UX Designer

Raising a pet is a lifetime commitment, and not everyone gets to test that commitment before making it. Some people love the idea of a pet but don't know if they're ready. On the other side, people already living that commitment often just need an extra pair of hands.

SoulPet exists in that gap: it connects someone looking to borrow real time with a pet with someone already raising one who could use real help.

We designed the entire experience around one instinct: this should not feel like a swipe-and-go match, and never like a marketplace. That core interaction model became our Trust Ladder:invite, chat, request, and trial. Every relationship on SoulPet climbs it in the same order: a low-stakes invite, a real conversation, a formal request, then a trial period, each step earning a little more trust than the last to build a long-term relationship, instead of a single instant match.

That structure runs through one complete, consistent system, governed by five UX principles shipped across every screen:

Trust and transparency: every question comes with a reason and we make expectations visible before commitment.

Emotional safety: risk-relevant guidance shows up when needed, and the tone never judges. No moralizing, no guilt, and no dead ends.

Individuation: Neither a pet nor a person is ever collapsed into a count or a category.

Active recognition and mutual engagement: users invest real time and effort, so proactive engagement on both sides help recognize progress and sustain momentum

Effortlessness: every interaction is built to prevent friction, so people can focus on finding the right connection

Every interaction detail answers a specific risk identified, for example, ‘Save’ button is designed to ensure no pet is ever judged out for good, or ‘chat prompts’ are built to help guide beginners to topics to chat.

SoulPet aims to help find out if you're ready to own a pet in a lower-risk way, or to give real help to someone who already does, so fewer pets end up impulsively adopted and later abandoned.