Pet Rocks and Fake Wishbones: 10 Weird Items People Have Actually Sold

People are buying and selling the craziest, most unusual items.

In a previous post on some of the weirdest things ever sold, I learned about sales of road kill, excrement art, human kidneys and plots of land on the moon. Readers added to the list, suggesting used panties and breast milk. What could be left?

Well, it seems I missed a few more weird items people have actually sold, like tumbleweeds, paper rocks, flavored bullets and more. Here are 10 more of the strangest items ever sold.

1. Neuticles

What can you do for a pet who is suffering low self-esteem after being neutered? Buy him a set of Neuticles, of course. Their creator describes Neuticles as “the revolutionary testicular implant procedure for pets.” The company claims the fake testicles reduce trauma suffered by pets and their owners from regular neutering procedures.

They’re sold primarily through veterinarians (no do-it-yourself kits yet), although pet owners can also buy them directly and then find a vet who will do the implantation. Customers can choose from four models depending on how firm they want their pet’s testicles to be (I’m not kidding — I couldn’t make this stuff up!). Pet owners can also purchase a bumper sticker that says, “My Dog Loves Neuticles.”

Is this just a crazy idea? Maybe not — the company says it’s sold more than 500,000 pairs.

2. Happy Balls

No relation to the previous item on the list. Happy Balls are small smiley-face foam balls meant to go on your car antenna. HappyBalls.com calls itself “The Antenna Ball Superstore,” and INC Magazine says their foam balls are a million-dollar business. The company claims, “We’ve made over 40 million antenna balls in less than 10 years.”

3. Bacon Candles

The Penny Hoarder has written before about Man Cans, candles with “manly” scents, but it looks like the niche is expanding.

Hotwicks Candles has all of the alternative scents you didn’t know you wanted in a candle. Yes, bacon is one of them. Here are three more scents to choose from:

• Beer
• Sawdust
• Urinal cake (seriously)

4. Fake Wishbones

The technical name for a bird’s wishbone is the furcula, according to MentalFloss.com. The tradition of two people breaking it to see who gets the bigger half — and their wish — goes way back to the ancient Etruscans in Italy. But what if you want to make a wish but you don’t have a full chicken or turkey? Get a fake wishbone!

That’s right. LuckyBreakWishbone.com has announced a “Revolutionary Advance in Plastic Wishbone Technology.” A pack of four wishbones made of plastic will set you back just about $4, which is only $1 per wish if you get all the lucky breaks.

5. Survivalist Phone Cases

The makers of the TaskOne G3 call it, “the ultimate protective case for your smartphone.” Why? Someone, somewhere must love the idea of keeping his phone in a Swiss Army Knife. If you’ve been waiting for a phone case that has wire strippers, so you can do electrical work while chatting with Mom on speakerphone, this is the case for you. Also included:

• Bottle opener
• Knife
• Ruler
• 3 screwdrivers
• 6 Allen wrenches
• Landscape kickstand

6. Animal Mannequins

This product isn’t as strange as it seems. Dog mannequins aren’t meant for displaying the latest canine fashions in the doggie department of some clothing store (although that’s not a bad idea). The realistic animal mannequins made by Rescue Critters of Van Nuys, California are meant for veterinary training.

It makes great sense: We’d all prefer that veterinarians develop and test their skills on fake cats and dogs before going to work on our beloved pets! Kudos to Rescue Critters, which has been building these valuable training tools for 16 years.

7. Tumbleweeds

Why would people want to buy tumbleweeds? Surprisingly, there are several types of situations where they come in handy, according to the Prairie Tumbleweed Farm in Garden City Kansas:

• On the sets of movies and television shows
• In theater productions
• At Western-themed weddings
• In department-store windows

Large tumbleweeds sell for $25 each, and they’ll ship them anywhere in the world. The company promises customers, “If they don’t tumble, we don’t sell them!”

8. Pet Rocks

It’s back! When the Pet Rock was introduced in the 1970s, the company sold millions. Of course fads come and go, but now, after decades, the original Pet Rock is back.

In 1975 it cost just $3.95. Now you’ll have to pay $19.95, but the “travel crate” has been upgraded and you get a “numbered certificate of authenticity.” In any case, the ongoing costs of caring for a rock makes it cheap compared to any other pet, right? And this time, a couple dollars from each sale goes to help dogs and cats in animal shelters.

9. Flavored Bullets

If you’re going to hunt for your meat, why not flavor it at the same time? That’s the basic idea behind Season Shot. The idea is to have flavored shot in place of steel pellets in shotgun shells.

The website promises that they have five flavors “coming soon,” but the copyright date at the bottom of the page is 2006. Perhaps potential investors shot down the idea.

10. Paper Rocks

For $10 (plus $2 shipping) the Origami Boulder Company of Dallas, Texas will send you a wadded up piece of paper. The “Wadded Paper Origami Boulder with Haiku,” with its addition of poetry, costs $15 plus shipping. Is this is a joke? The website’s FAQ section offers this answer:

You want joke? Look in mirror, you ugly person! This site real. You order wadded paper origami boulder and see for yourself.

And as for how to read the haiku on the wadded-paper boulder, the site says;

You can’t, but it there… You unfold wadded paper, you ruin artwork! Don’t be stupid. Haiku is there. I even write it in English. You not read it though.

Yes, in case you’re wondering; the order form actually works, so you can apparently get your very own origami boulder if you wish.

Your Turn: What is the strangest thing you have seen for sale?