MY RUFF DAY series spotlights cutting edge technology

SAN ANTONIO, May 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nonprofit organization Petco Love announces today the launch of their MY RUFF DAY campaign to increase the number of reunions with their free to use, national lost and found database for pets, Love Lost. The platform uses image recognition technology to help families reunite with their missing pets via one photo. The platform can be found here: petcolovelost.org.

MY RUFF DAY is an animated short series (Watch here) that follows lost pets as they try to find their way back home, told from the dog or cat's point of view. The first episode follows Boomer on moving day as he heroically seeks to find his family's missing toy, only to find himself lost and alone in his new neighborhood. Good Samaritans step in and, by using Love Lost are able to reunite him quickly with his frantically searching family.

Boomer's story represents the millions of pets who go missing each year. Did you know that:

• 1 out of 3 pets become lost at some point in their lifetime.
• Nearly 10 million pets go missing each year.
• Many loved dogs and cats end up in crowded shelters, especially in the summer months.

"Not every lost pet is as lucky as Boomer. With Love Lost, we aim to change that by uniting communities and organizations with one goal in mind, keep pets and families together for a lifetime of love," said Petco Love President Susanne Kogut. "Using our database with image recognition technology as the national billboard to report all lost and found pets, we can Unite to Reunite, and send all pets, like Boomer, back into the arms of the families who love them."

Actor Jonathan Taylor Thomas is the voice of "Boomer" in MY RUFF DAY. "As an animal lover and pet parent, I know the fear of having one of them go missing. I'm proud to be a part of the Petco Love and Love Lost family and hope that My Ruff Day brings awareness to this incredible platform that reunites pets with their families."

Many participating animal shelters in the U.S. use Love Lost to help reunite the pets in their care. Love Lost helps reunite pets across multiple platforms including the Ring/Neighbors app, Nextdoor, and Facebook. "As we see every day on Nextdoor, when a pet goes missing, neighbors are ready to mobilize. The Love Lost platform is a powerful tool to harness your community, identify lost and found pets, and help with their safe and speedy return home," said Jason Hwang, Business Development Lead at Nextdoor. "We're proud to collaborate with Petco Love, dedicated to protecting some of the most beloved members of the neighborhood: pets."

Petco Love encourages everyone to register their pet now in case they go missing later. Love Lost can help people in almost any language, and it provides privacy for those who use it. Together with pet parents, good Samaritans, and partner animal shelters across the country, let's Unite to Reunite and keep pets where they belong - at home, with you.

About Petco Love
Petco Love is a life-changing nonprofit organization that makes communities and pet families closer, stronger, and healthier. Since our founding in 1999 as the Petco Foundation, we've empowered animal welfare organizations by investing nearly $400 million in adoption and other lifesaving efforts. We've helped find loving homes for more than 6.8 million pets in partnership with Petco and organizations nationwide. Our love for pets drives us to lead with innovation, creating tools animal lovers need to reunite lost pets, and lead with passion, inspiring and mobilizing communities and our more than 4,000 animal welfare partners to drive lifesaving change alongside us. Is love calling you? Join us.

Visit PetcoLove.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X, Threads, and LinkedIn to be part of the lifesaving work we lead every day.

Media Contacts
Crystal Bugary, Petco Love
[email protected]

Jeff Hare /The Artemis Agency
(818) 726-9238
[email protected]

SOURCE Petco Love