The Pony Girls

Animal roleplay may be either a non-sexual or an cute sexual role-play (when it may also be called petplay, ponyplay, ponyism, kittenplay, or pup-play). In its erotic sexual role-play form, one or more of the participants takes on the role of a real or imaginary animal in character, including appropriate mannerisms and behavior, and sometimes a partner will act as another animal, or, in a sexual context, may take the role of rider, trainer, or caretaker (or even breeding partner).

The principal theme of animal roleplay is usually the voluntary transformation of a human being to animal status, and focus on the altered mind-space created. The most common examples are probably canids (pup, dog, wolf), felines (cat, kitten, lion) or equines (pony, horse). Animal roleplay is also used in a Bdsm context, where a person may be humiliated by being treated as an animal.

It is also commonly used with debutant children, who enjoy getting dressed up in animal costumes and enact perceived characteristics of an animal. It is also used in physical education especially with children, as an enjoyable way to encourage certain exercises. In psychodrama, animal roleplay may be used for a person to explore their personality, as a form of role reversal.