Anyone who has a pet knows the feeling: you leave for work and immediately wonder what they're doing.
Existing pet cameras let you watch, but that's about it. You couldn't really interact with your pet, and you definitely couldn't do anything productive like training.
I wanted to design something that goes beyond passive watching and gives owners a real way to connect with their pets when they're apart — and the Pet Training Center became the feature I'm most proud of.
Pet cameras let you watch. They don't let you connect.
I talked to pet owners about when and why they worry about their pets, and the same themes kept coming up: anxiety when away, guilt about not doing enough training, and frustration that existing tools were passive rather than interactive.
- Watching a live feed felt voyeuristic, not connecting
- No way to get a pet's attention or respond to their behavior
- Training felt impossible to maintain consistently while away from home
- Multiple pets created extra complexity that no existing tool handled
Research first, then design for the real moments that matter.
Talk to pet owners
Interviewed pet owners about when and why they worry, what they wish they could do, and what existing tools get wrong.
Build user profiles
Built personas for anxious first-timers, busy professionals, and active trainers — each with distinct needs and mental models.
Map the dual-device system
Figured out how the phone and tablet need to talk to each other — not just mirroring, but complementary roles in a shared experience.
Prototype and iterate
Prototyped the training wizard and tested it with real users until it felt natural — like guidance, not homework.
Like FaceTime for your dog — with a training mode.
AnyPet works across two devices: your phone (wherever you are) and a tablet or computer at home near your pet. You can start a video call, play sounds to get your pet's attention, and actually see them react in real time.
The part I'm most proud of is the Pet Training Center — a guided wizard that walks you through training sessions step by step. Even when you're away, you can still build good habits with your pet through short, structured exercises with progress tracking over time.
The best technology disappears into the experience.