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Primary Research

1:1 Interviews

Initial Interviews for Existing Products

When examining a successful puppy playdate it is important to note how much time and energy is spent working to help both parties feel comfortable on the puppy playdate. Often successful playdates include a combination of good communication of needs, preferences, and dog hangups.

“It’s fun to just kind of be in the dog community like that. Also [my dog] loves to play with other dogs and sometimes it’s my only way of getting her energy out is to let her run with other dogs. So I love setting up playdates for that reason, too. And it’s just like enrichment. It’s just fun for both of us too. Because you know, dog people are typically pretty cool and chill. ”

-Interviewee 1

Why 1:1 User Interviews?

1:1 remote interviews are valuable for the insight that can be gained from first-hand experiences arranging play dates and screening potential dogs and people for dog playdates.

Interview Participants

All five interviews took place remotely. Each participant confirmed that they had a dog or dogs and have puppy playdates. Participants ages spanned from 25-51 and were female.

Best for Dogs

Understanding of dog’s play style and a shared understanding of what that means (ie light wrestling vs rough wrestling)

“ I think probably the two biggest factors are the dogs didn’t have similar play styles, which sometimes they mesh sometimes they don’t, but you don’t necessarily know that until they meet. And then just having like that, like conversation, I guess up front about any issues that your dog might have, like, you know, resource guarding and like, hey, maybe a yard full of Bully Sticks is not going to work for my dog.”

-Interviewee 3

Best for Pet Owners

An amiable pet owner mix- having both parties have similar understanding of pet owner expectations and personality

“I was also thinking that I would kind of like to [screen the person]. I had another bad playdate where I just couldn’t stand the person. Like I could not get them off my property fast enough- it was good for the dogs. But I was like maybe if I just stay really quiet then they’ll stop talking, you know?”

-Interviewee 4

Motivations

Each pet owner wanted to make sure that their dog was getting to play and socialize with other dogs to be healthy and well acclimated to different situations. The health and happiness of their dogs was at the top of their wishlist when discussing if they had given up on setting up “traditional” playdates and would just hang out with friend’s dogs instead. They also wanted someone else to connect with about their dog and their dog’s needs since their four legged friend was in many instances akin to their child or children.

Expectations

Each pet owner interviewed hoped to find a pup friend / pet owner that they and their dog would get along with. Pet owners also generally wanted a few different puppy playdate acquaintances so their dogs could play with multiple dogs and socialize.
Pet owners expect the info given by other pet owner to be true and complete, so that the pets coming in to visit will get along well with their dog. Generally the expectations are that both dogs:

Have the same temperament and play style
Not have a contagion that could make their dog sick (ie Bordetella, mange, fleas, worms, etc)
Owners discuss any situational red flag issues prior to coming like resource guarding, not neutered, reactive to male presenting humans, or reactive to kids

“Partly, she didn’t tell me in advance that like her four year old was going to be running around, which thankfully [my dog] had gotten over his issues with kids. But some dogs don’t like kids, so that would have been good to know in advance. And then partly it was just like there’s a lot going on. Like our dogs were not a good match, a kid was running around and then she was like, “We should have a fire in the fire pit” and she just like started a fire. And then like kept going into the house to get stuff and leaving me alone with two 50 pound dogs that didn’t particularly like each other, a …four year old, and a fire. And I was like yeah, this is not my jam.”

-Interview 3

Goals & Needs

Needs to have pet owner of other dog be aware of reactivity to see if they want to be a part of socializing Rufus.
Both pet owners aware of dog play styles, temperaments, health, and hangups.
Needs to be Ok with time and place of doggie playdate
Socializing dogs and increasing play opportunities

Common Processes

See that your dog needs more one on one play and socializing time beyond dog parks and walks.
Reach out to friends or groups on social media like Facebook or Instagram to see if their dogs could meet up for play. It is at this stage some of the general info for each dog is discussed like play styles, dog preferences/red flags, and general health/needs.
If the dogs and dog owners seem like a potential good match and both pet owner parties already know each other generally they will do a meet and greet with dogs in a neutral space just outside the home to see how the dogs do together. If the dogs seem to get along then a playdate happens generally in a backyard. If the pet owners and dogs don’t know each other they generally do the same thing by meeting in a neutral spot and then have a playdate if they get along at a dog park or in some cases a backyard. This generally depends on how both parties are feeling.
If the playdate goes well then generally both parties meetup every few weeks or so for a hangout.

Frustrations & Fears

Is other pet owner being up front about dog and their needs?
Is the other pet owner going to be a good match for her?
Where they are meeting will it be up to expectations- ie fence, no extra bully sticks around?
Is the other pet owner being up front about their expectations for the puppy playdate

“Oh my God, if I made an app, you know. So [I would want to know the …] obvious… vaccinations and are they treated for …specifically kennel cough [or] Bordetella since it is so contagious.

…I want to know their weight and their gender. I want to know if they’re spayed or neutered. And I want to know, I want to know a ton, honestly, a ton…what’s your dog’s play style?… I want to know how they are about sharing toys. I want to know, if they play rough. … Here’s the thing, I mean, I bet you if all I was able to say you know on a site is like, ‘Oh yeah. [my dog] plays rough.’ Then when they meet [my dog] half or three quarters of the dogs who meet him are still going to be like holy shit he plays rough. He’s used to playing with a dog who weighs a ton more than him and so he plays really hard.”