Niffler

A Niffler was known to be a harmless creature but could sometimes be dangerous if provoked. The major and probably only complaint about Nifflers was that they wreaked havoc inside households or any room due to their constant interest in shiny objects. Nifflers were great to be kept as pets, but if introduced to a room containing shiny objects, their presence would be detrimental to that room as they would cause a lot of chaos and disorder in their quest for pocketing shiny objects.

Appearance

A Niffler was a magical beast that had a long snout and could burrow its way into the ground. A Niffler resembled a platypus or a mole and, like them, was capable of digging through the ground with its hands which were similar to claws. It had jet black and fluffy fur and looked a little like an echidna. It was endemic to Great Britain and was kept as a pet in several households by witches and wizards. Nifflers also had a pouch-like structure in their bellies, which helped them store their collected “loot.” These pouches were known to store a lot more than is imaginable, just like an Undetectable Extension Charm, which was used by Hermione Granger to store all of the trio’s belongings in a pouch when they had to go Horcrux hunting.

History

Nifflers have long been used by goblins as they were very effective finders of treasures. The Gringotts Head Goblin assigned Nifflers to each curse breaker to make their attempts at searching for treasures at cursed sites easier. Nifflers were known to burrow underground in search of shiny objects and were a great help in finding gold coins and hidden metal. In the Hogwarts Mystery video game, the protagonist Jacob’s sibling and several other characters like Patricia Rakepick, Merula Snyde, and the Care of Magical Creatures professor Silvanus Kettleburn had Nifflers as pets or in possession.

Nifflers As Pets

Nifflers would have made great pets if it weren’t for them wreaking havoc in search of shiny objects in every place they were kept. However, besides this, Nifflers were indeed great pets and were known to be very gentle creatures and were very friendly and kind to their masters. However, there were instances where Nifflers could get pretty vicious, as was the case when a Niffler tried to get the rings off of Dolores Umbridge’s fingers.

The Niffler In The Wizarding World

The Nifflers first appeared in the Harry Potter series in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire when Rubeus Hagrid used them as a part of the fourth-year students’ Care of Magical Creatures lesson at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He explained to the class that Nifflers were known for being attracted to shiny objects and collecting them. He decided to let each student pick a Niffler from the lot he had and then use them to search for the gold coins he had buried in the grounds before they had arrived. He claimed that the winner would get a prize. In the meantime, one of the Nifflers tried to get Pansy Parkinson’s shiny watch to which she shrieked in surprise. 

Eventually, the Niffler picked by Ron Weasley, collected the most coins. Therefore, Hagrid rewarded him with a large chocolate bar from Honeydukes. Ron asked Hagrid if one could buy Nifflers as pets, to which Hagrid claimed that knowing Ron’s mother, she wouldn’t let a Niffler as a pet in the house as they wreak havoc in houses and make a mess. On their way back, when Hagrid saw Gregory Goyle try to steal the gold coins his Niffler had picked, Hagrid told him that they were Leprechaun gold and would eventually vanish.

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Lee Jordan, the friend of the Weasley twins, sent Nifflers using the Levitation Charm into Professor Umbridge’s office as a sign of retaliation for her draconian rules and tyranny. The first Niffler he sends in vandalizes her office in search of shiny objects and almost bites off the rings on her stubby fingers. The second Niffler he sent into her office almost removed a chunk of her legs. She assumed that this was Hagrid’s doing, and this became one of the reasons she decided to fire Hagrid from his teaching position at Hogwarts. Hagrid conducted the Care of Magical Creatures class for students at Hogwarts.

In the Harry Potter spinoff movie series Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Newt Scamander, the protagonist of the series had a pet Niffler named Teddy. Teddy escaped twice from a suitcase that Newt brought along with him to New York, United States of America in 1926. Newt’s case carried a lot of magical beasts, many of which also ran away. Teddy tried to collect shiny valuables from the Steen National Bank as well as a jewel shop. Teddy was also responsible for a major plot twist in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald when he stole a locket from Gellert Grindelwald that contained the blood pact made between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald. Teddy also appears in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.

If Muggles Knew About Nifflers

Nifflers are very resourceful creatures in that they are capable of uncovering massive treasures solely because of how much they love shiny objects. Just like dogs are used in several police operations in the form of K9 for a wide variety of functions like bomb detection, smelling narcotics, etc. Nifflers could be of great help in several Muggle tasks that require specialized equipment to detect. Several risky expeditions that complicate and put human lives at risk would never ever be required if Nifflers were sent to recover these items instead. 

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