ProgressFlow • Ongoing
Helping trainers gain insight
I teamed up with past colleagues to form a startup improving progress tracking and data visualization for dog training.
Leading Insight
Dog trainers lack visibility between sessions
We make it easier for owners to record progress at home, giving trainers clearer insight into behavioural issues.
Problem
Owners rarely share feedback
They struggle to stay engaged throughout the training process and find it difficult to share detailed observations about their dog’s behaviour between sessions.
Many dogs develop severe aggression or anxiety that takes months of training to correct.
User Research
Trainers lack visibility between sessions
I interviewed several dog trainers to understand how they work with owners and what information they keep track of.
Insight
Context matters
Experienced trainers record specific behaviours and the conditions surrounding them. Tracking these factors over time reveals patterns.
"My dog was aggressive to another dog"
Was the other dog approaching or passing by?
Was there food, a toy or a person nearby?
Tell me how many times they did it when they did it, where they did it, how often they did it.
Quote from a Certified Professional Dog Trainer
Insight
Spreadsheets aren't enough
Trainers find them impractical. Effort is spent customizing software for their needs and encouraging owners to fill out surveys.
Insight
Emotions skew data
Trainers say it’s hard for owners to see how far their dog has come. Their bias makes it difficult to assess behavioural change and next steps.
Is this a change in the dog or just a change in [the owner’s] perception?
Quote from a Certified Dog Behaviour Consultant
Hypothesis
Recording behaviour with AI
If people could talk naturally about how their dog is doing, it would require less effort and generate richer contextual data.
Capabilities:
• Data structuring
• Follow-up questions
• Graph generation
Design
Shaping the workflow
The solution needs to be flexible and support both parties. We designed a process with both users and a shared AI agent.
Next Steps
Building and testing
We aim to test our hypothesis with an MVP and assess value by verifying that:
• Owners can record behaviour frequently
• Trainers find the insights and graphs useful
3 trainers offered to test the app once it’s ready!
