THE TREAT GRINDER
DESIGN PROSE
© 2022 The Treat Grinder. All Rights Reserved.
This innovation concept and its associated content are protected by Canadian copyright law. Except as otherwise provided for under Canadian copyright law, this concept and its content may not be copied, published, distributed, downloaded or otherwise stored in a retrieval system, transmitted or converted, in any form or by any means, electronic or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.
Course: CCT434H5 (Design Thinking II)
Medium: Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Premiere Pro
Styles & Techniques: Vector Illustration, Experiential Design
Despite not feeling their best, aging and/or ailing dogs must continue to eat and retain their strength to increase their chances of recovery. Often, the only way that my senior dog would eat anything was by crushing his kibble into much smaller pieces that place less pressure on his aching teeth and jaw. Over time, I recognized the need for a product that would allow older and chronically ill dogs to eat comfortably and regularly despite their condition. From there came The Treat Grinder: a pet food bowl and a blender combo. Users may use the bowl’s built-in, hand-press blender/processor to grind kibble and/or puree foods for pets in need. Its varying controls and blades allow pet owners to instantaneously chop, grind, or puree their pets’ dry or wet food to a state appropriate for their comfort levels.
.jpg)
SHORTCUTS
PRODUCTION DESCRIPTION
Age-related diseases such as joint pain and dental damage are known to hinder pets’ ability to chew standard rock-hard kibble. Appropriate portions are also ensured through the Grinder’s built-in cup, equal to one cup of kibble exactly. Larger dog and cat breeds, however, may benefit from the attachable tall jar cup equal to two cups. Additional features include its solar-powered, slide-out digital scale and stainless steel bowls for both weighing and long-term storage of contents.
SPECIFICATIONS
We now begin with a more thorough overview of the device. The Grinder’s main structure contains a one-cup capacity opening, which is the standard serving size for small to medium-sized cat and dog breeds. The user must simply choose one of the three blades, drop in the kibble pieces, and push on the lid. The device’s three main controls, Chop, Grind, and Puree, all acknowledge the typical alterations necessary when dealing with animals weakened by age or disease. The Puree function, for example, would be most helpful for pets that lack multiple teeth. Along the Treat Grinder’s appropriately paw-shaped structure, these controls are shaped as large toe pads! The speed controls lined up below allow the user to further modify the foods’ level of alterations. Beside the Grinder is its attachable tall jar cup, which is an option for larger breeds and owners who desire to produce several servings for future meals.
These servings may be stored in the one-cup stainless-steel bowls pictured here. They may be used for either the weighing scale, storage, or even eating if a pet lacks a proper bowl. Concerning storage, stainless steel is considered ideal for food storage containers as it does not absorb bacteria or leach chemicals. Also pictured here is the attached, slide-out weighing scale, which must be rotated 180 degrees clockwise, as well as the tall jar cup and its appearance attached atop the Treat Grinder.
MINDMAP
The research conducted for this concept was mainly focused on the pet food industry’s current trends. Pet owners have slowly become aware of brand-name dog foods’ usage of artificial ingredients and a purposeful omission of nutrients. This is especially the case in senior pet foods, where natural nutrients are replaced with supplements. This has encouraged pet owners to look to healthier alternatives such as homemade meals. Senior pet foods’ most shocking aspect, however, is ignoring older pets’ well-known inability to chew hard kibble. Said issue results in owners using primitive methods such as pliers or pill splitters to crush their pets’ food.
Although kitchen blenders are an option, it is rather unsanitary and potentially unsafe to mix human and pet food remnants. A device strictly for pets, similar to Nutribullet’s Baby Bullet, is thus necessary. As mentioned, customized aspects include its one to two-cup limits, based on standard dog and cat portions, as well as its fitted attached weighing scale, which makes for a compact device to be used on the go, such as during trips. At three inches tall and approximately 5 inches wide, the Treat Grinder may be easily put away and taken out when needed. In addition, as the Grinder uses existing technology and its planned usage of fifty percent recycled plastics is an industry standard, its manufacturing is quite feasible in our current technology landscape.
Concerning the Treat Grinder’s meta-design, intangible items include its mission to help provide pets with healthy and specialized meals and its familiar functions, which will add to its user-friendliness. The tangible items presented include its logo, aforesaid usage of recycled and biodegradable materials, and accompanying four sample recipes with each purchase, which will be discussed in more detail.
RECIPE CARDS
Specifically, there will be two sample recipes for dogs and two for cats. Three are displayed here. As you can see, these recipes aim to encourage users to expand past simply ground kibble to complete healthy meals for their pets. It is particularly specified how each of the grinder’s functions may help prepare these meals. The Grain-free Chicken Raw Cat Treats, for example, instructs the user on how to crush, grind, and mix their cat’s medical supplements into the mixture for full masking of its taste. If interested in getting more or more specific recipes, such as those strictly for dogs, a paid subscription is also offered with each purchase; full recipe sets may be sent through the mail or email based on user preference.
15-SECOND SPOT
The above video is a fifteen-second commercial created for the Treat Grinder. This commercial exhibits the Treat Grinder's main purpose to grind kibble into smaller, more manageable pieces. It depicts a cheerful 1950s housewife serving her pet dog and cat lunch, as indicated by the noontime on the atomic-style clock on the wall. Unfortunately, her cat, a water bottle atop his head, is sick with a fever and too exhausted to eat. Her elderly bloodhound simply does not want to bother attempting to eat the large, hard kibble. Although annoyed at first, the housewife immediately knows to use the Treat Grinder to crush the kibble pieces. In seconds, she produces one cup each, which she checks over once more using the attached scale. As expected, her pets do not hesitate to consume the far more chewable kibble. The pristine 50s scene is restored with all as it should be. As you may notice, the idealistic 50s environment portrayed in sitcoms such as I Love Lucy was attempted to be replicated throughout.
