Stuffed Animal Medical Kit

My youngest preschooler is getting into pretend play lately.   “Wah, wah!” he’ll say.  “Baby Tiger is crying…” Then he will hold his stuffed tiger close and tell him it’s okay.  His big sister has been into taking care of her stuffed animals for a long time now, and now her brother is getting in on the action — feeding the animals in the play kitchen, or trying to nurse them back to health when they’re ill.

I wanted them to have all the necessities to keep their stuffed animals healthy, so I threw together a little “stuffed animal medical kit” for them to use during their pretend play.

A quick tour of the medicine cabinets gave me plenty of goodies to get started.  I found a couple eye droppers that I had saved “just in case,” an extra wide, super long Ace bandage from one of the husband’s knee surgeries, Q-tips, and itty-bitty band-aids that just are too small for anything that actually require a band-aid.

In the kitchen I found 2 other medicine droppers without the squishy part – perfect for giving pretend shots!  I also found some craft sticks for tongue depressers, and with a little permanent marker a couple became thermometers.  Finally, I decided two small containers with snap on lids would function for various medicines.

I cut a couple small strips from the Ace bandage, rolled them up, and put all the items in a little zippered bag.  I was anxious to see their reaction the next time they played with their animals and I pulled out the little medical kit.

I never dreamed my thrown together kit would keep them entertained for so long!

For over 40 minutes they took temperatures, gave shots, and applied bandages to their stuffed babies.

Their little medical kit has acquired a few other additions since I first put it together:  2 small magnifying glasses and plastic tweezers.  I love finding new uses for things that are just laying around the house, especially when it inspires their imaginations!

Any sick stuffed animals at your place?   Send them this way; the doctors are in!

For more pretend play ideas check out the following posts:

• Playdough Cookie Shop
• Build Your Own Castle Playhouse
• 20 Fun Ideas for Pretend Play from Kids Activities Blog