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Through the Covid-19 lockdown, whenever journalist Sreoshi Mukherjee’s golden Labrador, Haloum, faced a medical issue, her first instinct was to turn to Google. The information she found online, combined with advice from fellow pet parents, helped her navigate those uncertain months.
However, not much has changed since. Sreoshi still prefers to shop for Haloum’s food and toys in person and relies on regular emails from her veterinarian to stay on top of vaccinations and health check-ups.
For menstrual health consultant and gender expert Radhika Modi, who has two cats and a dog, pet care is more digitally integrated. She regularly uses e-commerce platforms to order pet supplies, and has also explored pet-focused apps. Ultimately, her choice depends on where she finds the best deals. While she has tried platforms offering certified pet trainers, the experience has fallen short of expectations.
This contrast highlights a wider gap. While access to pet products has improved significantly, reliable information remains elusive. Both Sreoshi and Radhika still prefer to speak to other pet parents and veterinarians for guidance. This is precisely the space where technology is now attempting to intervene.
Bringing the byte to the bark
The pandemic years proved catalytic for pet-tech innovation. Entrepreneurs began building apps and platforms that function as comprehensive digital assistants for pet care.
Platforms such as Azerbaijan-based Dosty and Pune-based Pawzeeble mark a broader shift in how we relate to our pets. As pets increasingly come to be seen as family members, spending on their health, nutrition, and lifestyle has grown correspondingly. This change has drawn both entrepreneurs and venture capitalists into the space.
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Ayaz Ahmadov, who founded Dosty in 2022, observed that most pandemic-era offerings were “single-use solutions”. As a pet parent himself, he found them impractical in the long run.
“I don’t need apps to support a single avenue of life for my pet because it is short-term. Like, what would I do with a training app once I am done with it? I’m never coming back to it. You need to support the lifestyle, and for that you need an app that collects, consolidates, processes and provides all the data you need and offers personalised guidance on training, healthcare, and more,” Ayaz says.
Dosty brings together these features, alongside content and community support, within a unified pet profile. By combining user-provided data with its extensive information bank, the platform analyses each pet’s needs and delivers personalised guidance across training, healthcare, and nutrition.
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“To use the platform to the max, you need to provide as much information as you can,” explains Ayaz, adding that a profile can be created with basic information and over time, the owner will be asked to upload specific details like vaccination information, past medical issues, etc.
The platform hosts over 3,000 expert-written articles and videos across 400+ breeds, alongside a global community of 37,000 users spanning 30 countries.
“The benefit of this (platform) is that you get verified content from certified vets and nutritionists, and you also get user experience on real-life cases,” adds Ayaz.
Local solutions, local context
Closer to home, Pawzeeble is addressing similar challenges with a local touch. Founder Yashh Sathe launched the platform after struggling to find reliable care for his paralysed rescue dog.
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“While trying to find the best care for my paralysed rescue dog Leaya, I realised that the service providers’ market in India is unorganised, with pet parents, vets, groomers, and boarders connecting mostly through word of mouth. This is exactly what I wanted to solve with Pawzeeble. We give you the information, and we also connect you to the people who can help you,” says Yashh.
With over two lakh users across 39 cities and over 300 vets, groomers and pet boarders, Pawzeeble places strong emphasis on community. Its “Clans” feature allows breed-specific discussions, enabling more targeted advice and support.
“Our community network is the heart that drives Pawzeeble. Our aim is to ensure that only tried, tested, and verified information is available at your disposal… Clans, a breed-based extension of the community feature, makes it easier for you to reach out directly to others for answers and support on issues that are specific and unique to your pet’s breed,” he says.
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The AI layer
In 2026, no tech platform is complete without an AI layer, and pet-tech is no exception. While both Pawzeeble and Dosty offer pet-related information, their approaches to AI differ.
At Dosty, core content is created by a team of healthcare specialists led by UK-based veterinarian Dr Joanna Woodnutt, along with nutritionists and trainers across Europe, ensuring the information is not AI-generated.
AI is instead integrated through features like personalised daily tips and the Dosty Assistant, which provides answers based on a pet’s profile.
For example, a query about a pet-friendly beach in Baku would draw up a list of places you could take your dog to, but it would also suggest the right time to plan the trip if your pet has just been vaccinated or is yet to be vaccinated.
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Pawzeeble’s Sheru AI, also built on ChatGPT, leans more toward an “agentic” model. It learns from uploaded medical records and data to offer personalised responses, fetch invoices, track appointments and prescriptions, and assist with pet parenting guidance and questions.
The cost of pet care
With pet parents spending heavily on nutrition, healthcare, grooming, and training, a growing number of brands now compete in this space, offering everything pets need to survive and thrive, making pricing, discounts, and service costs key decision drivers for owners.
Pawzeeble operates on a freemium model with an optional subscription — Pawteckt (Rs 1,999/year) — which includes in-app currency, discounts on services, cloud storage for medical records, QR identification, and insurance coverage in partnership with a third party.
Dosty, meanwhile, is priced at $6.99/month (approximately Rs 646) or $40/year (approximately Rs 3,699). Its freemium version offers access to the community and a limited number of queries to the Dosty Assistant, while paid users receive unlimited access to its assistant, full content library, and a symptom checker developed with veterinary experts. The platform is also set to introduce flexible pricing.
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Planning ahead
Both platforms are now looking beyond their current offerings.
Dosty is exploring a B2B model to integrate veterinary data directly into its platform, with long-term ambitions of becoming a global data infrastructure for pet care. “Our aim is to get 500,000 unified pet profiles on the platform, combine all the information and then co-pilot a project with one of the top vet clinics globally to create a vet AI assistant for Dosty’s vet dashboards,” says Ayaz.
Pawzeeble, meanwhile, is expanding its service network and preparing to introduce features like in-app messaging and trainer bookings.
What pet parents want
Despite these advancements, awareness remains a challenge.
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Sreoshi, for instance, admits she hasn’t used such platforms simply because she isn’t familiar with them.
Sreoshi stated that if an app or a service could provide QR code or microchip support for her pet, she would be keen on signing up. Additionally, a pet insurance feature is highly attractive, especially when backed by a recognised national bank.
Radhika, on the other hand, hopes to see reliable pet sitters and pet-friendly transport services integrated into these platforms.
AI may enhance functionality, but pet care remains an emotionally driven category. Technology will only succeed if it improves the lives of pets.
Jhinuk Sen is a freelance reporter and editor based in Delhi.
