Petfinder connects millions of users with adoptable animals from more than 14,000 shelters across North America.
OVERVIEW
I joined the Petfinder Consumer Design team to support the in-progress redesign of the platform’s public website, the largest pet adoption platform in North America. My role focused on advancing key design initiatives, preparing prototypes for user testing, and improving collaboration across multiple design teams responsible for different parts of the ecosystem.
The Challenge
The redesign was already underway when I joined the team, and my responsibility was to take ownership of the work in progress and help move the project toward launch.
Several factors added complexity to the effort:
• Key design leadership transitioned shortly after I joined the project
• Multiple design teams (Consumer, Mobile, and Member) were working independently with limited alignment
• The platform supported more than 14,000 rescue organizations and shelters, requiring flexible but scalable design solutions
• Content-heavy pages required better structure and usability
My Approach
To quickly establish momentum, I focused on rapid discovery, cross-team collaboration, and scalable design practices.
Key initiatives included:
• Partnering with engineering to understand technical constraints and sprint priorities
• Working closely with UX research to prepare prototypes for upcoming user testing sessions
• Building a UI component library in Figma to improve iteration speed and consistency across design files
• Establishing clearer collaboration between the Consumer, Mobile, and Member design teams
This foundation helped stabilize the project and allowed the team to iterate quickly based on user feedback.
KEY DESIGN HIGHLIGHTS
Pet Details Page
The Pet Details page is one of the most visited areas of the platform and plays a critical role in helping users connect with adoptable animals.
Key improvements included:
• Anchor navigation tabs to make long, content-heavy pages easier to scan
• Enhanced media display with thumbnail previews and fullscreen viewing for photos and videos
• A persistent “Start Your Inquiry” module that guides users through the adoption process and connects them with shelters
These changes improved discoverability and made the adoption process more approachable for potential adopters.
Member Profile Page
The Member Profile page supports more than 14,000 rescue and shelter organizations, many of which previously lacked the ability to personalize their presence on the platform.
The redesigned experience introduced new customization capabilities, including:
• A configurable organization header with logos, contact information, hours, and social links
• An adoptable pets gallery allowing visitors to preview animals directly from the organization’s page
• Support for organization photos, giving shelters the ability to better represent their mission and facilities
These updates improved both member visibility and the overall browsing experience for users searching for pets.
Additional Platform Improvements
I also contributed to responsive updates and redesign work across several supporting pages, including:
• Rescue and shelter search
• Breed category and detail pages
• Homepage updates
• Article pages, FAQs, and forms
OUTCOME
As the project neared launch, Petfinder adopted a new enterprise design system introduced by their parent company, Purina. While this shift required some design adjustments, the work completed during the redesign helped establish stronger design workflows, improved collaboration across teams, and a more scalable foundation for the platform moving forward.
Reflection
This role required stepping into a rapidly evolving environment and quickly establishing structure within the design process. By focusing on collaboration, scalable design systems, and clear communication with engineering and research teams, I helped maintain momentum on a large and complex product redesign.
As an animal advocate and lifelong dog owner, contributing to a platform dedicated to helping pets find homes was especially meaningful to me.
