Hi everyone, thank you so much for joining us. My name is Charlotte and I have the pleasure of presenting today's webinar, streamlining client education, how Popwise supports veterinarians in proactive pet care. I'd like to firstly say a big thank you to Popwise for sponsoring today's session and for making this webinar possible.
So I've been about our speaker today, Balehaleman. Bale is the co-founder and CEO of Potwise, a vet a learning and wellness platform that empowers dog parents to take a proactive approach to their pet's health and wellness. Inspired by her own challenges as a new dog parent, Bale partnered with co-founder Ken Herbert to create an innovative product that bridges knowledge gaps and strengthens the human animal bond.
With 13 years at UBS Investment Bank, where she rose to the rank of managing director, and later as the global CEOO of the Dwight Schools, Vail brings a strategic initiative approach to her leadership at Popwise. A Duke University graduate, she lives in Connecticut with her husband, 3 children, and a spirited pack of pets who inspire her work daily. I wish to let you all know that today's session will be recorded and available on playback, and you will receive a certificate for today's attendance also for your CPD.
Please use the Q&A box for any questions you may have for Vail throughout the presentation, and at the end of the session, we'll see if we can answer any of these questions you may have. If we run out of time with the submissions of the questions submitted, we will email out any responses to you in the next few days. So with no further ado, I'd now like to hand over to Vale to start today's session.
Thank you, Valle. Thank you, Charlotte. Thank you for having me, excited to be here and talk about pop wise.
Before I start, I want you all to imagine a day when pet parents have the tools to address both the joys and challenges of pet ownership. That's what Pupwise envisions, and we're here to bring that vision to life. Thank you for having me today.
I'm incredibly honoured and excited to be here to talk about Pupwise. As veterinarians, you shoulder an incredible amount of responsibility, balancing the emotional needs of pet parents, the medical realities of care, and the financial decisions that weigh so heavily on everyone involved. My hope is that by the end of today, you'll feel a sense of relief knowing that Pubwise isn't just another platform, it's a true partner that can help alleviate some of those pressures and make your work just a little bit easier.
I've broken today's session into 3 parts. In block one, I'll introduce you to Pupwise and how it's designed to meet pet parents where they are today. In block 2, I'll share my perspectives on the hidden burdens you all face, burdens that are often unspoken about but deeply felt.
And in block 3, I'll show you how Popwise is strategically built to address those burdens through a combination of pro proactive education, personalised tools, and ongoing support. Together we'll explore how bridging knowledge gaps and creating more confident informed pet parents can lift some of the weight off your shoulders, improving outcomes for both your practise and your patients. Let's get started.
Before we dive in, take a moment to read and reflect on this quote. Yes, the human-dog bond is powerful, and that's the part we love to celebrate, but it's the hidden responsibilities, the things that many pet parents don't fully anticipate that often fall directly on your shoulders as veterinarians. As we move into block 2, this quote will take on new meaning.
We'll explore just how heavy those burdens can be and why the responsibility of bridging the gap between expectations and reality can't be yours alone. And that pup wise is a trusted resource to help you lighten that load. Who are we?
We are pup wise. We are a group of incredibly passionate dog parents who believe wholeheartedly that dog parenting should and can be easier, more affordable and more empowering. We've brought together the smartest minds, the most trustworthy resources, and seamless access to care under one roof.
We've also sprinkled it with a touch of real world practicality, which we think is our secret weapon. The result, less stress and more time to love and care. Pay supports dog parents across the continuum of care.
Our goal is to keep dog parents grounded in the blue and the brown zones, which is focused on preventative and proactive care, where they can prioritise their dog's wellness and catch issues well before they escalate. But as we all know, life with dogs is incredibly unpredictable, and I have two dogs and then a brood of other animals, so I know from experience. And that when the red and yellow zones come into play, we want to make sure that parents are ready to act without feeling overwhelmed or panicked.
With the right tools, knowledge, support and resources, pet parents can make decisions more confidently and use that confidence to work more closely with you when it matters. So our focus on this continuum shows that dog parents are never alone, no matter what stage of care they find themselves in, and they're always prepared to come to you when it matters the most. So how do we do it?
I'm gonna touch briefly on this, but dive into this part of the presentation a little bit more in block 3. Our belief is that knowledge without action is just potential. It doesn't drive changes, improve outcomes, or reduce the challenges pet parents face.
At Pupwise we believe knowledge is only powerful when it's put into practise, and that's why we focus on bridging the gap between learning and action. Whether it's teaching a pet parent how to brush their dog's teeth, or log symptoms or access care, every tool, video, and resource works together to make applying what they've learned as easy as possible. We're not here to overwhelm dog pairs with information.
We're here to guide them towards confident, meaningful action that supports their dog's health and ultimately supports you as their veterinarian. So who's who powers us? When we say Pubwise is powered by experts, we actually really mean it.
This isn't just a platform built by dog parents like us. We've partnered with veterinarians, behaviourists, nutritionists, subject matter experts, and anyone else who brings decades of experience and knowledge. These collaborations ensure that every course, every tool, every resource we offer is rooted in science, practicality, and the real life challenges you face in your practise.
We're also working closely with leading academic institutions and financial services companies that share a mission of improving pet care, whether that's the research technology or creating affordable access to care. This collaboration isn't just about sharing information, it's about bringing a trusted support system directly to pet parents, so they're more equipped and excuse me, less reliant on your clinics for every small concern. By leveraging the strength of this network, we can give pet parents what they need to make better decisions while making sure you remain at the centre of their care journey.
How our membership works. We get this question all the time, so I want to address it head on. At Popwise we believe knowledge and care should be accessible to every dog parent, regardless of their background or experience, because we know that better prepared pet parents lead to better outcomes for everyone, including you.
Our memberships our membership benefits from learning opportunities to masterclass access and product savings are built with this mission in mind. As Popwise grows, and we, we remain committed to expanding these benefits in meaningful and practical ways, and we do have some incredibly exciting announcements to make over the coming months. So backed by strong partnerships across the pet care ecosystem, we are more Prepared than ever to evolve with the with the demands of pet parents, helping them become better, more equipped, and more connected in ways they've never been before.
And most importantly, how are we different? What sets us apart? I believe what sets pupwise apart is our ability to put control back into the hands of dog parents.
We simplify care by making it more affordable, empowering dog parents with practical knowledge, and ensuring long-term wellness through sustainable habits. We give them control, confidence and convenience shifting pet care from reliance on others to self-directed action all in one place. In doing so, we create better prepared, more confident parents while easing the burden of veterinarians.
So hopefully by now as we wrap up block one, you've seen just how popwise is designed to empower dog parents with knowledge, tools, and self-directed care. But why is this so important? Well, because the gaps between what pet parents expect and the realities that they face just don't affect them, they fall directly onto the shoulders of veterinarians.
So in this next block, we're going to take a closer look at 6 key burdens that arise from this gap and explore why they're more than just individual challenges. They're systematic issues that require the right kind of support. So I'm bringing this quote back again.
I showed you at startup block one, and I want to take a look at it from a slightly new perspective. I've highlighted the part to focus on. This quote isn't just theory, it's the foundation of proactive, effective care.
When pet parents understand both the highs and the lows of dog ownership, they come to you more prepared, more aware, and better equipped to work collaboratively toward better outcomes. But when that understanding is missing or worse based on misinformation, the burden weighs more heavily on you. Let's explore what those burdens look like and why closing this gap is a key focus of ours.
The expectation reality gap. It's not just a concept, it's something that I know you all live with every single day. Veterinarians are no longer just medical professionals.
You're mythbusters, behaviour coaches, financial counsellors, and therapists, to name a few, all while being expected to diagnose, treat, and educate under pressure. The gap between what pet parents expect and what reality demands isn't closing. If anything, it's widening, especially with social media, and with it the burdens you shoulder.
This isn't just about the weight of extra tasks. It's about the emotional toll, the compassion fatigue, and the constant need to balance medical outcomes with financial and emotional limitations. Let's take a deeper look at these six burdens and explore how they're impacting your practise and how Popwise is designed to help lighten that load.
Well, Billy Popeyes, we had countless conversations with veterinarians, and this burden stood out as particularly frustrating for them, . And pet parents, right? Pet parents showing up armed with advice from blogs, forums, social media influences, influencers, you name it.
They've read about brain-free diets, curing everything from itchy skin to anxiety or how natural remedies will magically solve chronic issues without intervention. This is how the challenge isn't just means information. It's, oh, we got a message.
I couldn't enter up hour. OK. The challenge isn't just the misinformation itself, it's the resistance it creates, right?
You're not just explaining what the facts are, you're having to undo what they think they already know, and that's where the time consuming, emotionally charged conversation starts. We understand how exhausting this cycle can be, which is why Pup Wi prioritises accurate vet approved education. Our goal is to intercept information early so that pet parents arrive informed and open to collaboration.
In block 3, we'll dive into specifically how Pupwise daily boosts, help alleviate the burden of you always being the Mythbuster. I don't think I've ever spoken to a friend or family member who's just brought home a new dog, whether it's a puppy or a rescue, and hasn't told me their life has been completely turned upside down. The chewing, the barking, the whining, and even the anxiety they have when they leave the house for just a few hours.
It all adds up to a level of stress they weren't expecting. Suddenly, a simple thing like running an errand, travelling, or even having an evening out feels like a major challenge. And when they hit their breaking point, guess who they call for advice?
They call you. You're the one to help them understand what's normal, what's fixable, and how to navigate the emotional roller coaster without breaking that bond they share with their dog. It's a role that goes far beyond medicine.
You're offering emotional support, behavioural science, and sometimes even playing the role of mediator between frustrated pet parent and their struggling dogs. The emotional toll is real, and without the support, the situations can escalate into rehoming risk or worse creating long-term heartache for everyone involved. In block 3 we'll talk about how Popwise addresses these these pain points head on through our community features, helping to lighten this burden before it gets to your clinic.
Burden #3, the care advocate. Let's be honest, things like brushing a dog's teeth, keeping up with nail trims, monitoring their weight, or scheduling routine checkups don't always feel urgent to many pet parents. They don't, they didn't always feel urgent to me either.
And because these small consistent habits don't seem critical in the moment, they're often the first to get overlooked. That is until the consequences show up at your clinic in the form of preventable health issues or massively expensive corrective procedures. From dental disease to obesity, skin infections, mobility problems, these preventable issues can be frustrating for veterinarians, not just because they're avoidable, but because they often require more time and effort to fix after the fact.
Suddenly, what could have been a simple preventative measure becomes a complicated medical case. The emotional weight of seeing preventable suffering is a lot. And so in block 3, we're going to explore how pupwise uses our masterclass series to tackle this challenge head on, from pro-education, proactive education to habit building tools that make it easier for pet parents to stay on top of their dog's care from the beginning.
I was talking to a friend of mine the other day. She's an incredible vet in the Albany area, and she was she was sharing something truly heartbreaking with me. She told me that the rising cost of pet, with the rising cost of pet care, she's seen more and more parents facing the impossible decision, right?
Almost daily, she said, she's watching parents who have no choice but to either euthanize their pet because they can't afford life-saving treatments or compromise on medication, knowing their dog will suffer. It's devastating. And it's not because these pet parents don't love their dogs, they do, but love doesn't always stretch the budget when you're talking about expensive diagnostics, surgeries, or even long-term medications.
As a veterinarian, you're pulled into these conversations guiding them through what they can afford versus what they wish they could afford. The emotional weight in these moments is heavy. Pett parents feel guilt, shame, and helplessness, and you're the one absorbing that emotion while trying to provide solutions that balance compassion with prac practicality.
Further, delayed checkups, skip treatments, and preventable complications often circle back to you as a vet, creating an ongoing cycle of stress on both sides. So in block 3, we're going to explore how Pupwise is working to ease this burden by promoting financial preparedness and access to affordable care options. While we can't do anything about the rising cost of care, we can help dog parents plan ahead, make informed decisions, and feel more confident about their options before the emergency rises.
One of the hardest parts about being a veterinarian isn't just diagnosing or treating, it's managing the emotional weight that comes with it. Whether it's delivering a difficult diagnosis, supporting a family through their dog's chronic illness, or guiding them through end of life decisions, you're not just a medical professional, you're an emotional anchor for them. You're the one they lean on for reassurance for empathy, and sometimes even for permission to let go.
You're absorbing their emotions while trying to stay objective, guide them to the decisions, and ensure the best possible outcome for both their dog and their family. And this emotional labour adds up. Day after day, case after case, it leads to compassion fatigue, a very real and a very common experience that I know you all feel on a daily basis.
In block 3 we'll discuss how popwise is working to support emotional preparedness through community support and partnerships with veterinarians, experience and emotional care and grief counselling, providing dog parents with that additional outlet that they need for support. Berta #6, 1 of my favourites. A few years ago, I took my dog in for her annual checkup, and my vet asked me how she'd been doing, how she'd been doing.
Any changes in behaviour, stool, eating patterns, and I completely froze. I, I didn't know how to answer the question. The truth is, a lot of pet parents are in the same boat, right?
Their, their busy life gets in the way, and unless something obvious is going on, they may not notice the small changes that could be early warning signs of something much bigger. So when dog parents like me come into your clinic with vague answers like, I think she's been eating normally, or maybe, he's a little bit more tired than usual, but I'm not sure. You're left with the role-playing detective.
How are you going to piece together all these different components to come up with an accurate diagnosis or way forward? And the same goes for treatment plans, right? You prescribe medication and you rely on pet parents to monitor for changes, whether it's improvements, side effects, or warning signs of something else.
But that's still really, really hard for dog parents to do. And block they will explore how one of my most favourite features of Pup wise, the Pupwise life log, makes record keeping easier for dog parents, ensuring that they're getting you the right information you need, so that proper diagnosis and decisions can be made about the health of their pets. Over the past 15 minutes, we've talked about 6 major hidden burdens that it that veterinarian that veterinarians face burdens that go beyond medical care and pull you into other roles.
And along the way, we've hinted at some of the ways Pupwise can alleviate those burdens. But the important connection here is that each of these burdens we've discussed today ties directly back to gaps along this continuum that Pupwise supports. We have designed pupwise to meet dog parents where they are.
And so being able to address their gaps and their concerns and their challenges across this continuum of care means that in doing so, we are also also helping to lift your burden of taking on the role of the myth buster, of the care advocate, of the financial counsellor along the way. So now is the most exciting part of the presentation when we really dive into, OK, so how does Popwise actually do this and how can you work with us to get all of us to a better place? By now, I hope you feel confident that we truly understand the weight that you carry.
These burdens we've discussed aren't just theoretical. We've seen and heard how they how they impact your day to day work, your emotional well-being, and your ability to deliver the best care. And as we just mentioned, we believe that to lift those burdens from you, we have to address the root cause, the gaps in knowledge, preparation and ongoing support that lead dog parents to rely so heavily on you for support.
Today we're going to focus on 4 core pup-wise features that directly help alleviate all that we've discussed. The first one that we're going to talk about are master classes, and these really are the heart and soul of Pup wise, providing a truly unique and fully integrating learning pathway for dog parents. Second, we're gonna talk about what we call our daily boosts, which are personalised micro lessons that that are fed to dog parents daily to encourage small consistent learning.
The third feature that we're going to talk about is our community feature, a space where dog parents can connect, ask questions, share experiences, and lean on each other. And finally, the 4th feature we're gonna talk about, which again is one of my favourites is the Pup Pupwise Life blog. And this is a tool that we designed to help dog parents track and document their dog's health journey, so they can provide you with better information and ultimately get the best care possible.
These 4 foundations, while there are many more other features within the Pupwise app, really form the foundation of how we're trying to close the gap and ease the path for dog parents and turn the burden for all of you. Why don't we get started on master classes. As I just mentioned, master classes are the absolute heart and soul of the pop wise experience.
Carefully crafted alongside veterinarians and subject matter experts. Oh, I'm so glad you're liking this, carefully crafted, . Alongside veterinarians and subject matter experts to guide dog parents on a structured learning path, moving from foundational understanding to proactive habit building care.
What makes this approach different is the focus on connecting every aspect of a topic, from prevention and early signs to long-term management and emergencies. It's not just about consuming information, it's about integrating that knowledge into everyday life and action, the practical part of pet care that is often so disconnected from the learning cycle. Critically, These classes are designed to ease some of the burdens you face by making dog parents way more prepared and feeling way more confident so that they come to you with fewer gaps and more actionable insights.
Let's take a deeper look into three of the components of our master classes that make them so effective and powerful. Feature number 11 of the key ways we help dog parents succeed is by breaking down complex topics into simple bite-size lessons. We skip the confusing jargon and the scientific overload, and instead write lessons in a way that any dog parent can understand and apply to real life.
Here I'm giving you an example of an outline, the chapters in our class related to digestive health. We start covering the basics like what the gut actually does and how it impacts your dog's over overall health. And then as the lessons progress, we connect the dots to more important things like immune health and long term wellness, and even how neglecting gut health can lead to expensive emergencies and care.
We don't just tell dog parents what to do. We show them why it matters, even if their dog seems fine today. For example, They'll see how small issues like occasional tummy trouble or inconsistent stool could be a warning sign of bigger health issues down the road.
This helps motivate them to take action in the moment and before problems worsen or costs rise. This step by step, easy to follow structure helps dog parents absorb the information without feeling overwhelmed, building knowledge as they go, and making consistent habits and the ability to anticipate potential problems easier. We're helping them see the why, even if the today seems OK.
Giving them a motivation to do things better or differently today. This progressive learning answers the everyday questions dog parents often have, questions that without guidance can create confusion and delay of care. Giving them the clarity to act once's most important.
Helps them arrive to you with the information and the knowledge that they need to help guide their ongoing care journey when something moves beyond the little bit of warning sign to potentially bigger issues. Knowing when a visit to you is needed, and arriving armed with that accurate information and a clearer sense of understanding makes the time they spend with you way more efficient and focused. The second feature of this master class, which gets me so excited, is our ability to integrate the support into the learning.
Why? Because we recognise that learning without action doesn't lead to change, which is why our master classes integrate real real world tools like weight charts, calorie calculators, and even evidence-based guides into everything that they're learning. In our healthy weight happy pup class, for example, we've integrated trusted tools from organisations like the Tufts University and the AKC into our lesson.
These tools aren't just introduced, they are built into the lesson so dog parents understand why these resources matter, why they exist, and how to use them on a day to day basis. But we don't stop there. We also provide real life activities that allow dog parents to practise using these resources, right?
Whether it's learning to use the body condition score chart to assess their dog's weight or how to convert nutrient values on their dog's food label to account for moisture, we guide them step by step and let them experience the doing. This hands-on approach ensures that dog parents don't just understand the tools, they know exactly when and how to use them to support their dog's health. So by combining the why and the how and giving dog parents opportunities to practise, we empower them to take more ownership of their decisions.
And the third feature of our master classes, which probably is my very favourite, is our scorecards. So one of the most powerful aspects of Pop wise master classes really is the data that we can gather through the activities that we pair with each of our daily lessons, right? Dog parents input everything from weight and diet information to exercise habits, creating this, this incredible kind of visual of their dog's life, a living, breathing scorecard that evolves with their dogs needs and their life changes.
So we're combining the learning, the doing, and the documenting all in one place. Right? And what's exciting about this aspect of our master class is it's not just for the dog parent, it's also for you.
We explicitly encourage them to bring this information with them to their appointments so that you two can work together to really create the best plan of action and the best plan of attack for your clients in the moment. So instead, you now have this wealth of information, a wealth of context by which to decide which to provide more informed, efficient care plans going forward. .
If you have dog parents that are, you know, not sure about their dog's weight or dogs are teetering on the verge of, of being overweight or obese, I highly recommend they take this master class. It is a, it was a labour of love and The amount of information and the way that it teaches dog parents that all the important aspects of weight management is truly incredible. We've gotten tremendous feedback on, on how simple we make this concept of the importance of weight management, taking dog parents through, why we why weight impacts their health and how it impacts their health, the role of nutrition and supporting healthy weight management, .
As well as how we can talk about exercise and how do we form long term habits. So really it is very, very robust and valuable course for our dog parents to take. That was my PSA on that.
So we talked about master. Why does it keep doing that, guys? I'm sorry, I'm not sure what's going on.
Let me fix it. We've talked about, our master classes, and I want to move into now what we call our daily boost. Our daily boosts are essentially short bursts, short micro lessons that appear on our dog parent dashboard every day.
As we know, people these days are short on time, the world is moving faster, and content delivery is evolving to prioritise efficiency. Pays daily boosts are designed with all this in mind. They are short, personalised lessons that take about 15 to 20 seconds to read.
And they tie right back to the dog's profile. So when you on board your dog on Pup wise, we collect a lot of great information about them, and then we make sure that the content, these daily boosts that we are feeding our dog parents are personalised to reflect the health, diet, lifestyle attributes of the dog. We want our lessons to be memorable, allowing dog parents easily pull from their growing library of information when they need it the most, and make sure that they always feel confident and prepared to address any challenge that comes their way.
And of course, with a touch of gam gamification, we help keep them motivated by offering rewards and milestones as they progress through these daily learnings. I want to also talk about our life log, right? I, I was talking about this a little bit earlier, but this is absolutely one of my, my favourite features.
It's evolving and there's so many exciting things that we have planned as it relates to these, these, these, these life logs, . The reason it's one of my personal favourites is because, as I referenced earlier, that time when I went to the vet and I absolutely could not answer some basic questions about how has my dog been doing. Like many dog parents, I simply couldn't remember the small details about my dog's health, her behaviour, or even how long some of her symptoms had been happening.
And so for me this life lock has been a game changer. In a nutshell, the law allows dog parents to track and organise everything from health metrics like weight, temperature, and vitals to more everyday observations like eating habits, behaviour, and changes in mood. Whether a dog parent is jotting down a quick note about their pup's new habit, it helps keep everything in one place.
And also it's not just for tracking ongoing changes, it's perfect for post-treatment care as well. So when you prescribe a treatment plan or a medication, the Lio really does ensure that dog parents can track this easily, note any side effects, and provide you with valuable updates during those follow-up visits. So instead of relying on these vague descriptions like, I think they've done this or what have you, we really do have some tangible information to share with you during.
Those, those visits. In the future, we're looking to integrate reports from third parties like home diagnostic tests, wearable tech, and even reports from groomers so that vets can have a complete real-time view of a dog's health journey, that they can use to supplement what they already know from your own health records about that dog, right? So it's, it's, it's an easier way to piece together, the true history and connect the dots in a dog's, health journey.
And then the 4th and final area that I want to talk about before we wrap it up and open up to Q&A is really our community feature. And this is a place where dog parents can go, it's a trusted space, they can lean on other dog parents for talk about different challenges, seek advice, and find emotional support that help helps them navigate those, those tough moments, . Either a loss, some sort of grief, or even some of the behavioural challenges they're they're struggling with, right?
So this becomes an outlet of a very important support for them. It gives all parents a place to feel that they can. You know, get the advice and the support of others without feeling judged, because at the end of the day we've we've all gone through these various different roller coasters of emotions, as dog parents.
There is one thing I wanted to point out which really sets the pubwise community feed, sets it sets it apart from these other potential social media feeds that are out there. If you take a look at The first image you'll see that there is a post, and this is a real post from a user who had noticed a skin type of lesion on their on their dog, and they were very concerned about it. Obviously they were seeking help from the community, but, and the community was giving thoughts and, and their own opinions, which again can be good and and can be bad.
But what we've done is we said, OK, we know that there is this, this, this challenge of, of bad information or wrong information. How do we still create a place where Where you can get that information, insights from others, because let's be honest, the, the feedback of other dog parents and and the sharing of those experiences can be incredibly valuable to your own decision making, but where that Those comments are tempered by actual fact, actual academic truth, and resources that can help you get to the right answer. And so on every single one of our community posts, we have a fixed a resource link and opening up that resource button, which is slide, which is image number 2.
Polls from our library of information from the resources that we have curated to support dog parents in their journey, we have pulled together resources that are relevant to the conversations that are happening on that post. So in this case when the conversations are around. Skin related issues.
We have pulled in articles from our other veterinarians that we work with, resources, diagnostic testing, skin checks, etc. To help them solve the problem so that they can take the view of. The peers into consideration, but balance those against some of the more academic findings and information from veterinarians and specialists.
I think our ability to sort of pull these different pieces together into one place and allow those conversations to happen naturally, . As a real differentiator for Pup wise, and we think we'll go a long way to helping bridge some of those challenges that they face and those knowledge gaps that currently exists, you know, outside of the pup wise environment. Look, I hope by now you're feeling confident that we truly understand the challenges that you face every day, and that we're here to help support you in ways that make a real difference.
Your partnership is imperative to creating a better, more sustainable experience for both you and your clients. And so before we wrap up, I thought it was incredibly important for all of you to know what our core values are, what we stand for, and why we are truly, truly committed to helping. Dog parents alleviate the challenges they feel, and in doing so minimise the burden that you feel as veterinarians, in this, this world, this crazy world that we're living in right now.
I'm gonna go through them one at a time, collaborative care, what does that mean? Knowledge It is important, and we believe that when pet parents, veterinarians, and trust experts work together, we create stronger, more informed teams capable of of achieving better results. Popwise is here to support, not replace, the critical role that veterinarians play.
And I just want to repeat that one more time. We are here to support, not replace the critical role that you all play. Knowledge empowerment.
We know that knowledge is power, but it's only true effective when it's truly effective when it's practical, trusted, and easy to access. That's why we focus on providing accurate, actionable insights and resources that help guide parents to partnering effectively with your vets. And then findable sustainable wellness.
Pet care shouldn't be reactive. It should be built around long term sustainable habits that lead to healthier outcomes. Our mission mission is to equip dog parents with the tools and the guidance they need to make better choices over the lifetime of their pet, that continuum of care that we talked about.
A pup wise our values are not just words, they're the foundation of how we operate, how we grow, and how we partner with subject matter experts to improve long-term outcomes for dogs and their families. I'm so incredibly thankful for this opportunity to talk to all of you, for all that you do to support the furry animals that we love so incredibly much. Now, our goal is to be a trusted partner with you to really work together to solve some of these immense challenges that we face, and We are committed to doing that with the utmost degree of integrity, honesty, and collaboration.
So, I want to leave you with sort of three things, . That you can hopefully take with you, and then come back to us after you had some time to digest what we talked about today. The first is, we would love you to share the Pup wise resource with your friends, your family, your clients.
We are really excited about what we're building, where we're moving to, and all the incredible resources that we are pumping into the Pupwise ecosystem. Please use code 33 months free to check out Popwise, we are available in the app store right now. So if you have an iPhone, please share this far and wide, jump in there and let us know what you think.
#2, we want to learn from you. We have, as I, as I said, we've only just begun. How can we do better?
Where can we do better? We want you to teach us so that we can all be on the same page. If you have thoughts, if you have ideas, if you have feedback, please email me directly, so that we can help make pup wise an even more powerful, resource for you.
And then finally, join us, right? As I mentioned, Whether it's creating a master class together, sharing insights or building your own professional brand on the Pubwise community, we'd love to collaborate with you. We have so many veterinarians that we're working with our master classes right now, and As we all know, there are, there are a million different topics we could talk about, and so we just want to keep growing that library of master classes and we love you to be part of that.
If there is a particular topic or subject matter that you feel very passionate about, let's get that, get that out there to dog parent and and let them learn from all the goodness, and brilliance you have, inside of you. So with that, again, share it, teach us and join us. Thank you so much for having me today.
I hope that you have a much better sense for who we are, what we stand for, and how we can support you, in the incredible work that you do every day, for these little furry things that we just love so much. So with that, I will turn it over to Q&A. Thank you, Val, for presenting tonight's webinar.
What a great informative session. We have had a few questions submitted, so we'll, go through them now. So the first one that we have for the evening is, you say about owners inputting data, but often being short of time, does this link with the dogs' tracking systems available to record exercise levels, sleep patterns, behaviour when owners are out of the house, or would that be something that you'd look into in the future?
Great question. There's two ways that our life logs work right now, as a phase one. The first is when dog parents naturally, engage with the community, every time they're posting to the community, maybe they, are upset that their dog is misbehaving, maybe their dog seems extra sluggish and they're looking to, sort of talk to the community about those topics.
Every time they post to the community, we're automatically storing that conversation and adding it to their pup's life log. So there's an automatic . Part of this life blog feature, right?
The second piece is, yes, you can also go in there and on occasion, add a comment that you want to note in their life log, maybe do a weight check, things like that. It is. It still does require, yes, some input on the pet parents part to do that.
Obviously, over time, if we, as we have these integrations, some of these will be more automatic, right? So if you, if your dog does wear a wearable device, some of that information hopefully will just flow into your life log. But we have seen that dog parents, because we make it pretty easy to kind of add this information, it's a couple clicks of a button and you can add a you know, how much their dog weighs, and it's boom, it's submitted.
We do find that pet parents are using it, but I agree, there's still gonna be more that we're gonna need to do to really make this even easier and less time consuming to, to contribute information to their dog's life log. And we have lots of plans for that. But for phase one, it's, it's pretty easy and we'll continue to, to figure out ways to, to do that even more efficiently going forward.
Yeah. No, thank you for that, you know, baby steps to begin with, and yeah, the world's always the problem is we have all these ideas and we just need like 50 million different developers to put them into action right away. Oh, it's all, all so exciting.
Exactly. Like I, I do, but I would say to that, Charlotte, is, you know, this Exactly where we need your input, right? Because the more we understand where the priorities need to be, from your perspective, then that also helps us prioritise, the improvements that we make to the experience.
Exactly. That's it. You need, you need that feedback and, you know, it's all about, you know, what's important, to, to you, as a pet parent, and, what, you know, what we use day to day and what is important.
data is gonna be, useful, and yeah, like you say, what's gonna be able to be integrated in the future is, you know, gonna be important and, and what can, what, Is, gonna be able to be, utilised, so, yeah, very exciting stuff. The next one we have is, how is this delivered and what format and what are the costs of this as well? Yeah, absolutely.
Right now we are on the App Store. We are working, to have a web version, which would make it open to everybody. Hopefully that will be coming, .
Early in the second half of 2025. I can't believe we're already in 2025. Our membership tier right now is a single membership tier.
It's 59.99 a year. But to be quite honest, we're less concerned about that right now.
Our really our goal is, just getting pet parents on the platform, giving us feedback, taking our master classes, beginning to build up, build up that knowledge base, which is why we're very happy to offer free trial periods, extended free trial periods right now. And we could, of course, we can continue to extend those free trial periods, but it is 59.99 a year, which we still is still significantly less expensive than a lot of other platforms.
But, but one of the important things I want to say is that our goal ultimately is, and we're very close to this right now, our goal is to ultimately make the be the member benefits of being on Popwise far. More valuable than the dollar amount that they're spending per year to be on it, and that really is our goal, whether that's through product discounts, whether that's through access to veterinary care, whether it's through a number of different, exciting developments we have coming down the pipeline, really the goal is if you are a member of Pop Wise. The benefits that you receive from being on here should far outweigh the the membership fee, .
That you're paying. Yeah. No, definitely.
Exactly. I would love to offer it for free. We just have to keep somehow, yeah.
And also you want, you've got to back up those developments and as well. The next question we had is, . .
I'm not sure. If this is an appropriate one. If I'll I'll I'll, I'll question it, but I'm not sure if, if you're gonna be able to answer this one as well.
Is dog behaviour change with the shortage of time of the owner due to his, her busy routine, is that affect? On their behaviour. I'm not too sure what that means I'm afraid.
Question. I, I think one, I think what's really important though to point out. Around behaviour is that.
We are not trying to be the behaviour experts, right? So Pup wise, the goal of Pup-wise is to help lead dog parents to the right support, to the right resources, to the right care that can help them get the professional guidance they need. Of course, we're going to provide the foundational knowledge, we're gonna provide the guidance, we're gonna provide.
The insights that make them realise, hmm, this is more than I can handle on my own, and then we're going to show them where they can go to get the resources that that can support them. So for example, behaviour is a massive, massive challenge that so many dog parents face, right? And it can't be the burden of the vet, because the vet is not a behaviourist, right?
. But we also want to make sure that dog parents are getting to a behaviourist versus a trainer if the issue is more mental health related, right? So we are teaching them how to recognise whether behaviour is could be related to a mental health issue, whether it could be related to a sickness, whether it could be related to stress, and so by helping them kind of figure out what path is likely the, you know, the course they need to take, we then are able to direct them to the resources that are best. Positioned for that path that they that they believe they're on, right?
We're not, we're not the coaches. We're not telling them how to train their dog or how to fix the behaviour. We're helping lead them to the right answer through knowledge and access to care.
Yeah. No. OK, thank, thank you for that.
Yeah, so, we just had one more come through. Question, good question. What is the biggest challenge when launching an app?
Oh my gosh. The biggest challenge, I think the biggest challenge is is the chicken and the egg, right? I mean, we started off, I'll be totally transparent because, you know, whenever you start a company, it's challenging.
I think when we started off we are more community focused. And I think what we learned about that is it's hard to create community. Around just the concept of community.
And so I think the biggest part of building an app is trying to figure out where you start. And the more and more we spoke to dog parents, the more we realised that they wanted community, but they wanted some structure around that community. They wanted, they wanted to understand community as it relates to digestive health.
They wanted to, they wanted community as it relates to behaviour. They wanted community to be able to support a larger concept or a larger theme. And so that's when we began to move into, why don't we lead with the educational component that then leads to the support system through community.
And then we realised, well, that's great, but again, without the action part, knowledge is just knowledge, right? And so how do we then create A community that brings together all of these components, all these pieces that allow dog parents to move into that better space, right? The knowledge, the tools, the community support, the resources, and the access all together into one place.
And how do we do that, that makes it in a way that we can make it really, really easy for dog parents to get to where they need to get to and in doing so, again, alleviate all these burdens. So I think the biggest challenge was, was creating the app was where to start. And then how to, and then how to drive people to that value proposition.
It's taken us a while, we're we're finally there, but I think that was that that was the hardest part of of building the app. Yeah, yeah, I, I, I can't even begin to imagine. You have to have thick skin, which is why I encourage everybody to please give me your thoughts because how.
Yeah I know. But, but yeah, I think that brings us, to the end of the session. But, I'd just like to say thank you, again, Vale, and thank you again for Pupwise for sponsoring tonight's webinar.
We hope you all enjoyed, today's webinar, and obviously, thank you everyone for the questions submitted. Thanks to everyone for joining us, at the webinar vet, and we, hope to see you all again soon and obviously everyone check out, Upwise, and thanks for watching. Thank you, Charlotte.
Bye-bye. Bye.
