What are Zu Zu Pets? They’re little, furry robot gerbils that make noise and move. Sounds pretty simple. How can this possible the hottest toy of the holidays? I don’t know. I mean, look at what past toys topped the list: Tickle Me Elmo, Furbies, Cabbage Patch Kids. Don’t try to figure out why kids like what they like, just be happy when their toy of choice won’t cost you an arm and a leg.

There are 4 different gerbil styles to choose from and there are many accessories you can buy for them. It’s like the fun of a new pet with the adventure of a railroad set.

The good news is that these Zu Zu Pets (also called Zhu Zhu Pets or GoGo Pets) generally cost just around $9.00. The bad news is that the production of these toys isn’t keeping up with the high demand. So these $9.00 little toys are being sold on eBay for upwards to $50.00! And that’s before Black Friday.

If demand keeps going up, the “black market” price will too. Let’s hope the company increases production in time so that we can all find them for a reasonable price at our local Toys ‘R Us.