Tale of a missing pet winds into a net winner

By CHRIS DANIELS

A New Zealand website, "petsonthenet", owes its existence to Sammy, a cat who went missing one day.

Sammy's owner, Kim Buchanan, half of the husband and wife team that developed the site, said the frustration of traditional methods of finding a cat prompted the invention of an original addition to the online world of pets.

Their cat went missing in June 2000, and, after the usual door-knocking and calls to the SPCA, the Buchanans turned to the internet to place an ad.

"There was absolutely nothing there, which we thought there should be, and that's when we came up with the concept of petsonthenet," says Kim.

Three days later, with Sammy now home safe and sound (he had been locked in a neighbour's laundry), Kim and Gavin set to work developing the site.

Months of hard work researching and putting together business and marketing plans followed, before the 2002 launch of www.petsonthenet.co.nz.

The idea and its success is an example of the way an old concept - a noticeboard listing lost-and-found animals - can find a new lease of life due to the immediacy and global scope offered by the internet.

"There was absolutely nothing online, there was nothing more to do.

"The next step was putting ads in the local paper, but there was a two-day wait for them to publish, so there was a gap where nothing could be done," says Kim.

"We thought that if we could go on the internet now, put on her description, someone might have found her.

"She might have been hit by a car. They could go online and see 'yes - this is the cat we've just seen' and we could have made a match within minutes."

And when the worst happens - puss or pooch getting run over - owners want to know, says Kim.

"It is better to know. Often people will put in an ad saying they had seen a cat that was unfortunately run over.

"They will put in a description and where the cat's body is, or even that they've taken the body and buried it in their garden."

Until the site was up, there was no single place where people who had found lost pets could communicate with those looking for the same animal.

"There wasn't a place where everyone could go. Some papers don't charge finders, but some do. A person who has seen a cat dead on the road is hardly going to pay to advertise that fact," she says.

The site offers a free service for lost-and-found pets.

The only charge would be if the Buchanans had to scan a photograph for display on the website.

More than 7200 ads have been placed since the website started 10 months ago, and 3500 are at present "live".

Many of the advertisements come from animal welfare groups such as the SPCA or the Cats Protection League. Some of these groups enter their own list of found pets directly on to the site, while others send the list to the Buchanans, who transfer the information online.

Volunteers also scan their local newspapers for lost-and-found notices, then put the information on to the petsonthenet site, broadening the reach of possible finders.

Kim says they are now getting up to five success stories a day. Not all these pets are found because of the petsonthenet service, but many are. And word has spread without any marketing or advertising.

Details of lost-and-found pets from all around the world are now being posted on petsonthenet, particularly from the United States.

Part of the site's success is that unites a range of animal welfare and protection groups.

"There are a number of little volunteer organisations around New Zealand that no one knows about," she says.

"People only think of the SPCA or the pound - people don't know of many of the others."

One of the latest success stories that both warms the heart and shows the power of petsonthenet comes from Nicky Owers, of Wellington.

Her cat, Douglas, ran away late last year.

After six weeks of trying to find the cat, her brother-in-law suggested placing a notice on the website.

She did this on December 30 and the next day was reunited with Douglas. It turned out that he had been found and handed in to the local Cats Protection League. A league worker who regularly checked petsonthenet found Nicky's message.

The site, run from the Buchanans' Auckland home, is supported by advertising and product sales such as ID tags and mouse pads.

Another source of income is from pet owners wanting to put some lasting memories of a departed friend online.

Known as the "e-memorial garden", it offers pet owners the chance of a tribute and photographs of their departed pet online, where it will stay for one year.

Other developments are on the way, says Kim. She did not want to give details but said they would ensure the site would never charge for its basic lost-and-found service.

Winning the Netguide Best New Website award was vindication of the work the Buchanans put into the site.

Petsonthenet won ahead of 743 other nominations, including some backed by big corporate marketing budgets and entire IT departments.

"It was a real thrill - it's like the Academy Awards of the New Zealand internet industry."

Acceptable payback for three days stuck in the neighbour's laundry, Sammy?

petsonthenet