A Heartwarming Story of Technology and Community

In a city as sprawling as New York, reuniting lost pets with their families can be a daunting task. However, a free platform called Petco Love Lost is changing the game with its innovative use of AI-powered photo matching.

Michael Bown’s harrowing experience with his adopted dog Millie is a testament to the power of this technology. When Millie slipped out of her collar during a walk in the East Village, Michael and his family launched a frantic search, visiting police stations and firehouses, and posting on Facebook groups and lost pet websites. But it was only when Michael’s mother uploaded Millie’s photo and microchip information to Petco Love Lost that the family received two alerts, one with an image match and another with a microchip match, both pointing to an emergency vet clinic in Paramus, New Jersey.

Within 13-14 hours of Millie’s disappearance, Michael was reunited with his beloved pet. The staff at the emergency vet clinic had treated Millie for scrapes, cuts, and a leg injury and uploaded her photo and microchip info to Petco Love Lost, where the system’s AI matched her with Michael’s report.

Aaron Klein, director of product at Petco Love Lost, explained the magic behind the platform. “Petco Love Lost uses photo-matching technology to instantly scan and compare a photo of a lost or found pet against our massive, centralized database of pets. This includes photos from most animal shelters across North America, as well as from platforms like Nextdoor Neighbors by Ring and direct posts from community members.”

The system automatically matches pets based on up to 512 data points, and as soon as a pet is reported, Petco Love Lost continues monitoring all incoming pets. If a possible match is found, the owner receives a new match alert via text and email right away, making reunions faster, more accurate, and less stressful for pet parents.

The challenge of reuniting lost pets is twofold, according to Klein. “First, getting all lost and found pet data into one central place, and second, getting everyone, whether they’ve lost or found a pet, to actually look in that one place.” Petco Love Lost is tackling this by connecting data sources into one searchable platform, including over 3,000 shelters and major social media networks, with plans to expand even further.

Michael’s story is a heartwarming reminder of the power of community, technology, and hope. As he puts it, “Love Lost helped me find Millie. It was fantastic.” For pet parents everywhere, platforms like Petco Love Lost are changing the game, making it faster and easier than ever to bring lost pets home where they belong.