Making the world safer for cats
Strays is a personal project. It’s an app designed for protection of community cats. It gathers animal welfare associations, informal cat guardians under the same communication platform, welcoming all concerned to join them in cat protection actions, as small as taking a picture.
View prototype
Date
2024
Client
Self-initiated
Credits
Photography: Elsa Saúde, Fernanda Costa
Other acknowledgments: APAMG, informal guardians, animal advocates, and all research participants
What I did
How small efforts can turn into a big goal
Overview
Community cats
Community cats are free-roaming cats, feral or strays (used to human presence). When they live together in the same location, they are called a cat colony.
When left unattended, colonies reproduce really fast. Besides putting at risk their survival, it also disturbs their natural surroundings.
Community cats are free-roaming cats, feral or strays (used to human presence). When they live together in the same location, they are called a cat colony.
When left unattended, colonies reproduce really fast. Besides putting at risk their survival, it also disturbs their natural surroundings.
Strays proposition
Strays was, initially, aimed to increase the direct caretaking of colonies. Upon research, it was clear users are sensible to the problem, but were only willing to participate with small organised efforts.
With Strays you can find in an easy and accessible way to help the cat community, while spreading information and improving communication.
It was made a choice not to include donations, since most charities focus on it.
Strays was, initially, aimed to increase the direct caretaking of colonies. Upon research, it was clear users are sensible to the problem, but were only willing to participate with small organised efforts.
With Strays you can find in an easy and accessible way to help the cat community, while spreading information and improving communication.
It was made a choice not to include donations, since most charities focus on it.
Listening to cat lovers
user Research
Research comprehended formal interviews with users with experience in feeding cats, located worldwide, recruited among friends, student platforms, and unrelated communities.
And also informal ones with cat advocates, caretakers, and volunteer from APAMG, a local animal protection association (Marinha Grande, Portugal).
People usually abandon them in parks, since it is less likely to get caught while abandoning.
There’s neutering offered by the government, but people won’t do it.
There’s neutering offered by the government, but people won’t do it.
Sometimes cats get injured because teens in electric scooters or even dogs walked on leash hurt them on purpose.
Strays cats can be really loving when you spend time with them.
We actually have a stray cat that visits our home and we feed it quite often. (...) We don’t necessarily want to have it in a shelter because we love to see it. I don’t think the cat really needs more help than that.
Going from danger to wellness
USer Journey
The focus was first in a journey where the user experienced an emergency situation.
Majority of research subjects empathised with the cause of community cats, and had observe or interact with them. Some had real life experience with emergency situations.
As a cat lover, I want to help neighbourhood cats I see struggling, so less cats are homeless and are loved and cared for.
Widen the audience
Research Takeaways
When starting the research, I wasn't expecting to encounter non current cat guardians. I was confronted with situations where people deeply care about cats, but they can't afford to keep them.
I was mistaken, our target audience could grow much larger, as long as we could map the issue.
Participants take initiative themselves in emergencies, but most contact local associations for any issues involving vet expenses or sterilisation.
Communication with associations is mostly done over the phone and social media.
Requests to associations arrive everyday, coming from a large area, hence their response has to be prioritised.
Cats mapping, support requests and colonies caretakers are known informally.
There’re reports of suspicion, neglect and violence towards stray cats.
The vast majority of interviewees mentioned the importance of education on strays problems.
Simplified coordination and structure for optimised response.
Improved communication under one platform.
Improved communication under one platform.
Acknowledge the value from all contributors.
Inform and share knowledge to a wider audience.
Enlarge support network
User testing & findings
User testing
In accordance with user research findings, testing was conducted in a group with cat guardians (60%) and non cat guardians (40%), located worldwide, aged 20-70 years old, with the same recruitment strategy.
The main goal was to test the completion of tasks and make sure terminology was understood even if individuals weren’t acquainted with cats.
Cat guardians
Completion of tasks rate
Couldn’t understand 1 question or more
Couldn’t understand
1 key term or more
Guardians vs non guardians
Difficulties with key terms was more common among non cat guardians and non English native speakers.
Difficulties with key terms was more common among non cat guardians and non English native speakers.
Task completion
An overwhelming majority could complete tasks, but when asked in detail, comprehension issues were found on the main flow.
An overwhelming majority could complete tasks, but when asked in detail, comprehension issues were found on the main flow.
Turning findings into action
iterations
Main iterations were done to reduce the complexity and unfamiliarity of the tasks, on the user flow and on the content available.
It was clear the app needed to focus even more on the education content. On the report flow more visual cues to help the user were used.
Before mid-fi prototype
After
- New educational content sections and pages were added, with direct access from homepage, to prevent difficulty of understanding.
- The majority of users was confused by the main button, and used the secondary one. Therefore, it was introduced an extended version, on the homepage.
After
- Users were unsure whether selection buttons were to be selected, to ensure better interaction: 2 indicators were used to give clues that it was a selecting option: radio button and colour.
- Icons, such as the TNR icon was iterated to appeal directly to cat’s image.
After
The following alterations were made to avoid misunderstanding of questions face during testing:
- Problematic questions for the user, display info option.
- A clear option to not answer, with the not sure icon, so the user doesn’t feel blocked and can advance.
- Use of visual answers, such as colour description (users don’t know breeds).
Protect and support cats with ease
Outcome
Strays sets itself to make community problems cats visible, as well as make cat protection easier.
The more interviews with users, caretakers the more aware I was of new needs, and features to be added.
Though it is clear, the protection of community cats will always have a lot to be done, Strays focused on 4 major topics, that shaped its features and goals.
Help
Request help and give help to cats in need.
Identification
Give a face, name, and location to the cats.
Awareness
Educate and raise awareness.
Acknowledgement
Value and cherish all protection efforts
Help
Request help and give help to cats in need.
Identification
Give a face and name to the cats.
Awareness
Educate and raise awareness.
Acknowledgement
Value and cherish all protection efforts
- Focus on accessing educational content and request help.
- Information is lightened by illustration and iconography. More icons and illustrations were drawn as the project evolved, upon user request.
- Identifying the cats in your neighbourhood also helps you protect them from harm.
- A strong sense of the importance of information spreads through the app, you can access nearby vets, associations and colonies.
Main flow: report cat
End result
Consistent brand & iconography
Style guide
The brand was designed according to the bright spirit intended to make the reality of stray cats less heavy on the user.
The illustrations were drawn after the icon set, with similar shapes. Icons vary in size, are used firstly for information and guidance, but also brand recognition and a ludic aspect.
Android & iOS app
Testing and extended features
Next steps
In future iterations, features users were more eager to use, such as social interactions with other users, and more "cute" cat social media-like content, would be further developed.
The help section should be extended, for example with a subsection for foster homes.
It would also be imperative to develop messaging, and finally consult and test with associations all communications features.
I would love to see it become a reality.
