A Different Breed

In 2023, Purina came to InkBlot Narratives with a question: could its long-running Incredible Dog Challenge become the backdrop for a documentary series?

The competition already had extraordinary athletes, devoted handlers and nearly three decades of history. InkBlot's task was to find the stories that could make an audience care about this world, then develop and produce a series around them.

We began by learning about the competition, the community and Purina's objectives. When we asked what the company believed, one idea became the creative foundation: people and pets are better together.

That belief shaped the stories we pursued. Behind the spectacular jumps and intricate routines were people whose relationships with their dogs had helped them through illness, loss and upheaval. Some had rescued dogs from desperate circumstances. Many felt their dogs had rescued them, too.

These relationships gave the series its emotional center. Viewers could experience Purina's belief through the lives unfolding on screen.

We call this brand-backed entertainment: original television built around compelling people, authentic stakes and a value the funding brand genuinely shares. For A Different Breed, that meant giving the characters and competition room to carry the story. Across nine episodes, there were no mentions or shots of Purina dog food.

A pilot that helped secure the series commitment

Before committing to a full season, Purina needed evidence that the concept could engage its intended audience and support its brand objectives. InkBlot developed and produced a pilot that Purina tested through research firm Quester in December 2023.

The research included 439 dog owners with at least some interest in the Incredible Dog Challenge or a documentary series about it. Within the study's general-population dog-owner sample of 202 respondents:

• 93% were extremely or somewhat interested in watching additional episodes.
• 92% agreed or strongly agreed that they had a more positive opinion of Purina after viewing.
• Pro Plan purchase intent rose from 76% to 90%, a 14-percentage-point increase in respondents saying they would definitely or probably buy.

Viewers responded to the competition, the competitors' personal stories and the relationships between people and dogs. Many wanted more episodes, more training footage and a deeper understanding of how competitors got started.

Purina's research topline explicitly recommended moving forward with additional episodes. The pilot and its research results helped secure the commitment to the nine-episode season that subsequently launched on Prime Video.

Source: Quester, IDC Canine Performance Docuseries Pilot Study, January 2024, slides 2, 6 and 7; Purina's accompanying research topline. These are pilot-test findings among an interested audience after required viewing, not measures of the released season's audience or actual sales.

Building the series

InkBlot led the series from idea through delivery, developing the stories, casting competitors, building the budget, hiring crews and planning production. We then filmed, edited and delivered all nine episodes.

The production involved 38 shoot days across 20 cities, 22 human characters, 144 dogs and more than 1,000 hours of footage.

Months of relationship building preceded filming. Access to the competitors' homes and lives depended on understanding a close-knit community and earning its trust. That preparation allowed us to capture the daily routines, sacrifices and relationships that gave the competition meaning.

Production also had to work around the needs of the dogs. Crews filmed in short bursts during cooler parts of the day under the watch of Movie Animals Protected, adapting to each animal's comfort and avoiding behavioral triggers for dogs with traumatic histories.

For competition coverage, we hired NFL Films camera operators to capture athletic feats at high speed. At events, a 20-person crew tracked multiple competitors and storylines through three days of unpredictable action. Missing a reaction, a conversation or a decisive run could mean losing the culmination of an entire story.

In the edit, the challenge was to preserve both the humor of this unusual subculture and the intensity of the sport. Our editors shaped more than 1,000 hours of footage into nine episodes without narration, giving individual dogs and handlers distinct personalities and emotional journeys. Intimate documentary scenes, carefully chosen music and cinematic sports coverage helped viewers understand what each performance meant to the team attempting it.

Bringing the show to audiences

InkBlot collaborated closely with WPP on distribution, helping negotiate and structure the arrangements that brought A Different Breed to Prime Video and Peacock. We worked with OpenMind on the accompanying social campaign.

The Prime Video release included a shopping experience outside the show, allowing interested viewers to purchase Purina products while the episodes remained focused on the competitors and their dogs.

The characters the series built audiences for went on to become organic social media ambassadors for both the show and Purina, carrying the series' reach well past its own episodes.

The series and its supporting campaign reached millions of views. By October 2025, the launch campaign reported more than $15 million in total sales, with Display and Fire TV placements identified as the leading revenue drivers.

As of September 2026, more than a year after its initial release, A Different Breed continues to attract viewing on Prime Video without current paid-media support. The series remains available for audiences to discover beyond its launch campaign.

“A Different Breed gave us the opportunity to share those stories in a way people actively choose to experience.”

Andrea Faccio, President and Chief Growth Officer, Purina, in Purina's public announcement

Recognition and a second season

The series was presented at Brand Storytelling during the Sundance Film Festival in January 2026. The original pilot received four regional Emmy nominations. Season one earned three national Daytime Emmy nominations:

• Outstanding Lifestyle Program
• Outstanding Directing for a Daytime Non-Studio Non-Fiction Series
• Outstanding Editing for a Daytime Non-Studio Program

The nominations recognize the program as well as its directing and editing craft. The categories are listed in the official Daytime Emmy nominations.

WPP also publicly recognized InkBlot Narratives for “bringing these stories to life with such heart and craft.” Read WPP's announcement.

Purina commissioned a second season, with a planned Prime Video launch in early 2027.

What began as a question about an existing competition became a continuing entertainment property. InkBlot's contribution was to identify the human stories within it and carry them through every stage of filmmaking, creating a series that could earn an audience's attention and express Purina's belief through what that audience experienced.