Miami-Dade County Animal Services partners with mobile app company to help reunite lost dogs with their owners
The free mobile app helps pet owners find lost dogs in real-time
(MIAMI, 12, 2015) – Miami-Dade Animal Services (Animal Services) has partnered with Finding Rover, a free mobile app that helps pet owners find their lost dogs in real-time using facial recognition technology. Animal Services is the first shelter in Florida to partner with the Finding Rover mobile app company.
Beginning Wednesday, March 18, 2015 Animal Services’ database of dogs will be automatically uploaded and integrated into the Finding Rover mobile app. Users who download the app and register their pets can then search for found dogs who may currently be at the shelter.
“We hope everyone who has a dog in our community can take advantage of this opportunity to ensure the safe return of their dog that may go missing through the use of this free app,” said Alex Muñoz, Director of Animal Services. “We receive approximately 500 pets a week at the shelter and the Finding Rover app is an important technological tool that can help us reunite lost pets with their owners.”
Nationally, more than 10 million pets go missing each year. Finding Rover’s facial recognition technology helps reunite more dogs with their owners by enabling anyone to instantly identify a missing dog on the spot by simply taking a photo on a mobile device.
Finding Rover features a lost and found dog notification system that sends a push notification and social feed photo alert if a dog is lost or found within a 10 mile radius. If a user spots a lost dog, he/she can take a photo either within the app, or upload a photo from a device’s photo album. Once a dog has been found and identified through Finding Rover’s facial recognition software, the finder will receive information on how to notify the owner.
Finding Rover has already launched in San Antonio and Houston.
Key benefits of the app include:
• Easy to register: Registration is easy registration through Facebook and email – all you need is a picture of your dog and a zip code.
• Easy to use: Anyone with a mobile phone can take a photo of a lost dog, which will be instantly posted on Finding Rover.
• Technologically advanced: Finding Rover spent two years with The University of Utah research and development (R&D) department creating its proprietary facial recognition technology. Finding Rover has the only technology that instantly recognizes a dog on the spot.
• Social: Finding Rover unites dog owners based on common interests and provides a forum for users to read up on the latest dog news, share content and interact.
• Free! Finding Rover is free to download.
Finding Rover is currently online and works on iPhone, Android, or the Web.
For an overview visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbRJozk_Im4
About Miami-Dade County Animal Services
Every year Miami-Dade County Animal Services Department (Animal Services) provides care and refuge for over 27,000 abandoned dogs and cats. Every day, Animal Services staff and volunteers work diligently to find life-long homes for these abandoned animals by facilitating onsite adoptions, hosting off-site adoption at events and locations throughout the community, and working collaboratively with over 70 rescue organizations who share in our goal of a No Kill Miami-Dade County.