Squeeze Or Squeaker Toys
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Toys & Children's Recreation · CPSC Code 1350
Stable over 5 years
The verdict
Squeeze Or Squeaker Toys carry a danger score of 27/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 71 ER-treated injuries a year that are roughly flat over the last five years.
- 27/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 71
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 7.3%
- end in hospital admission
- 5-14
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1350 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 27/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for squeeze or squeaker toys - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume71 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)7.3%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend+7%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Squeeze Or Squeaker Toys (CPSC product code 1350, in the Toys & Children's Recreation category) generate an estimated 71 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 851 ER-treated injuries across the 18-year span from 2007 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 27/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are roughly flat over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (216 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2021 (6 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for squeeze or squeaker toys is ingestion to the internal, accounting for approximately 367 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by poisoning to the all parts body (239 cases). The 5-14 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 503 cases over the NEISS window, and females appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 7.3% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 24 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how squeeze or squeaker toys fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2007–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 221 | 111 | |
| 5-14 | 215 | 288 | |
| 55-64 | 16 | 0 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Internal | Ingestion | |
| All Parts Body | Poisoning | |
| Ear | Foreign Body | |
| All Parts Body | Other | |
| Face | Foreign Body | |
| Finger | Other | |
| Elbow | Fracture | |
| Hand | Other |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
9YOF PRESENTS TO ED FOR EVAL OF CHEMICAL INGESTION. PT WAS AT SCHOOL AND WAS PLAYING WITH A SQUEEZE TOY SPECIFICALLY THE NEEDO CHICA DEEDOS STRESS SQUEEZE TOY. THE TOY BROKE AND SHE GOT SOME OF THE LIQUID INSIDE OF IT INTO HER MOUTH. STS SHE HAD SOME MILD ABDOMINAL DISCOMFORT SINCE THIS TIME. NO NAUSEA OR VOMITING. DX: SWALLOWED FOREIGN BODY
4YOF - PATIENT PRESENT FOR FOREIGN BODY. PT PUT *** INTO HER EAR. DX: FOREIGN BODY IN EAR
19MOF SWALLOWED THE SQUEAKER OF A SMALL PLASTIC SQUEAKER TOY DX: FOREIGN BODY INGESTION
5YOF, PLAY WITH A SQUISHY TOY IN THE SHAPE OF CHERRY AND ACCIDENTALLY SWALLOWED IT THEN DEVELOP DIARRHEA AND SOME VOMITING EPISODES WITH MUCUS DX: SWALLOWED FOREIGN BODY
10MOM PRESENTS TO THE ED AFTER THE PATIENT WAS PLAYING WITH A SQUISHY, SQUEEZE PLASTIC TOY WITH SUBSTANCE IN MIDDLE OF TOY IN THE BACK SEAT OF THE CAR AND PARENTS ARE CONCERNED PATIENT MAY HAVE SWALLOWED SOME OF THE SUBSTANCE/FILLING IN MIDDLE OF TOY. DX: ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF SUBSTANCE
15MOF- 2 DAYS AGO PT BEGAN VOMITING CONCERN FOR POSSIBLE INGESTION VOMITED HAD RUBBER IN IT PT WAS PLAYING WITH A RUBBER TOY. DX: ESOPHAGEAL FB.
3YOM PUT A SMALL BALL FROM A SQUISH TOY IN HIS LEFT EAR. DX: FOREIGN BODY IN EAR.
5YOM SWALLOWED A MOCHI SQUISHY YESTERDAY AROUND 1500. FOSTER MOM CONTACTED POISON CONTROL AND WAS INFORMED NO POISON AND WOULD LIKELY PASS ON ITS OWN. PT WOKE AT 0130 WITH STOMACH PAIN. DX: SWALLOWED FOREIGN BODY
8YOM PRESENTING W POSSIBLE SWALLOWED FOREIGN BODY OF A MOCHI SQUISHY TOY DX SWALLOWED FOREIGN BODY
7YOF-MOM STATES PT SWALLOWED A TOY GUMMY EYEBALL APPROX 30 MINTUTES AGO NO DISTRESS NOTED DX; SWALLOWD FOREIGN BODY
10YOM STUCK A PIECE OF SQUEAKER OFF OF DOG'S TOY IN EAR--DX:FOREIGN BODY EAR
5YOM HAS SQUISHY TOY, CUT IT OPEN & PUT GREEN GEL BALL INTO R EAR. DX FB OF R EAR
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
Consumer stated that the toy contains squishy contents, then these tiny fibers is used to pour on it in a cup, and shake it up, but the instruction stated that it should not come in contact with your skin. After shaking it up and cup is open the fibers flies everywhere. Consumer stated that she feels that this toy is unsafe due to the fact that it is designed for 3-year-olds and that they would not understand that they should not touch the fibers.
Unexpected rupture of a squeeze toy during normal use A 6-year-old Patient was engaged in routine play when a squeeze toy that was ordered from a system-approved catalog burst unexpectedly. The patient was exposed to liquid from the ruptured squeeze toy, and it entered both of her eyes Assessment: Patient experienced immediate eye discomfort, and her eyes started swelling. The attending anesthesiologists were immediately notified. The patients eyes were irrigated with sterile normal saline and assessed for any gross ocular injury. Although the patient was stable afterwards, her surgery was canceled, and she was sent to an eye specialist at [REDACTED] Childrens Hospital for further evaluation.
We purchased Garanimals 6 piece sea creatures bath squirt toys. These toys have a small hole in them to collect and squirt water. However, there is no way to clean these toys as they never truly dry. After cutting one open, they was a disgusting collection of mold. We had to throw away about 12 of these toys due to mold.
My grandson has a Squeezie Plush toy by BMi that was filled with many little jelly type little balls. The toy is made to be squeezed. While he was squeezing it the toy bursted open and the little balls from the inside all started coming out. If a smaller child had this toy this may happen before a parent notices causing a choking hazard if they are put in the mouth. The little balls are very colorful and can appear to be candy to a child.
I purchased a pig splat ball made by Jaru, with item #35303 printed next to the company logo. My 7 year old was squeezing it in her hands, and it popped through the nose of the pig and squirted her in the eyes. The chemical liquid inside burned her eyes terribly, and was extremely painful. She could not even open her eyes due to the intense pain. We immediately flushed out her eyes with water. They remained painful, swollen and bloodshot for a long period afterwards. As I was cleaning up the liquid I could smell a strong chemical that smelled like acetone. Wanting to know exactly what just went into my daughters eyes, I tasted a drop of the liquid to see if the chemicals were coming from the outer rubber ball or from the liquid. The liquid definitely has very strong chemicals in it that are NOT safe for children. My tongue burned and stung for over 30 minutes where I placed one drop of liquid.
I had a Needoh drop in my car that belongs to my child. I picked up the toy to move it off the seat so my daughter didn't sit on it. As i picked up the toy the boiling hot gel inside came pouring out all over my bare hand. It was sticky like glue and i couldn't get the burning to stop due to the stickiness. I now have second degree burns on my right hand and fingers from the hot gel. There was no foul play, the item was not being used in a way that was not intended. There is now glue like gel all over my car due to me trying desperately to get out off my hand to stop the burning.
2 yo but into her sisters Moody face stress dolls and choked on a piece of the rubber casing and inhaled/swallowed the white powder inside.
My daughter (age 8) was using the Needoh Cool Cats pink squishy toy made by Schylling. She was squeezing it like it was a stress ball in the way it was marketed. The toy burst, causing nearly all of the foam-like filler to shoot out of the toy, most of which went directly into my daughter's eye. Once we were able to clear away the foam she reported her vision was very dark in her left eye (where the foam went). She was unable to identify shapes, objects, number of fingers held up, etc. She was examined at the emergency room and there was no issue they could see. The problem persisted about 12 hours after the incident and then the vision did clear up the following day.
Showing 8 of 24 reports.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to squeeze or squeaker toys on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are squeeze or squeaker toys?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, squeeze or squeaker toys have a danger score of 27/100 (low risk). An estimated 71 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from squeeze or squeaker toys?
The most common injury is ingestion to the internal, accounting for approximately 367 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from squeeze or squeaker toys increasing or decreasing?
Stable over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for squeeze or squeaker toys injuries?
The 5-14 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 503 cases recorded over 20 years. Females are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by squeeze or squeaker toys?
Of all ER visits involving squeeze or squeaker toys, approximately 7.3% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (92.7%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with squeeze or squeaker toys?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Toys & Children's Recreation
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 27/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 5-14 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
