wave 6 (1998).
• Chia Dinosaur -- Wave 7 (2000).
• Chia Crocodile -- Wave 10 (2004).
• Chia Bear -- Wave 11 (2006).

Chia Pet Cuddlies

Chia Pet Cuddlies are plush toys with soft fabric "Chia" fur bodies. They play the Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia jingle when a paw is pressed.

• Cuddly Chia Puppy -- Wave 11 (2006).
• Cuddly Chia Cub -- Wave 11 (2006), a bear cub.

Chia Heads

All include seeds for three plantings and dipping tray. Include 'Watch-Me-Grow Chia Card' as of wave 7. "Watch-Me-Grow Chia Cards" disscontinued as of wave 8. Chia Guy and Chia Professor include a Chia Alarm Clock during wave 11 to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Chia Pet in 2007.

• Chia Guy -- Original Chia Head, arrived in wave 4 (1995).
• Chia Kid -- Wave 5 (1996), discontinued with wave 11.
• Chia Professor -- Wave 5 (1996).
• Chia Clown -- Wave 5 (1996), discontinued with wave 11.
• Chia Lion Cub -- Wave 6 (1998), discontinued with wave 11.

Licensed Chia/Famous Chia

All include seeds for three plantings, dipping tray. Looney Tunes planters included "Watch-Me-Grow Chia Card" until cards were discontinued with wave 8. Called Famous Chia as of wave 10.

The A-Team

• Chia Mr. T -- Introduced just before normal selling period of wave 7 (2000). a 'head' type. Limited run only.

Looney Tunes

• Chia Elmer Fudd -- Wave 7 (2000), a 'head' type.
• Chia Taz -- Wave 7 (2000), a 'pet' type.
• Chia Tweety -- Wave 7 (2000), a 'head' type.
• Chia Bugs Bunny -- Wave 9 (2003), a 'head' type.
• Chia Daffy Duck -- Wave 9 (2003), a 'head' type.

Scooby-Doo!

• Chia Scooby-Doo -- Wave 8 (2002), a 'head' type.
• Chia Shaggy -- Wave 8 (2002), a 'head' type.

The Simpsons

• Chia Homer -- Wave 8 (2002), a 'head' type.
• Chia Bart -- Wave 9 (2003), a 'head' type.

Shrek

• Chia Shrek -- Wave 10 (2004), a 'head' type.
• Chia Donkey -- Wave 10 (2004), a 'head' type.

Garfield

• Chia Garfield -- Wave 10 (2004), a 'head' type.

Madagascar

• Chia Alex -- Wave 11 (2006), a 'head' type.
• Chia Marty -- Wave 11 (2006), a 'head' type.

Herb Gardens

All include various things, so each is given a complete listing.

• Chia Herb Garden -- Wave 3 (1993) initial version: six pots (plastic), six saucers (plastic), time-release plant food, growing mix for six pots, six packets of different herb seeds (cilantro, sweet marjoram, sweet basil, chives, curled cress, thyme), six plant markers, recipe book. Discontinued with wave 5 (1996).
• Chia Terra Cotta Herb Garden -- Wave 5 (1996) second version: four pots (terracotta), four saucers (terracotta), four Chia Growing Sponges, six packets of different herb seeds (cilantro, sweet marjoram, basil, chives, dill, parsley), six plant markers, four saucer liners, and recipe book. Discontinued with wave 10 (2004).
• Gourmet Chia Herb Garden -- Wave 10 (2004), includes four pots (terracotta), four saucers (terracotta), four Chia Growing Sponges, six packets of different 'gourmet' herb seeds (cilantro, sweet marjoram, sweet basil, chives, dill, curled parsley), six plant markers, four saucer liners, and recipe book.

Other

• Chia Tree -- Wave 2 (198x), includes seeds for three plantings and dipping tray, can be used as a candle holder. Included 'Watch-Me-Grow Chia Card' as of wave 7, but no longer as of wave 8. Includes a Chia Alarm Clock during wave 11 to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Chia Pet in 2007.
• Chia Cat Grass Planter -- Wave 10 (2004), features Sylvester and Tweety on the planter. Includes Chia Growing Mix, Cat Grass seeds (a mix of sweet oat and wheat grass) for three plantings, and a plastic saucer. The purpose of the Chia Cat Grass Planter is to give something tasty and nutritious for your feline housemates to eat, other than your Chia-Pets.

Watch-Me-Grow Chia Cards

Available from 2000-2001, with most Chia products (except for the Terra Cotta Herb Garden). A Watch-Me-Grow Chia Card displays a changing image of the Chia item it was packaged with in various stages of growth, from the bare Terra Cotta statue, to the fully grown image normally displayed on the packaging. During the time they were available, the cards were rubber-pasted to the front of the packaging, where the usual product image was normally located, though still sealed under the outer layer of shrink-wrap. Watch-Me-Grow Chia Cards were available depicting the following items: Chia Puppy, Chia Kitten, Chia Bunny, Chia Turtle, Chia Pig, Chia Frog, Chia Hippo, Chia Elephant, Chia Cow, Chia Dinosaur, Chia Guy, Chia Kid, Chia Professor, Chia Clown, Chia Lion Cub, Chia Elmer Fudd, Chia Taz, Chia Tweety, and Chia Tree.

Chia Alarm Clock

Available packaged with all Chia Pets, the two remaining Chia Heads, and the Chia Tree during wave 11 in 2006 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Chia Pet. The Chia Alarm Clock is a small plastic LCD alarm clock resembling Chia Puppy at full growth, and plays the Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia jingle as its alarm function.

World's Largest Chia Pet Project

Jamestown, ND, home of the World's Largest Buffalo, is currently in process of transforming the bison sculpture into the World's Largest Chia Pet, nicknamed the 'Chiaffalo'. The project has no set date, however according to information on the project's homepage, Chiaffalo.com, it will likely take place during the summer of 2008, when the city celebrates its 125th anniversery.

External links

• Official Chia Pet website of Joseph Enterprises, Inc.
• The History of Chia Pets
• News.com: "Chia Pet seeks Web name ch-ch-change"
• Chiaffalo.com: World's Largest Chia Pet Project