DOGTV Review 2024: An Expert Guide

What Is DOGTV? How Does it Work?

With DOGTV, even your dog(s) can enjoy their own version of “Netflix and chill”. Founded in 2012, DOGTV is a streaming service specially created to help dogs in a variety of ways. Through years of research by some of the world’s top pet experts, DOGTV’s special content is scientifically designed to encourage dogs’ brain stimulation, anxiety relief, as well as alleviation from boredom. Specific attributes of a dog’s sense of vision and hearing were specially implemented when creating content to support dogs’ natural behavior patterns.

As all dogs are different, with varying needs, DOGTV programming is divided into three categories: stimulation, relaxation, and exposure. Owners can choose which programming is best suited for their dog, based on their particular needs, and even curate their own “watch list” of videos to automatically play, one after the other.

Perhaps the biggest selling point of DOGTV, is their claim of being “an entertainment brand, a pet brand, and a wellness brand, all in one.” This is all very appealing to the devoted dog moms/dads out there, who are always looking for innovative ways to improve their dogs’ health, wellbeing, and happiness. Not only does DOGTV provide dogs with enrichment to keep them entertained and out of trouble, it provides their owners with some relief and peace of mind as well—especially when needing to leave their dogs home alone for some time.

Signing up for DOGTV is made simple on their website. It is available via a subscription service, with monthly and annual sign-up options. They even have gift cards available, so you have the option to gift other dogs and dog parents in your life with the 24/7 streaming service.

DOGTV – A Quick Look

DOGTV Pricing

DOGTV is available via a subscription service, with monthly and annual sign-up options. An annual subscription is normally $84.99, or you can subscribe for $9.99 a month through dogtv.com, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, as well as on your Android or iOS mobile device.

You can also add DOGTV to your cable subscription for $4.99 with most cable providers. Pricing is very affordable, and there are often sales and discounts available to utilize. They even offer a free 3-day trial to let you try it out in advance.

What to Expect from DOGTV

Signing up for DOGTV was easy on dogtv.com. Once subscribed, I was able to download the mobile app on my iPhone, which I was able to AirPlay onto my smart TV for easier viewing.

Unfortunately, the app was not available for download on my LG smart TV to play directly off of it, nor was it available on my MacBook Pro. This made playing DOGTV for my dog whenever I needed to step out and leave her alone (obviously, taking my phone with me) a bit tricky. This was the most notable flaw I found, as far as user experience goes.

DOGTV Contents

Important DOGTV Features

1. Quality

DOGTV is certainly a unique service, and definitely the first of its kind that I’ve heard of. Years of research by top pet experts, based on over sixty scientific studies, have allowed for the creation of special content geared specifically for dogs—offering them entertainment, as well as relaxation, and anxiety relief, while their humans are away.

The programming on DOGTV is clearly well thought out, and specially curated with dogs in mind, with different categories to choose from—depending on if your dog is more anxious, more restless, more likely to be bored, etc. DOGTV can be used to keep dogs occupied and engaged while you are away, or even in the background while you’re at home. It is definitely worth a try for both dogs and owners with various needs, hence our 4 out of 5 rating for Quality.

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2. Variety

As dogs are all different, with varying needs, DOGTV shows are divided into three categories: stimulation, relaxation, and exposure.

Stimulation shows feature playful animated sequences, dogs, and other animals playing—designed to prevent boredom and provide mental stimulation.

Relaxation shows feature calming scenes and soothing sounds—designed to keep your dog relaxed throughout the day, especially while you’re away.

Exposure shows are specifically edited with limited exposure to certain sounds—designed to help your dog get habituated and comfortable with things like car rides, door bells, and other day-to-day stimuli.

Owners can select which programs are best suited for their dog(s), based on their particular needs, and even curate their own “watch list” of shows that automatically play, one after the other. This warranted a 5 out of 5 rating for Variety.

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3. User Experience (UX)

This is the one area where I feel DOGTV could use some major improvements. They claim you are able to watch DOGTV on your favorite streaming device, which is not exactly true. You are only able to download the DOGTV app using Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and on iOS and Android devices. So, if you have any other smart TV, chances are the app isn’t available for download on it—which was the case for me.

This made watching DOGTV problematic for me. I was able to download the DOGTV mobile app on my iPhone, which I then could only watch on my LG smart TV using the AirPlay feature on my phone. This worked great when I was at home, but not when I needed to leave and take my phone with me. Likewise, the DOGTV app wasn’t available for download on my MacBook Pro. The only way I was able to play it on my TV while I was away was by using the internet browser feature on my phone—which was both antiquated, inconvenient, and hard to navigate. Not to mention, by the time I’d get home, my TV would be in sleep mode—defeating the whole point of even having DOGTV playing while I was away.

As great as the concept of DOGTV is, especially for those times I need to leave my dog home alone, this was a rather significant design flaw that negatively affected my user experience. For this reason, User Experience was rated a 3 out of 5.

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4. Cost

Fortunately, DOGTV is a rather affordable service, making it accessible to dog owners everywhere. There are different subscription options to choose from—with an annual subscription normally costing $84.99, or monthly subscriptions at $9.99 a month—via dogtv.com, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, or on your Android or iOS mobile device. You can also add DOGTV to your cable subscription for $4.99 with most cable providers.

There are often sales and discounts available, and they even offer a free 3-day trial to let you and your pooch try out DOGTV in advance. With regard to Cost, our rating of DOGTV is a 5 out of 5.

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5. Value – Is DOGTV a Good Value?

Despite some UX flaws that could use some definite updates and tweaks, DOGTV is of good value to any dog owners looking for an innovative way to keep their dogs entertained, stimulated, relaxed, and engaged.

With years of scientific research behind its programming design, you know the folks at DOGTV have put a ton of thought into how to best serve both you and your pup. Especially since there are also programs for dog owners, featuring tips and tricks for training, keeping your dog healthy, etc., both you and your dog are getting a ton of value with any DOGTV subscription.

We’re hopeful that the necessary improvements to DOGTV—particularly, its accessibility and ease-of-use on more devices and platforms—will happen in due time. This makes our rating a 4 out of 5 for Value.

FAQ: DOGTV

What makes DOGTV good for dogs?

DOGTV is scientifically designed for dogs, with its special programs divided into 3 categories: stimulation, exposure, and relaxation—which you can choose, based on your dog’s specific needs. Shows from each category are carefully curated to meet a dog’s typical daily cycle, while enriching their environment. DOGTV exposes your dog to new stimuli, but in the form of images and sound—appealing to both their sight and hearing.

Do dogs really watch TV?

To the surprise of many—yes, they do. Dogs do pay attention to what they see on TV screens, especially images of other dogs and animals, and moving objects.

Are the programs and shows on DOGTV only made for dogs?

While most of DOGTV’s programming is designed for dogs’ enjoyment, there are many informational videos and programs featured for dog owners as well—offering entertainment, tips and tricks, and more.

My dog doesn’t seem to really be watching DOGTV. Is this normal?

All dogs watch TV differently. Generally speaking, they’re unlikely to sit down and stare at the TV screen the same way people do. Some dogs will react more to the visual images they see, while others will just lie down and feel calmed by the relaxing music. This is why DOGTV is great to set as background sounds and visuals, and for the dog to feel a presence when left home alone, or even while you’re at home.

Is DOGTV available across all platforms and devices?

Currently, you can stream DOGTV on Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, XBOX, Samsung Tizen devices, iOS/Android devices, and dogtv.com.

Does DOGTV have customer support available?

Yes, DOGTV’s customer support team is available for assistance via: https://watch.dogtv.com/contact/support.

Our Experience with DOGTV

My little 4-year old Chihuahua-Terrier fur baby, Coco, and I had the pleasure of checking out DOGTV for ourselves. Coco is young, active, in shape, and loves to run around in parks and big open spaces whenever she gets the chance (chasing squirrels is her favorite pastime). That being said, staying cooped up in the house for most of the day goes against her very nature. Unfortunately, I don’t have a yard that she can run around in while I’m working from home. So, I can tell she gets bored—just patiently gazing out the screen door, waiting for “walk time”.

Enter DOGTV. At first, Coco didn’t seem too enthused about any of the shows. She would be in the room while they played, but not paying any attention to what was on the screen. After watching the introductory “Are You New to DOGTV?” video, I decided to take their advice to sit and watch it with her. She definitely seemed more into it then, but only slightly, as she was way more focused on me than on the TV.

After reading through some of the FAQs on their website, I learned that dogs all watch TV differently—some don’t really “watch” at all, but just chill and enjoy the calming effects of the music and sounds. This was comforting to me, as that is really all I want for Coco. Something to either entertain her while I’m working, or at the very least, keep her calm and relaxed. The more I played DOGTV for her while I was home, the more comfortable she seemed to get with it. I even caught her actually watching a few times! Though, it was challenging to snap pics of her watching, because her attention would be all on me again the second she noticed me.

The one setback of DOGTV I experienced—which is definitely significant, and worth noting for potential improvements—is that it doesn’t play as easily across different devices as they say. As mentioned above, as the app wasn’t available for download on my LG smart TV, I was only able to play DOGTV on my TV using the AirPlay feature on my iPhone (after first downloading the DOGTV app to my phone. Again, not a big deal while I’m home—in fact, this worked out quite well.

The problem arose whenever I needed to leave Coco home alone. As I had to take my phone with me, I wasn’t able to play DOGTV on my TV for her using another device, like my MacBook Pro, as the app wasn’t available for download on there either. The only way I was able to play it on my TV while I was away was by using the internet browser feature on my TV. Needless to say, this was a super outdated and inconvenient method to use. Not to mention, my TV would go into sleep mode while I was away—defeating the purpose of keeping Coco occupied with DOGTV while I was gone.

Despite this functionality setback, I still find DOGTV to be a great service and product for both dogs and dog owners alike. The positives of my experience, and the benefits both Coco and I have experienced from it, far outweigh the negatives.

Conclusion

A streaming service made specially with our canine companions in mind, DOGTV is the first television network available for dogs. Years of research done by some of the world’s top pet experts have gone behind creating DOGTV’s special content—to help dogs of all kinds, with all kinds of needs. Each category of their special programming is scientifically designed to help support dogs’ mental stimulation, while also alleviating both anxiety and boredom.

Like any app product or service, there are always areas for improvement. DOGTV offers so much value to dogs and their humans, with the potential to only update their services over time and optimize the user experience.