PetsApp is a client engagement platform that promises to change the way pet owners get access to the services they need. Launched in January 2020, by cofounder Thom Jenkins, a vet and former COO of clinic groups in Asia and the UK, PetsApp gives vets control over their revenue, frees up resources and gives patients a seamless service.
Excited by its potential, PetsApp is already attracting serious investment: the latest funding round, led by Point Nine Capital, attracted $4.4 million of seed capital.
PetsApp showed its true potential during lockdown when vets could only see urgent cases in-person. A backlog of routine procedures then meant clinics were stretched beyond capacity. The potential of PetsApp for prioritising owner queries and giving vets control over their own workflows and revenue meant that, with only a few months on the market, PetsApp became the engagement platform of choice for over 300 plus clinics.
To date, PetsApp has:
- Helped over 200,000 pets, with over 650,000 plus virtual care interactions
- Processed over $5 million in veterinary clinic payments
- Received over 11,000 reviews on the App Store
- Achieved a four-point-nine out of five rating, making it the top veterinary app in the UK and Ireland
PetsApp was developed by Thom and co-founder Will Monk, who brought years of experience as a tech-lead turning data into user-friendly interfaces on apps such as The Trainline. Their ambition was to create a platform that avoided the pitfalls of previous software for clinics and provide simple and intuitive solutions to complex problems.
Thom says, “We wanted to help clinic owners and operators grow their business, as well as making care more convenient for pet owners. But what about the veterinary teams? What if they just saw this as one more thing to do? One more reason to miss lunch. One more reason to be home late. We wanted to build something that would alleviate veterinary burn out, not add to it.”
Approximately 12.6 million US households got a new pet last year after the pandemic was declared in March 2020, according to a COVID-19 Pulse Study by the American Pet Products Association. Meanwhile, fewer people relinquished their pets in 2020, so they needed ongoing care, experts said.
As people worked from home and spent more time with their pets, they have had more opportunities to notice bumps, limps and other ailments that could typically go untreated. Vets were already struggling to meet the pre-pandemic demand, with veterinary schools unable to churn out enough doctors and techs to fill the void. As the need for efficiency increases, PetsApp provides a workflow tool that both simplifies the communication and ordering flow for both the veterinary clinics but also the end-consumer (pet owner).
Ninety-two percent of all pet problems are not addressed by a vet. With PetsApp in their pocket, owners can get prompt advice and care, anytime and anywhere, from the veterinary team they know and trust.
The app helps provide a seamless service, from remote consultation to treatments in-clinic, so the clinic and owner can have consistent contact. Not only does PetsApp reduce stress on reception, but it also gives the nursing team the chance to take charge, freeing up vet time.
“In one example, a nurse messaged the owner to say their dog had recovered well and was about to feed him. When the client replied, ‘he loves chicken’, the nurse was able to send a photo of herself hand-feeding the dog some chicken – avoiding the usual games of phone-tag, bonding the client to the clinic and giving the nurse incredible job satisfaction”, explains PetsApp’s CEO Thom.
Jordanne Turley, marketing and referrals manager at Lime Trees Vets, a veterinary clinic in Stoke-on-Trent, says: “A great feature is being able to take payments which makes a seamless transition between the vet or nurse talking to the client and paying for treatment. We can also share documents with owners such as blood results or even a photo of their pet who is an inpatient.”
Ricardo Sequerra Amram from Point Nine says: “There’s no one pet owners trust more with their pet’s health than their vet. With PetsApp, vet clinics build closer relationships with owners while doing their jobs more effectively.
“Backing Thom and Will with their unique level of sector insight combined with consumers’ increased expectations to interact digitally makes PetsApp an incredible opportunity to transform an entire market.”
