Taking your dog or cat to the vet for something simple like a look at their paw can be time-consuming, costly and cause anxiety for your pet. Now, virtual vet visits are making the process a bit easier.
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Airvet bills itself as “pet care anytime, anywhere.” Founder and CEO Brandon Werber has been thinking about the idea for a long time.
His father is a vet, so he grew up with the idea of an on demand vet.
“Anytime I had any questions, concerns, medical, behavioral, the littlest thing, like is this a wart or a tick, I would pick of the phone and I’d text him,” said Werber.
Then came a time when he needed an expert opinion fast and dad was unreachable, on a trip in Africa.
“It was terrifying. I did not have access to a veterinarian instantly. It was a Sunday and so most vets were closed.”
Werber’s company, Airvet, is an app that connects you with a vet through video-on-demand. It doesn’t even have to replace your main vet – it can supplement in-person visits.
“You can communicate with any vet and connect with any vet instantly when you need help. There’s a flat $30 fee. So, there’s no time limit, you can talk to that vet for 15 minutes,” explains Werber. That price includes 3 days of follow up.
Modern Animal is a next-generation pet clinic in Los Angeles using tech to keep furry friends and their owners safe. It’s simple: just drive into the parking lot for your appointment and stay in the car.
“We’ll come out, get your pet, we’ll do the initial exam and then get you on video (chat). We’ll give them the rundown of what we saw during our visit,” explained Steven Eidelman, founder and CEO of Modern Animal.
That’s right, a video chat with the doc inside! The clinic charges a yearly membership fee of $100 for unlimited visits.
“It gives you unlimited access to us both outside of the clinic as well as inside of the clinic. So that means no exam fees ever,” explained Eidelman. Like Airvet, Modern Animal is giving its customers 24/7 access to a virtual care team.
“The idea was to reinvent the entire experience of providing veterinary care, both for clients, of course, their pets, but even the people that work in the clinic,” says Steven.
Since we’re on the topic of pets, one more piece of pet-related news: Lemonade, the high tech insurance company, has launched pet insurance for cats and dogs. The company is known for using technology to create efficiencies in the insurance process, lowering homeowners and renter’s premiums for customers. Lemonade Pet insurance starts at $12 a month and can cover many things including x-rays, lab work and more!
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