Have you ever bought your pet a toy you were certain they’d love… only for them to sniff it once and walk away?
If you’ve experienced that, you’re in good company.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned since being a pet parent is that choosing enrichment isn’t simply about buying a toy. It’s about understanding the individual animal you’re buying it for.
That belief has shaped Every Tail® from the very beginning. Before I sourced a single product, I wanted to create a way to help owners look beyond species and breed, and instead focus on what naturally motivates their own pet.
The inspiration came from watching the animals around me.
Cairo and Rain are both Bengals, but they couldn’t have been more different in the way they experienced the world.
Cairo was an Adventurer through and through. She was always looking for something new. An open door, a cardboard box or an open window wasn’t just part of the house—it was an invitation to explore. Curiosity seemed to shape everything she did.
Rain is an Acrobat. Give him something to climb and he’s in his element. He seems to live for showing you just how high he can jump, how effortlessly he can scale a cat tree and how gracefully he can flip onto the highest perch he can find.
They were the same breed, lived in the same home and had access to many of the same enrichment, yet what excited them was completely different. Watching them made me realise that choosing enrichment wasn’t just about buying something for a cat. It was about understanding the individual animal.
That idea became the foundation of The Every Tail® Play Personality System®.
Looking Beyond Species
Walk into most pet shops and you’ll find products organised by species. Cat toys. Dog toys. Reptile accessories. It’s a sensible place to start, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. Not every cat enjoys the same style of play. Not every dog wants to fetch. Not every reptile interacts with enrichment in the same way.
That’s why choosing enrichment can sometimes feel frustrating. You’ve bought a toy with glowing reviews.
Your pet sniffs it once…
…and walks away.
It doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve chosen the wrong toy. It may simply not match what captures your pet’s interest. That’s why we take a different approach.
We ask 'what motivates this individual pet? That simple shift changes everything.
What Is The Every Tail Play Personality System®?
The Every Tail Play Personality System® is our framework for helping owners understand the different ways pets engage with play and enrichment. It’s built around observation.
A way of recognising the behaviours your pet returns to time and time again, making it easier to choose enrichment that reflects who they are as an individual.
🪄 Not sure which Play Personality sounds most like your pet?
Our free 2-minute Play Personality Quiz takes the guesswork out of choosing enrichment and helps you discover the instinct that most naturally drives your pet’s play.
👉 Take the Play Personality Quiz
Meet Our Cat Play Personalities
🐆 The Shikar
Shikars are driven by the thrill of the hunt. They love opportunities to stalk, chase, pounce and capture. Toys that move unpredictably and activities that encourage hunting behaviours often become firm favourites. If that sounds familiar, you might have a Shikar on your hands. Think realistic feather wands, interactive prey toys and games that encourage stalking and pouncing.
🌟 The Adventurer
Adventure itself is enrichment. Adventurers are naturally curious and always seem to be investigating something new. A cardboard box. An open cupboard. A shopping bag left on the floor.
For these cats, discovering their world is all part of the fun. Cat tunnels, exploration spaces and regularly refreshing their environment can help satisfy that curiosity.
💠 The Acrobat
Acrobats see your home very differently to you. The tallest cat tree. The top of the wardrobe. A sunny window perch. If there’s somewhere to climb, balance or observe from above, they’ll probably find it. Many Acrobats are happiest when they’re given opportunities to climb, perch and experience the world from above.
🌸 Sophisticat™
Sophisticats often enjoy slower, calmer forms of enrichment. Comfort, interesting textures, sensory experiences and peaceful moments can be just as rewarding as energetic games.
Meet Our Dog Play Personalities
🏅 The Olympian
Olympians love movement. Running, chasing, tugging and active games give them an outlet for all that enthusiasm. Long tug sessions, fetch and energetic interactive play often become favourites.
🌲The Trailblazer
For Trailblazers, every walk is an adventure. They’re drawn to scents, exploring their surroundings and investigating everything the world has to offer. Sometimes the journey is far more exciting than the destination.
Sniffaris, scent trails and opportunities to investigate at their own pace often suit Trailblazers beautifully.
🧠 The Mastermind
Masterminds enjoy working things out. Food puzzles, treat-dispensing toys and learning new cues give them opportunities to think as well as play. Mental enrichment is often just as rewarding as physical exercise.
🌈 The Wild Card
Wild Cards keep life interesting. They’re playful, spontaneous and often invent games all by themselves. Novelty, variety and interactive toys help keep their playful minds engaged.
Meet Our Reptile Play Personalities
🌍 The Rover
Rovers are curious explorers who enjoy investigating the world around them. Enclosure changes, supervised exploration and new environments often capture their attention.
🦎 The Ambusher
Ambushers remind us that enrichment isn’t always active. They spend time watching, waiting and choosing exactly the right moment to move. Their calm, patient approach is part of what makes them so fascinating to observe.
🌿 The Tree Walker
Tree Walkers make the most of height. Branches, climbing structures and elevated basking spots allow them to interact with their environment in ways that suit them.
🌱 The Geomancer
Geomancers have a close relationship with the ground beneath them. Digging, burrowing and interacting with different substrates are often important parts of how they explore their environment.
Providing suitable digging opportunities can become valuable enrichment for these personalities.
Can Pets Have More Than One Play Personality?
Absolutely. Most pets show a blend of different traits. Skye loves hunting games, but he also enjoys climbing to a favourite perch once playtime is over. Rain lives for climbing, yet he’s never one to turn down an interactive game.
Our Play Personality Quiz identifies the motivation that stands out most, while recognising that every pet is wonderfully individual.
Your Pet Will Tell You Everything You Need to Know
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that our pets are constantly showing us what they enjoy. We just have to slow down enough to notice. Notice the toy they come back to. Notice where they choose to spend their afternoon. Notice what they do when nobody is asking anything of them.
Those everyday moments often reveal more than any product description ever could. The more we observe, the better we understand.
A New Chapter: Small Furry Play Personalities
The Play Personality System is still growing, we’re currently developing our Play Personalities for rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and other small furries. So far, we’ve identified four developing personality themes:
• The Scout — Curious explorers who always seem keen to investigate something new.
• The Rocket — Full of energy, zoomies and bursts of playful exploration.
• The Tracker — Small furries who love following scents, foraging and discovering hidden treats.
• The Mason — Natural diggers, builders and rearrangers who enjoy shaping the world around them.
We’re incredibly excited to bring these personalities to life, but we’d love your help. If you share your home with a rabbit, guinea pig, hamster or another small furry, we’d love to hear from you. Whatever makes your small furry uniquely them, we’d love to know. Drop us an email and tell us their story.
