Understanding the problem
Casestudy
Designing Better Care for Modern Pet Parents
Buddy Care simplifies pet health management through a calm, intuitive, and emotionally driven mobile experience.
Designing a Unified Brand Experience
Pet care today is often fragmented, reactive, and time consuming.From urgent health concerns to routine grooming appointments, pet owners frequently struggle to access timely and reliable care experiences.
Buddy Care was designed to simplify this journey by creating a more connected, accessible, and human-centered digital experience for modern pet parents.
How did I start ?
User Research
Defining the Experience
Ideation and Exploration
Prototyping Process
Testing and Refinement
Defining the Opportunity
Using the 4W + H framework, I identified user pain points, trust gaps, and fragmented service experiences across the pet care ecosystem.
Why does this matter?
Pet care experiences remain fragmented, making trusted services difficult to discover, evaluate, and manage seamlessly.
What problem are we solving?
Pet owners lack a unified experience for booking, communication, and long-term care management across providers.
Who are we designing for?
Primary: Pet owners seeking seamless and accessible care experience.
Secondary:
Veterinarians, groomers, and boarding providers managing fragmented operational workflows.
How will the solution help?
By designing a centralized platform that streamlines discovery, booking, communication, and ongoing pet care management within a connected ecosystem.
Paths Through Every Interaction
UX Research
User research focuses on understanding user behaviours, needs, motivations, and experiences through observation and research techniques.
- Quantitative Research
- Qualitative Research
Quantitative Research
This stage involved identifying competitors and classifying them as direct or indirect competitors.
Platforms I Used to Collect Reviews
- Google Reviews
- Playstore / App Store
- MouthShut Reviews
- Trustpilot
| Competitor | Review | Problem Statement | Problem Category |
|---|---|---|---|
 | “I had a bad experience. The doctors appeared to be unreliable. See more | Patients do not receive timely or adequate attention. | Improper care and delayed responses. |
 | “We could not find the right doctor or book an appointment. The platform appeared to encourage only See more | Users cannot easily find the right doctor, and video consultations are not always helpful. | Difficulty selecting the right doctor. |
 | “The product I purchased did not help my dog, so I returned to using Pro-Kolin, which had worked for her previously.” | The product did not produce the expected results. | Ineffective solution. |
 | “I booked a consultation and completed the payment successfully, but the See more | Responses through WhatsApp, video calls, and in-app chat take too long. | Long response times. |
 | “The staff appeared untrained and could not properly handle my 1.5-year-old cat. They cut her hair See more | Service providers do not consider the pet owner’s instructions or preferences | Failure to understand customer preferences. |
 | “The product did not improve my pet’s licking, allergy, or itching, even after I followed the instructions.See more | Following the provided instructions did not produce results | Ineffective solution. |
Product Feature Comparison
A feature comparison helps evaluate competing products and businesses. I gathered the features and services offered by direct competitors and documented them in a Google Sheet.
Feature comparison
| Features | Practo | ThePetNest | The Dog Doc | VitusVet | Kuddle | WagStays | BetterVet |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24/7 hours accesses | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ |
| Explore a Wide Range of Nearby Doctors | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ |
| Video Consultation | ✅ | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Pre-booked Doctor Appointments | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ |
| Medicine Delivery | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ |
| Medical Reminders | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ |
| Service Reminders | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ |
| Pet Insurance | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ |
| Pet Relocation | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ |
| Refund Policy | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ | ⚫ |
| Appointment Scheduling | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Client Mobile Application | ✅ | ⚫ | ⚫ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Digital Medical Records | ✅ | ✅ | ⚫ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Crafting Seamless Touchpoints, Driving Consistency and Recall
- I interviewed users from different categories, backgrounds, and areas of interest.
- They answered a set of questions that I had prepared in advance.
- A few sample interview questions are included in this presentation.
- Through these interviews, I was able to understand users’ needs, expectations, desires, and pain points.
- These insights helped me create a more relevant and user-friendly experience.
Empathy Mapping / User Persona
Nivetha S.
22 / Female / Student
Nivetha is a college student currently completing an internship. She struggles to find certified veterinarians and reliable boarding facilities for her pet. She also feels uncomfortable travelling with her pet.
Says
College student
“I want to access everything in one place.”
Thinks
“I would select a boarding facility only if it had sufficient space for pets, provided proper care, and offered the right nutrition.”
“I think veterinarians should provide attentive and compassionate care to pets.”
“They should be kind and punctual because private veterinarians often cause delays.”
“They should provide clear and appropriate prescriptions.”
Does
Uses social media platforms such as Instagram, WhatsApp, and Snapchat.
Asks neighbours or uses Google, websites, and social media to search for pet-related services.
Vaccinates her pet annually but sometimes forgets to do it on time.
Feels uncomfortable travelling with her pet.
Has previously used pet boarding services.
Purchases products from veterinary clinics or pet stores but sometimes chooses inexpensive products that do not work effectively.
Feels
Had a poor and unhygienic experience after being made to wait for a long time.
Feels uncomfortable travelling with her pet.
Receives better service from private veterinary hospitals.
Feels that some boarding facilities do not provide sufficient space for pets.
Noticed that her pet did not eat properly after returning from a boarding facility.
Feels that separate charges for injections and consultation fees are too expensive.
Motivation
- Trustworthiness
- Flexibility and convenient scheduling
- Satisfaction
- Time-saving services
- Safety
Goals
- Receive punctual service
- Pay a fair price
- Receive a proper prescription
- Find a spacious and hygienic environment for her pet
- Ensure that her pet receives proper care
- Receive regular activity updates through images and videos
Character
Extrovert
Introvert
Sensing
Intuition
Thinking
Feeling
Judging
Perceiving
Frustrations
- Feeling uncomfortable while travelling with her pet
- Insufficient space for pets
- Unclean environments
- Dissatisfaction with the prices charged
- Poor boarding-facility services
Brands
- Paytm / Google Pay
- Instagram / WhatsApp
Technology
- Accesses the internet through a mobile device
- Uses social media platforms such as Instagram and WhatsApp
- Uses Google Pay and Paytm
Ideation Workshop
After creating the user story, I asked my team members to write possible solutions using the brainwriting method. They focused on one user story at a time and completed the activity within three to five minutes.
User Story 1
As a 22-year-old student, I want the veterinarian to be available at the scheduled time so that I do not have to wait too long with my sick pet and can receive timely care.`
Ideation Workshop
After creating the user story, I asked my team members to write possible solutions using the brainwriting method. They focused on one user story at a time and completed the activity within three to five minutes.
Information Architecture
- Information architecture is like a blueprint. It visually represents the product’s infrastructure, features, content, and hierarchy.
- It involves creating a clear structure for a website, application, or digital product so that users can understand where they are and how to find the information they need.
Project Goals
Designing a Unified
Brand Experience
- — Low fidelity
- — Mid fidelity
- — High fidelity
Colour and Typography
Ideation Workshop
After creating the user story, I asked my team members to write possible solutions using the brainwriting method.
Care Together,
Effortlessly
Add family members, coordinate pet care, and book trusted veterinarians within one shared space.
Veterinarian Search
Grooming Experts
Boarding Stars
Built by Pet Parents
to Help Pets Live Longer
and Happier. 
Order healthy pet food in minutes and track every delivery directly through your pet care application.
Helping Pets Live Longer and Happier
