What’s good enough for humans is good enough for our pets. Even more so when it comes to advances in tech. Microchipping our beloved animals (along with livestock, wildlife and repeat offenders) is fairly commonplace now should they become lost or stolen. But it’s another market influenced by humans that’s looking to take off in the next year.
Wearable tech for dogs and cats is still a fairly nascent trend, but for a market that is currently worth $2.49bn (£2.18bn), it is expected to reach a value of $7.24bn (£6.35bn) by 2030, according to one report on the Digital Journal.
Initially the wearable tech was used as a piece of fun, but has accelerated into a way to track your pets movements, security and health. The latter part is obviously one of the growing sectors in the market, which has mirrored the uptick in IOT devices, relaying this information to owners and veterinarians alike, giving them all the required information about Fido’s heart and breathing rates, eating habits and metabolic rate.
Anything more and you’d think “Pet Owners For Privacy” would be getting involved…
Treat tech for pets
The latest companies to target are Invoxia. Already well known for its GPS trackers, the French firm has naturally extended into the wearable pet tech market with an AI-powered Biometric Health Collar for dogs. The company claims that it can give owners accurate biometric analysis which they can use as a valuable preventative measure in order to help their pets live healthier and happier lives.
Amélie Caudron, CEO of Invoxia, remarked that the pet and family dynamic is changing. “It’s no longer a dog-master relationship. We think of ourselves as the parent and dogs as an intrinsic member of the family.
Not to be outdone, Korean company PurrSong (if the name wasn’t already a giveaway) have created a fitness tracker for, you guessed it, the cat in your life. The creator of the LavvieBot, LavvieBox and Catnip Cushion has now zeroed in on the pet wearables market and is introducing the LavvieTAG – a smartwatch for cats. Acting, not just as a talking clock that tells your Fluffy when it’s time to return home for tea (JOKE!), it positions itself as an “IOT-enabled lifestyle design for cats” – a fitness tracker for felines, if you will. It collects and analyses your cat’s movements, activity and eating patterns.
The handy app breaks it down into easily decipherable graphs, and even features a schedule tool, so you can share your cat’s movements.
The handy app breaks it down into easily decipherable graphs, and even features a schedule tool, so you can share your cat’s movements. It also means you can even be its own PA, organising and broadcasting Fluffy’s numerous social engagements with friends, family and presumably other cat-loving acquaintances to be.
Got multiple cats? No problem. You can have multiple profiles on the app, with each cat’s tag given a separate identifier, which syncs to the numerous scanners and beacons around and outside your home, enables you to receive and sync data from anywhere, and gives you an insight in the mysterious world of your cherished mutt or moggy.
