Startups:
Fuzzy doles out pet advice on demand
Zoe, stubborn and sweet, is the kind of bulldog that wags her whole butt when she’s happy and excited, because she’s doesn’t have a tail.
Her owner, Amber Chang, loves her so much that when she finds a weird mole or a red spot on the dog, she wants to figure out what’s wrong, fast.
Chang, who owns themed-clothing retailer Bulldog and Bourbon, can open up her Fuzzy Pet Health application on her phone, snap a picture of Zoe and her weird mole, and within minutes get a veterinarian-approved response about what to do next.
“Before (Fuzzy), we’d weigh the pros and cons about going to a veterinarian — there would be a lot of guessing, and Googling, and hoping she would be fine,” Chang said. “But now we just have answers on demand.”
Fuzzy, a San Francisco subscription vet service that started in 2016 and has raised $4.5 million, is trending this week on the Crunchbase startup database after adding a pet telemedicine service for all of its clients. Users can download an app, pay $10 a month and get access to on-demand veterinary advice from morning to evening.
Chang said using her Fuzzy Pet Health plan, which costs $420 a year and includes two in-person checkups as well as the telemedicine option, has cut her veterinarian bills by 50 percent.
Jess Trimble, a veternarian who is building Fuzzy’s telemedicine practice, said that on average, a person will take a pet to the vet 1.6 times a year, but with the telemedicine option, owners are interacting with veterinarians at
least once a month.
“From nutritional consultations, to behavioral consultations, to something as simple as ‘My puppy is snoring, is that normal?’ — we’re focusing on the big and little things,” Trimble said.
Fuzzy says its app allows owners to avoid the “Google spiral” of searching online and concluding that a beloved pet has cancer when it’s actually something benign.
Deal of the week: Comfy
What it does: Comfy bills itself as a “digital assistant for the office” that allows workers to use their smartphones to adjust the lighting and temperature in buildings. What happened: Comfy was acquired by the German manufacturing giant Siemens for an undisclosed sum and will continue to operate independently. Why it matters: Comfy is Siemens’ third smart-technology acquisition in the past few months, highlighting a push for digitalization of buildings. Comfy says the deal will help its Oakland team tap into Siemens’ resources to reach
Also trending: Hims
What it does: Hims is a men’s health company that offers discounted prescription drugs for skin care, hair loss and more. What happened: Hims scored a $50 million funding round, led by Institutional Venture Partners. Why it matters: Hims will use the money to expand its offerings, which the company says cost about 80 percent less than similar products offered over the counter or by prescription. Its most popular items have to do with sexual wellness and combatting hair loss. Headquarters: San Francisco Funding: $97 million, according to Crunchbase Employees: 11-50, according to Crunchbase