Target Cat & Jack Children’s Sandals

What went wrong

The notice saysThe sandals' decorative pearls can fall off, posing a risk of serious injury or death from a choking hazard.

The federal small parts rule sets how small a detached piece has to be to count as a choking risk for children under three. Most shoe recalls in this group came after a firm learned that a decoration was coming off; many notices mention only a few reports. Decorations that look sturdy can still loosen with wear, so the notice’s style details are the thing to match.

How to tell if your pair is affected

Product description in the noticeThis recall involves Cat & Jack-branded children’s sandals. The sandals are tan and have two raffia straps with gold buckles and plastic pearls. The brand is printed on the shoe’s sole and bottom. The sandals were sold in sizes 5T through 12T.

The notice gives no style numbers or barcodes, so you match on what it does give: the brand and style (Cat & Jack Children’s Sandals), the sizes (sizes 5T through 12T), the sale period (January 2026 to May 2026), the store (Target) and the “made in” label (Cambodia). If a detail does not line up, the recall contact below can confirm.

What the notice tells you to do

RemedyConsumers should stop using the recalled sandals immediately, take them away from children and contact Target for a full refund. Consumers will be asked to return the sandals to any store or use a prepaid label to return the sandals by mail.

Recall contact, as printed in the notice: Target toll-free at 800-591-3869 from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. CT daily, online at www.target.com/help/articles/news-safety/product-recalls or at www.target.com and click on "Recalls" at the bottom of the page for more information.

CPSC announced this recall 96 days before our data date of October 20, 2026, so most affected pairs are probably still in use. The notice gives a phone number and a website for the firm.

How this recall compares

• With about 211,000 units, this is the 8th largest of the 95 footwear recalls in our archive that give a U.S. unit count. The median recall in the archive covers about 7,200 units, so this one is well above typical size.
• 41 other footwear recalls in the archive cite the same kind of hazard (choking), 41 of them in children’s footwear. The earliest in this group dates from 1993.
• The notice puts the sales window at about 5 months (January 2026 to May 2026), against a median of 7 months across recalls that state one. The recall came 2 months after the last sale date.
• The notice gives a price of $20. For sandals, clogs and flip-flops in the archive the typical stated price is about $24, so this pair sat near the middle of its group.
• The notice cites 23 reports before the recall. 36 of the 95 detailed notices in the archive cite no incidents at all.
• Target appears in 6 other footwear recalls in the archive: Cat & Jack "Himani" and "Jaren" Toddler Boots (2020), Cat & Jack "Lilia" Rain Boots (2019), Cat & Jack Unicorn "Chiara" Boots (2019).

Year, part, store and origin

• 2026 brought 3 footwear recalls in our archive, covering about 212,865 units in all. This was the 3rd of the year by date and the 1st largest by units.
• The notice names the pearl as the part that fails. No other footwear recall in the archive names that part in its hazard statement.
• Sold at Target. 8 other footwear recalls in the archive also list Target as a seller; the most recent is Western Chief toddler light-up rain boots (2020).
• Made in Cambodia. 1 of the 91 notices in the archive that name a country list Cambodia (1%).
• 23 reports on about 211,000 units works out to roughly 11 reports per 100,000 units. The median across the 55 recalls that give both figures is 16, so this recall drew fewer reports per pair than most.
• At the stated price, the 211,000 units come to roughly $4.2 million of retail sales, one of the ten largest recalls in the archive.

Comparisons use the 103 footwear recalls in our archive, read from the CPSC recall database on October 20, 2026. See data and methods.