For two weeks we did our research the simplest way we could think of: we went to the dog park every evening and paid attention.
The dogs make the introductions.
People who would never start a conversation on the tram talk freely when their dogs are chasing the same ball. Names are learned in a strange order: first the dog’s, then, maybe weeks later, the owner’s. Nobody minds.
We met a retired teacher who knew every dog in the neighbourhood by name, a student who had moved to the city alone and found her first friends through a very persistent corgi, and a couple who planned their whole week around one particular golden retriever’s playdates.
The animals we love bring us together.
Field notes, week one
Small talk is not small.
What we saw again and again was how much those five-minute conversations mattered. A tip about a good vet. A spare leash. Someone noticing that the old man with the beagle hadn’t come for a few days, and knocking on his door.
That’s what Aldu is built around. Not a feed, not likes. Just a gentle way to see who’s nearby, say hi, and walk together. The app’s job is to get you to the park. The park does the rest.
With care, the Uluwatu team
