How to Choose Pet Enrichment Products in 2026

Pet owners are increasingly looking beyond basic feeding and grooming products. In 2026, enrichment has become an important part of everyday pet care, with owners looking for products that keep pets mentally stimulated, physically active, and engaged.

Recent research covering 2,708 pet owners across the US, UK, Canada, Australia, France, Mexico, and Brazil found that mental stimulation was the leading purchase driver for enrichment products, followed by reducing stress or anxiety and encouraging physical activity.

For pet retailers, distributors, and private-label brands, this creates an opportunity to expand beyond traditional toys. But how should you choose the right pet enrichment products for your assortment?

1. Choose Products That Encourage Natural Behaviors

The most useful enrichment products are not simply designed to keep pets busy. They should encourage natural behaviors such as chasing, chewing, scratching, sniffing, licking, searching, and batting.

For cats, interactive toys, teaser toys, crinkle toys, tunnels, scratching products, and food puzzles can encourage hunting and exploration.

For dogs, treat-dispensing toys, chew toys, sniffing games, slow feeders, and interactive puzzles can provide both physical and mental stimulation.

When selecting products for your range, consider one simple question:

What natural behavior does this product encourage?

A product with a clear behavioral benefit can be easier for retailers to explain and easier for consumers to understand.

2. Prioritize Mental Stimulation

Mental stimulation is becoming an important selling point in the pet accessories category. The latest enrichment research shows that 27% of surveyed pet owners primarily seek products that provide mental stimulation.

This means simple products can still have strong potential if they create interaction.

For example, a cat toy with moving wings, crinkle paper, different textures, or an unpredictable movement pattern can create more engagement than a completely static toy.

For B2B buyers, look for products where the benefit can be demonstrated quickly through product images or short videos. This makes them particularly suitable for ecommerce, social media, and private-label marketing.

3. Look for Products That Support Everyday Wellbeing

Enrichment is also becoming connected with broader pet wellness.

At Interzoo 2026, health promotion, preventive care, dental care, grooming, smart pet products, and interactive technologies were among the trends highlighted across the pet industry.

This suggests that enrichment products do not have to be limited to traditional toys.

For example, dental chew toys can combine play with oral-care functions. Slow feeders can combine feeding with mental stimulation. Grooming products can turn routine care into a more comfortable experience.

For retailers, products with multiple practical benefits can create clearer value propositions.

4. Consider Sustainability and Product Durability

Sustainability is another factor worth considering when developing a pet product assortment.

The Pet Sustainability Coalition reports that 62% of surveyed pet parents had purchased an environmentally friendly product in the previous month, while 84% believe companies have a responsibility to address climate change.

Meanwhile, research reported by GlobalPETS found that the share of consumers valuing recycled or eco-friendly components in toys and enrichment products increased from 13% in 2025 to 17% in 2026.

For B2B buyers, this means it can be useful to evaluate:

• Material selection
• Product durability
• Packaging
• Reusable or replaceable components
• Manufacturing quality
• Clear material information

Sustainability should be supported by specific product information rather than vague marketing claims.

5. Choose Products That Are Easy to Sell Online

A good enrichment product should not only work well—it should also be easy to demonstrate.

Products with visible movement, interesting textures, interactive functions, or clear before-and-after benefits are particularly suitable for short-form videos and social media content.

This is important because pet shoppers increasingly discover products across ecommerce, social media, reviews, and other digital channels. NIQ also identifies ecommerce, product content, imagery, video, and AI-powered discovery as important parts of the evolving pet-care shopping journey.

For B2B buyers, products that are easy to photograph, demonstrate, and explain can reduce the difficulty of launching a new SKU.

6. Build a Balanced Enrichment Assortment

Instead of selecting many similar toys, retailers can build a more balanced product range.

For example:

Interactive Toys – movement and play

Puzzle Toys – problem-solving and mental stimulation

Chew & Dental Toys – chewing and oral care

Slow Feeders – feeding and enrichment

Scratching Products – natural scratching behavior

Grooming Products – everyday care and comfort

This approach gives buyers more opportunities to serve different pet needs while creating a broader product story.

Conclusion

The 2026 pet enrichment market is moving toward products that offer more than simple entertainment. Mental stimulation, physical activity, wellbeing, sustainability, durability, and digital-friendly presentation are becoming increasingly relevant when evaluating new pet products.

For retailers, distributors, and private-label brands, the key is to look beyond whether a product is simply “cute.” A stronger question is:

Does this product solve a real pet-care need while being easy to demonstrate and sell?

By focusing on function, natural behavior, wellbeing, product quality, and clear consumer benefits, buyers can build a more relevant pet enrichment assortment for 2026 and beyond.