If you like a bit of colour in your life… you should try a Streeler

Anything that changes colour on a regular basis – a bit like a rather groovy lava lamp – is definitely brilliant in our books. So Streelers are very much up our street. A huge snail that changes colour hourly would be great as a kaleidoscopic pet and would definitely inject some colour into anyone’s life.

It is worth mentioning that Streelers are known for their more dangerous side as well. They leave a snail trail in their wake that instantly destroys any organic matter, so it’s maybe best to keep them off the carpet and away from the dinner table. Streelers are handy, however, for dealing with pesky Horklumps, which will infest any garden very quickly, and it’s always good to have some kind of pest control on hand – especially one as colourful as a Streeler.

If you like doing puzzles… you should try a sphinx

Don’t you hate it when you’re doing a crossword and there’s just one word left but you’re completely and utterly stumped? Having a sphinx by your side would have it solved in a nanosecond, as these magnificent creatures are renowned for being super-brainy. They’re particularly big fans of any mental games or conundrums you put to them.

While you may be cheating just a teensy little bit, we don’t think anyone would hold it against you. Crosswords are hard, you know?

If you like loyalty… you should have a Kneazle

You’re probably already acquainted with a pretty important Kneazle – Crookshanks! Well, he’s technically half-Kneazle, but his Kneazle side was very strong as he was way more intelligent than the average cat (and Crookshanks was certainly no average cat). For example, not long after Hermione acquired him, he had already worked out that Scabbers was not just a simple rat…

Kneazles are cat-like in appearance and bear a lot of similarities to felines, but their brains and outsized ears stand them apart. Hermione was lucky with Crookshanks – he took an instant liking to her – but some Kneazles aren’t so quick to befriend humans and there has to be a connection there for a Kneazle to be faithful to a witch or wizard.

If you want the dog equivalent to a Kneazle then it’s worth checking out Crups, which are fairly similar to Jack Russell terriers, except for their forked tail.

If you are health-conscious… you should try a Murtlap

By this we mean literally try a Murtlap. When pickled and consumed, Murtlap tentacles strengthen any witch or wizard’s immunity to jinxes and curses. This seems awfully useful to us, especially if you’re someone who regularly finds themselves in combat – surely a perfect snack for an Auror? It seems important to note, however, that an overdose of pickled Murtlap may result in some fairly unsightly purple ear hair, so it’s definitely best to limit yourself…

While alive, Murtlaps are quite rowdy creatures – we saw one attack Jacob Kowalski in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, for example. This is probably because they’re regularly pickled and made into a wizarding health food. You can’t really blame them for being a bit miffed about that.

If you’re a fan of dancing… you should try a Mooncalf

Their name gives the game away a bit: Mooncalves only come out at the full moon. But honestly, they’re worth staying up past your bedtime for, because not only are they absolute sweethearts but their dancing would make Celestina Warbeck blush. Okay, not really, but their dancing is still pretty cute…

Mooncalves normally perform their strange dance (done entirely on their hind legs) at the start of their species’ mating ritual. What’s even more entertaining is the baffled Muggles who wake up the next day and discover their wheat fields have been disturbed by some kind of… well, mysterious creature.

If you are passionate about decorating… you should try a Clabbert

Much like Streelers, Clabberts are a great way of decorating your house with a splash of colour. On the front of their heads is a large boil which can turn bright red and start flashing in the presence of danger. Because of this, Clabberts can be a rather nifty decoration, particularly for a Christmas tree, and something that will definitely get the neighbours talking.

Clabberts were formerly used by wizards in the US to detect any unsuspecting Muggles but as this doesn’t sound very safe, the International Confederation of Wizards have since phased it out. Additionally, if you’re going to use Clabberts for decorating purposes then it’s probably best to remove them from your tree after December, because you might draw attention to the fact you’ve got a fully illuminated Christmas tree in the middle of summer…

If you want to save the environment… you should have a Bowtruckle

Bowtruckles may be adorable – just see Newt’s favourite pal, Pickett – but they’re a force to be reckoned with if you try to do anything to their home tree. For the environmentally conscious among us, Bowtruckles are a dream: fiercely protective of their home and very feisty.

They are fairly similar to Porlocks, which guard horses instead of trees and are just as shy and reserved as Bowtruckles. They don’t easily warm to humans, but that’s not their job; the same goes for Bowtruckles (although you can be lucky, like Newt was with Pickett) and both do excellent work protecting the environment. They’re important members of the magical animal kingdom.