One of the coolest things about the Truly Me line is all the cool accessories you can purchase for your dolls- like outfits, beds and of course, the pets. But what started the whole Truly Me pet thing?
Let's go back to the year 2000. Me and my sister wasn't born, Girls of the Year weren't a thing, people were freaking out over the digit 1 changing to 2 on the date and Sailor Moon got its' third season dubbed... but with some censoring. Anyways, in 2000, a new face entered the Truly Me line (or American Girl of Today). His name was Coconut, a new toy Westie dog marketed to be every American Girl of Today doll's best friend. Wait. His? Yes. Coconut's gender changed a few times. I'll explain what gender they go by by incarnation!
2001. Lindsey was the Girl of the Year and my sister was born... and Coconut got a makeover. Now, she's a girl, and has a flower leash. That's literally it.
2003. Kailey was Girl of the Year, the live action Sailor Moon series aired (and it was actually pretty good), but there's now an option for those dolls who aren't dog people! Licorice, the black cat, was released.
2004. Kailey was still released, I was in my mom's stomach, American Girl released their first movie and Best Friend doll and.... they also released yet another incarnation of Coconut! Now she has a magnetic mouth. Wow.
2008. Mia was Girl of the Year, American Girl's first theatrical movie came out, and Licorice was... retired? Yes, retired. Because she had to make room for what came in 2009!
What came in 2009, you may ask? Chrissa, Rebecca, Sonali, Gwen... and a bunch of new pets! Not only did Coconut get their third makeover, but three new pets came out: a cat named Ginger and a dog named Sugar and Honey. And now they're gender neutral, so the purchasers can decide!
In 2010, two new pets were released: Pepper the dog and Praline the cat.
In 2011, two more dogs were released: Chocolate Chip and Toasty.
In 2012, Licorice rose from the dead, a new dog named Meatloaf was released and Sugar, Toasty, Ginger and Praline were retired.
2014 brought big changes to the line. Coconut being marketed as a girl and magnetic mouths came back, posability came to the line and all the other My AG dogs were retired in favor of nameless dogs and cats.
More pets kept on being added, but in 2016, Coconut was finally retired at the age of 16. Fun fact: my grandma had a Westie and it died at 16 too, so maybe AG retiring her made sense? Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this post!