Problems get spotted late
Tracking health continuously is difficult, so issues aren’t noticed in their early stages.
Back to Work
Safeguarding pets, simplifying care.
A pet health platform that brings health tracking, vet clinic recommendations and insurance comparisons into one place, so pet parents spend less time managing records and more time caring.
- My role
- Led user research; wireframes, usability testing, branding and UI kit
- Team
- 4 designers, working with developers
- Timeline
- January 2024
UI refined in 2026 - Program
- Web and Mobile App Design and Development, Langara College
01 — The problem
A pet’s health lives in too many places.
Keeping track of health changes is hard, especially with senior pets, pets with chronic conditions, or more than one pet. And there was no single tool to both track a pet’s health and find medical help that fits their needs.
Insurance is confusing
Coverages are hard to understand, which makes comparing plans for a pet’s needs even harder.
The right clinic is hard to find
Pet parents who need a clinic or specialist struggle to pick one that suits their pet.
The goal
Centralise every tracking effort, simplify health tasks, and help pet parents find personalised medical resources.
02 — The idea
One platform, three jobs.
Instead of three separate apps, PawGuard connects them. The pet’s own profile drives every recommendation.
2
Ongoing medications
Monday, 23 October
3 events
Proviable-DC
Oreo2 tablets
Rabies vaccine
LunaVancouver South Animal Hospital
Pet health tracking
Log food, weight, urine, stool and activity over time, plus appointments, vaccines and medication.
AllergiesCardiologyVancouver
1
Vancouver Veterinary Hospital
Specialty clinic search
Clinics recommended for a pet’s medical concerns, filterable by city and urgent-care availability.
Trupanion
Best match for Luna$50.75per month
Deductible$500
Reimbursed80%
CoverageUnlimited
Hereditary & congenital conditions
Unidentified issues
Unexpected injuries and illnesses
Insurance recommendations
Plan quotes matched to breed and age, sorted by monthly price, with similar plans to compare.
03 — My role
End to end, with a focus on UX.
I was involved in every part of the design process as one of a team of four designers.
Research & user flows
Led user research, built site maps and user flows.
Wireframes & mockups
Low-fidelity wireframes refined with the team, then hi-fi mockups.
Usability testing
Ran and analysed tests, and used the insights to iterate.
Branding & visual design
Helped define a cohesive, friendly visual identity.
UI kit & animations
Contributed to the UI kit and designed interactive elements.
Working with developers
Aligned with developers to deliver a user-centred product.
04 — Process
Five steps, one loop back to the people.
- 1
Empathize
Surveys, interviews and observations, turned into personas and journey maps.
- 2
Define
Problem and POV statements: “Pet owners need a better way to track health and appointments, because current methods are disorganized.”
- 3
Ideate
Brainstormed widely (even the worst ideas), then shaped health tracking, clinic and insurance features into the journey.
- 4
Prototype
Paper wireframes, digital mockups, then a low-fidelity prototype in Figma.
- 5
Understand
Usability testing, analysing feedback and iterating until the experience felt seamless.
05 — Research
What pet parents told us.
A mixed-methods approach gave us both the numbers and the stories behind them.
- Surveys
- Interviews
- Observations
- Competitive analysis
Records are a mess
Many owners struggle with disorganised health records, and keeping up with appointments and vaccinations.
Nothing ties it together
Interviews surfaced real frustration with the lack of a centralised health-tracking system.
Specialists are hard to find
Especially clinics offering specialised services.
Insurance feels like guesswork
Comparing plans left owners confused about what they were actually getting.
Simple keeps people coming back
Digital literacy varied, and older owners preferred simple, intuitive interfaces. Reminders, personalised tips and progress tracking kept people motivated.
The landscape
Others solved a piece. No one solved the whole.
Weight tracking was common. What made PawGuard different was combining tracking, an event calendar, exportable reports, specialty clinic recommendations and insurance recommendations in one platform.
| PawGuard | DogLog | Covetrus Great Pet Care | Pawlicy Advisor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main focus | Health tracking, appointments, clinic and insurance recommendations | Dog health tracking, data analytics and event reminders | Weight tracking, medical records, event reminders and pet health content | Insurance recommendations |
| Weight tracking | ||||
| Food tracking | ||||
| Exportable report | ||||
| Event calendar | ||||
| Specialty clinic recommendations | ||||
| Insurance recommendations |
06 — The people
Three pet parents we designed for.
- Age
- 24
- Occupation
- Chef
- Location
- Vancouver
- Pets
- 1 cat
- Breed
- Mixed breed
Pet parenting
Knowledge
Experience
Budget
Ethan, 24
Chef · Vancouver
Biography
Ethan has just adopted Buddy, a 3-year-old overweight cat. He does his own research and asks friends who own cats for advice.
Frustration
He worries Buddy’s weight could lead to joint problems. He isn’t sure how much food and exercise is right, or which clinic has orthopedic specialists.
Goals and needs
A way to record Buddy’s daily diet and activity for the vet, and guidance to a clinic that specialises in orthopedics and rehabilitation, without checking every clinic’s services himself.
Where PawGuard helps
- Diet and activity log for the vet
- Orthopedic clinic search
- Age
- 55
- Occupation
- Retired
- Location
- Vancouver
- Pets
- 3 cats
- Breed
- Mixed breed
Pet parenting
Knowledge
Experience
Budget
Sherry, 55
Retired · Vancouver
Biography
Sherry’s three cats are 11 years old. She goes above and beyond for them, with nutritious meals and regular vet check-ups.
Frustration
Keeping tabs on three senior cats is hard. Each one has a different vet, appointment date and medication, and she sometimes struggles to remember which is which.
Goals and needs
One simple place to track eating habits, health, medication and vet visits, plus a new insurance quote that suits her cats as they get older.
Where PawGuard helps
- One calendar for three cats
- Medication tracking
- Insurance quotes
- Age
- 32
- Occupation
- Sales
- Location
- Vancouver
- Pets
- 1 dog
- Breed
- Golden Retriever
Pet parenting
Knowledge
Experience
Budget
Kim, 32
Sales · Vancouver
Biography
Kim’s 7-year-old Golden Retriever, Murphy, always comes first, even with her demanding work schedule.
Frustration
Golden Retrievers are prone to conditions like hip dysplasia and cancer as they age. Kim wants the right insurance, but has no time to research and compare insurers and their coverage.
Goals and needs
A straightforward way to find the insurance plan that best suits Murphy’s breed and condition.
Where PawGuard helps
- Breed-based insurance plans
- Clear coverage details
07 — Structure
Mapping the way through.
Guests can search for clinics before signing up, a preview of what PawGuard can do. Members get the full dashboard, and a ten-step onboarding eases them in.
Welcome
What PawGuard is, and its commitment to pet well-being.
First-time tutorial
A smooth sign-up, and why an account helps.
Add a pet
Pet details and personalisation options.
Health data
Initial health data, made quick rather than tedious.
Clinics and vets
Recommended clinics based on the pet’s needs.
Insurance preferences
Preferences that tailor plan suggestions.
Interactive tutorial
A hands-on tour of the main features.
Privacy and security
How pet health information is protected.
Customisation
Notification settings and dashboard layout.
Feedback
An open door for what to improve next.
08 — Wireframes
Structure first, colour later.
Low-fidelity layouts for the three core journeys, tested and refined before any visual design. Recreated here from the team’s 2024 wireframes.
09 — Brand
Calm enough to trust. Warm enough to love.
Soft blues for reassurance, sunset yellows for warmth, and a paw-shaped shield that says exactly what the product does.
Logo
Typeface
Poppins BoldPoppins SemiBoldPoppins MediumPoppins Regular
Brand voice
Harmony calm · trustworthyLively warm · friendly
Colour
- Light blue#92CED9
- Pale blue#D4EAEE
- Sunset yellow#F0CA5F
- Pale yellow#FFE59C
- Dark blue#1F3E5B
- Salmon pink#F7A087
Buttons
Add logSearchExport PDF
CompareView all logs
Inputs
7lb
AllergiesCardiology
Selection
HighNormalLow
Urgent careOpen 24h
Pet logMedicationVaccinations
Tags and status
DentistryBest matchOverdue3 events
Icons
Cards
9:30 am
2
Upcoming appointments
Proviable-DC
Oreo2 tablets
10 — Final design
The finished product, desktop and mobile.
Refined in 2026.I rebuilt the original 2024 hi-fi screens with a stricter grid, consistent components and clearer hierarchy. Same features, flows and content as the team’s design.
Every pet at a glance: ongoing medications, upcoming appointments, a weekly meal chart and a calendar of what’s due.
A daily log in one calm form: weight, activity, urine and stool levels, food, notes and photos, next to the pet’s profile.
Clinics recommended for each pet’s needs. Filter by specialty, city, urgent care or 24-hour availability, and see them on a map.
Plans matched to breed and age, sorted by monthly price, with coverage details, what’s not covered, and why a plan was recommended.
Plan figures are sample data for the prototype. Real prices vary by provider.
11 — Under the hood
Built on real data, shown simply.
Real sources, left unaltered
Clinic data came from company websites, the Google API and the Yelp API. Insurance data came from researching insurers’ websites, since API requests weren’t successful. Keeping it unaltered is a little rigid, but it guarantees authenticity.
Data you can see
Daily logs become weight and food graphs, and appointments and medications live on a calendar. Everything can be exported as a PDF report for vet visits.
Personal by default
Suggestions change with each pet’s inputs. Autocomplete speeds things up, and filters stay fully adjustable.
Weekly meal record
Oreo11–17 October
FoodWeight
Food name
Pedi
Health report
OreoOctober 2023PDF
Food and weight logs
Medication and vaccines
Appointments
12 — Beyond the prototype
How it could sustain itself, and grow.
Business model
Insurance partnerships
Endorse plans from insurers keen to partner, earning affiliate income through a pay-per-click model.
Free for pet parents
Revenue from pet businesses (supplies, insurance, clinics) through in-platform ads, priced by size and duration.
What’s next
Book clinics in-platform
Go from recommendation to appointment without leaving PawGuard.
Reminders
Email and in-platform notifications for medications and appointments.
Trends & health suggestions
Insights drawn from each pet’s breed, age and tracked data.
13 — Reflection
What PawGuard taught me.
Teamwork was the cornerstone. Four designers brought different perspectives, and clear communication kept our goals aligned and conflicts small. Figma sped up our wireframing and prototyping, Illustrator and Photoshop shaped the visuals, and After Effects brought the animations to life.
Looking back two years later, the research and structure held up, but the UI felt unfinished. So for this case study I rebuilt it: a stricter grid, one consistent component set, calmer colour and clearer hierarchy. Next, I’d test it with a broader group of pet parents, and explore community forums and emergency vet services.
FigmaAdobe IllustratorPhotoshopAfter EffectsSlack
