WILMINGTON — Americans love their pets. The problem is, they’re loving those pets to death.
Ed Hall, founder of Wilmington-based Petrics, said the problem isn’t malice, but misinformation.
“People love their pets, of course. And food is love,” Hall said. “Whether it’s table scraps, or treats – people don’t think anything of treats, but they are completely packed with calories. But that’s only one part of the reason so many of our pets are obese.”
Hall founded Petrics as a lifestyle companion system of software and hardware, dedicated to pet ownership. At its core, Petrics is concerned with pet health, in particular the life-shortening epidemic of pet obesity: 59 percent of cats and 54 percent of dogs are obese, according to the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention. Obesity is at the root of a number of health problems that, on average, take two and a half years of a pets’ life, according to Hall.
Hall grew up with three cats and a dog and watched his pets struggle with weight. Several years ago, he became increasingly interested in the way health and diet concerns for humans – and the industries around them – were migrating to the pet industry. According to Hall, 40 percent of the $70 billion pet industry is made up of pet food and treat companies. As Hall put it, “there are a lot of options, and not a lot information.”
Petrics software, now in a closed alpha testing phase, lets users determine the right caloric intake for their pet with more accuracy than food labeling or quick reference charts at the vet. The app will also allow users to find appropriate pet food, find out about ingredients, and even locate, buy and get that food shipped.
“We understand some veterinarians will be initially skeptical, that they won’t want an app doing their job,” Hall said. “But all that we have spoken to see pretty quickly that we’re not cannibalizing their job, in fact, we make it easier to offer more accurate nutrition and diet recommendations within the short time they have during their typical 15-minute appointments.”
Petrics is powered by a relationship with deep databases on ingredients and food products for pets generated by InRFood. Petrics has access to information on about 17,000 ingredients and 15,000 pet foods and treats; Hall says Petrics is also looking into information on pet toys.
“They’re plagued by the same issues, a lot of them are made with few – or no – regulations, and customers don’t have a lot of information on what is safe, especially with all the recalls as of late,” he said.
Future Petrics users will continue to help build the database just by using the products, both helping to fine tune future results and, as Hall says, “take part in the progression of animal science.”
Petrics has received some favorable press for its remote feeder prototype. The planned retail device allows users to feed multiple pets different amounts of food. This prevents one animal in a group from eating other pets’ lunch, and helps owners avoid general overfeeding.
The fascination with the linking of physical devices to smart phone applications (dubbed the “internet of things”) is understandable. Being able to feed – and even see and speak to – your pet remotely is a comfort for pet owners working long or erratic hours. But, as Hall pointed out, the hardware is only an extension of Petrics software.
“We want to build the software, that’s the heart of what we’re doing,” Hall said. “People have focused on the hardware, and that will definitely be a part of it, but the hardware is just half of the value our system offers to pet owners to care for their pets.”
Petrics is planning several home devices to improve pets’ quality of life. Hall says he hopes development will largely be completed by late Summer, in time to arrange for pre-sales with delivery over the Christmas season. In the meantime, Hall is hard at work thinking about the future of the animal science industry.
Hall is playing some of his more ambitious long-term goals close to his chest, but he said he wants to continue to expand Petrics’ database resources – and find new ways to utilize it. One 10-year plan Hall is happy to talk about is reducing pet obesity.
“There are some great groups working this issue, and we want to be one of them,” Hall said. “We’d like to see the obesity rate lowered from 53 percent to under 20 percent in the next 10 years.”
