Help! How do I get a band-aid off of a beloved stuffed animal?

Newborns & Infants Other Newborns & Infants
1

Hi Moms,

I had the brillant idea of putting a band-aid on my 3 year old son's beloved stuffed animal to show him that it does not hurt and will protect his wound. Not only did he not buy into the idea, now the band-aid is stuck on the stuffed animal in a spot and I do not know how to get it off. This, of course, is his comfort object whom he sleeps with and whom I need to be very gentle with b/c she is sooooooo important to our family.

As a side note, he stubbed/cut the top his big toe several days ago and I am keeping it clean but he keeps re-injuring it b/c he won't let me put a band-aid on it to protect it. It also is bleeding all over my house! Any suggestions?

2

I'm not sure what to do about the band-aid on the stuffed animal, except to maybe try to wash it? If he'll let you, tie it in a pillow case and see if that gets the spot off.

About the toe, have you seen that liquid band-aid? It puts a protective "coating" (for lack of a better word) over the wound. Then he won't have an actual band-aid, but it will be protected from re-injury and no blood on the carpet/furniture.

Hope this helps.

3

Goo Gone is good at getting stickers off of clothes (usually after they've accidently gone through the washing machine). It might help. You can probably find it at Target or Walmart - it's a brown oily liquid sold in a small bottle.

4

I can't help with the animal either, sorry. However my 3 year old is terrified of bandages too.

I got the tattoo band aids, he happens to love "Cars" which these were. They don't look like band aids,they are a diamond shape, and they have his favorite characters on them. We call then stickers, which he loves. He fought a little bit the first time I did it but loves getting to pick the character and showing off his "stickers" (they are usually on his knees) he has even corrected moms in playgroup who called them band aids, "no their my stickers"

Good luck!

5

I am unsure if you can put it on young children, but the product, Second Skin, is a liquid bandage. It stings for a second when you apply it, but it DEFINITELY works!
Hope this helps..

6

I actually just had the same thing happen to my son, the toe part at least. He HATES band-aids and wouldn't let me put anything on his cut. I finally started putting the product "new-skin" on the wound while he was sleeping and it immedietly started to heal. Not sure about the stuffed animal! You'll probably just have to pick it off as best you can.

7

no help with the stuffed animal, sorry. but as for the toe - my husband is an MD, and swears by putting a thin layer of crazy glue over the kids superficial cuts if they won't wear a band aid - it forms a protective layer over the skin, and wears off after a couple of days. you just obviously have to be careful of what they come into contact with till it dries.
good luck.

(liquid band aid is just slightly modified crazy glue)

8

Rubbing alcohol Is what I have used to get the adhesive off my skin after my C-section- it will not leave a lasting residue on stuffy. As far as the toe goes how about liquid bandage or new skin it will sting for a minute but should protect him and your house for at least a few days or you can try a styptic pencil that men use for cuts when shaving I hope those help. Good luck

9

My 3 year old daughter also has a fear of band aids and screams bloody murder when I try to put on her. She recently had a cut on her arm that started to get infected since she would not wear a band aid. I took her to Walgreens and let her pick out the band aids that she wanted, Dora of course. She still is not a big fan of them but I have managed to get a few on since she picked them out. Good luck.

10

Try rubbing alcohol first and if that doesn't work Goo Gone definitely will (followed by a run in the washing machine).

11

Thank you for asking this question! I kept meaning to try and find a solution for this problem (the band-aids on a beloved animal) and kept forgetting - this was EXACTLY what I was looking for! The band-aids pulled right off! I hope all worked out well for you too!

12

Ive just had this same problem. I put eucalyptus oil all over the bandaid and it easily came off the fur!!

13

We had a sticker on a plush toy and the suggestion of rubbing alcohol worked perfectly!
Thanks!

Syndi Long

14

this just happened to us today, my 3 year old put a bandaid on his teddy after he was hurt, kind of after my suggestion to put something on it…it was stuck on good, I put nail polish remover directly on the bandaid which was already wet just from water…it came off like magic super fast and easy!

15

This was very helpful! Just happened this morning when my daughter out a band aid on her favorite stuffed animal. It wouldn’t come off. Then I read the responses on this site. I used the rubbing alcohol & the band did came off immediately!!! Thank you for the help!

16

HOW TO REMOVE STUBBORN BANDAGES FROM STUFFED-ANIMALS & PLUSH TOYS

Don’t worry, this method using rubbing alcohol WILL work! Instead of panicking, just tell your child that their beloved stuffed animal needs their special doctoring skills for their first surgery: a Bandaid-ectomy! Try to make this a fun learning experience instead of a stressful one. This will only take about 5-10 minutes to complete once your materials are assembled. My 5 y/o daughter performed this operation entirely by herself (with my direction), and feels immensely satisfied and empowered by her successful effort.

Here are the supplies you’ll need:

  1. rubbing alcohol
  2. Q-tip
  3. small bowl
  4. flat-tipped tweezers
  5. color-safe work surface, like a tray.

NOTE: it is possible that alcohol may remove some color or cause it to bleed, so test first on a hidden section of material, and proceed slowly and with care. However, I have tested this on a number of plush toys in all different colors (including bright red), and not one had any damage or bleeding of color at all. Even if color does bleed a bit, the plush toy itself will not be damaged (unless a part of it is glued together: think glued-on plastic googly-eyes).

A BONUS: Alcohol dries/evaporates quickly, and the minimal odor of the alcohol will also dissipate quickly for a no-mess solution!

STEP 1
Pour a small amount (~1 tablespoon) of rubbing alcohol in a small bowl or cup. Using a Q-tip, dip in alcohol and swab entire outer surface of bandage, especially the perimeter edges. Wait 10-15 seconds for alcohol to dissolve bandage adhesive.

STEP 2
Using flat-tipped tweezers (NOT point tweezers, which are more likely to accidentally grab material and damage it), gently scrape the edge of the bandage using just one end of the tweezers (in open position) until a small portion of the bandage is lifted. Then using both ends (in closed position), gently grab the bandage and slowly lift until the entire bandage is removed. Gently rub fur to re-fluff it, and PRESTO! The animal is all better now!

If bandage resists removal, or breaks into smaller pieces which remain stuck, simply reapply alcohol (STEP 1) and continue removing with tweezers until it’s all gone. Just be patient, this WILL work!

Alternative Method Without Tweezers:
If you don’t have tweezers, cut the bandage in half through the middle of the section with the absorbent pad (where there is no adhesive). This will give you a small place to grab the bandage with your fingers to lift it.

17

I love this website, thanks for all the good advice! The rubbing alcohol worked to get the sticker off the stuffed animal and I also used the “new skin” liquid bandage on his cut while he was sleeping (which I feel a little guilty about) and just blew on it for about a minute to cut the sting.