Case study / Pet care Home Use Test Illustrative
34 dogs, 21 days, one cleansing lotion. Tested where they live.
A pet care brand wanted to know whether its new eye, ear and skin-fold cleansing lotion would convince the people who actually use it: dog owners, at home, every day. We recruited the owners, shipped the product and followed every household for three weeks.
- Product
- Cleansing lotion for dogs: eyes, ears, skin folds
- Sample
- n = 34 owners and their dogs
- Profile
- All breeds, sizes and ages; owners using or open to a cleansing lotion
- Design
- Monadic home use test, owner questionnaires
- Duration
- 21 days, daily or weekly use
- Measure
- Cleanliness rated at Day 0 and Day 21, full evaluation at Day 21
The brief
Prove a hygiene product to the people who use it.
A dog cannot fill in a questionnaire, but its owner sees everything: how the eyes and ears look, how the dog reacts to the cotton pad, whether the product is easy to live with. The brand needed that judgement before launch, on real dogs and in real homes.
- Efficacy: do eyes, ears and folds look cleaner after three weeks?
- Acceptance: does the dog tolerate the application, calmly, every time?
- Market potential: would owners switch from the product they already use?
What SYRES ran
Phone-screened owners, a 24-hour helpline, three weeks at home.
Owners recruited by phone against the brief’s criteria, with no quota on breed, size or age so the panel looked like the market. Each owner signed an informed consent form and kept a number to reach us at any hour in case of the slightest issue with the product.
- ScreeningPhone interview: dog profile, current cleansing habits, willingness to take part.
- BaselineOwners rate the cleanliness of eyes, ears and folds before the first use.
- Use at homeLotion on a cotton pad, daily or weekly depending on the dog, in place of the usual product.
- Read-outCleanliness rated again, then efficacy, sensory, acceptance, tolerance and purchase questions.
What came back
Owners convinced, dogs at ease, and nine in ten ready to switch.
Results on the 34 owners who completed the study.
Overall
- Overall mark
- 8.3/10
- Satisfied
- 94.1%
- Would buy it
- 91.2%
Recommendation
- Net Promoter Score
- +47
- Would switch from their usual cleanser
- 91.7%
58.8% promoters against 11.8% detractors. Switching measured among the 24 owners already using a cleansing product.
Tolerance
- Gentle for the dog
- 97.1%
- Discomfort or intolerance reported
- 0
No reaction reported by any owner, for the dog or for themselves, over the three weeks.
Both changes significant. Owners scored each area before the first use and again after 21 days.
Analyzing the data
A product owners choose, and dogs readily accept.
Owners observed cleaner eyes and ears after three weeks, rating the lotion 8.3 out of 10. Notably, nine in ten of those already using a cleanser stated they would switch. Equally important, the dogs accepted the application calmly, with zero adverse reactions reported across all households.
In pet care, the consumer and the user differ: the owner purchases, but the dog dictates compliance. A rigorous home use test captures both, provided the protocol is strictly maintained. Every participating household was screened by phone, thoroughly briefed on the routine, and provided round-the-clock access to the study team.
For the brand, these results yield a launch decision backed by substantiated owner claims, clear insights into switching potential, and a proven tolerance record to present to retailers and veterinarians.
What the study enabled
From three weeks of fieldwork to a launch file.
- Owner-perceived claims, quantifiedCleaner ears and eyes, gentle for the dog, readily accepted: each backed by a percentage of owners.
- Switching potential measuredNine in ten current cleanser users ready to change product, a strong signal for listing talks.
- A clean tolerance recordNo discomfort reported in any household, documented for retailers and veterinary channels.
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Your product
Launching a pet care product?
Owners profiled by species, breed, size and age of their animals, home use tests, owner questionnaires, a helpline for every household. Send us the brief and we will propose a design within 24 hours.
- Home use test
- Dogs and cats
- Grooming and hygiene
- Palatability
- Owner questionnaires
- Tolerance follow-up
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