Pet apps make life easier for pet parents in many ways, offering everything from dog training tips to guidance on feeding your guinea pig. Instead of juggling multiple phone numbers and websites, you can find everything you need with just a few taps on your smartphone. With so many choices on the market, it helps to know the best apps are available for your pet.
How Pet Apps Help You Care For Your Pet
From training tips to health advice, there’s always something new to learn about pet care. Whether you’re the parent of a dog, cat, bird, or small animal, having access to important information on the go makes pet care easier and more enjoyable.
Training & Playtime
One of the most enjoyable parts of being a pet parent is training and playing with your pet. Training apps provide step-by-step instructions to teach your dog, cat, or even your parakeet fun tricks and games. Some apps help find safe alternatives to public dog parks, while others even have touchscreen games to keep your cat amused.
Travel & Boarding
Pet apps can make traveling with your pet a lot easier. From booking pet-friendly hotel rooms to finding local pet supply stores, these apps help you take your pet on the road. And when you just can’t take your furry friend with you, there are apps to help you find pet sitters and boarding options.
Tracking & Safety
Whether you’re traveling or staying home, you want to know that your pet is safe. Tracking apps are indispensable if your pet wanders off. No one likes to think about it, but a dog or a cat can become lost in the blink of an eye. The right app can alert you to their location so you can find your beloved pet.
Speaking of safety, there are also apps that help pet parents prepare for emergencies. No matter where you are, you can learn what to do if your pet is injured or sick.
Apps for Many Types of Pets
There are apps for pet parents of all kinds. From dogs and cats to parakeets and guinea pigs, we’ve listed some suggestions to help you find the right pet apps.
1. Puppr Teaches Young & Old Dogs New Tricks
When it comes to training your dog, it’s often hard to know where to start. Thankfully, the Puppr pet training app is loaded with dog training resources. Maybe you have a new puppy and need to learn the basics of potty training. Or perhaps your furry friend is ready to learn some fun new tricks, like handstands.
From beginner to advanced, Puppr gives pet parents access to live chat and step-by-step videos. The app follows the positive reinforcement approach to training and features lessons by celebrity dog trainer, Sara Carson, plus many more helpful features:
- Live chat with certified trainers
- Built-in clicker
- More than 100 lessons
- Training progress tracker
- Product recommendations
- Reminders for training schedule
- Community photo challenges to show off your dog’s progress
Available for iOS or Android, Puppr is free with additional in-app purchases.
2. Lumsters Cat Training Tips Helps You Bond With Your Feline Friend
Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to train a cat. With cat training app Lumsters, pet parents can create a positive relationship with their cats.
Lumsters offers a variety of useful tips and resources, including advice on welcoming a new cat to your home and coaxing your cat into their carrier.
Cat parents will find the following features on Lumsters:
- More than 15 daily lessons
- Tips on training a cat using a clicker or treats
- Trackers that show your cat’s training progress
- Answers to questions about your cat
- Fun, interactive games for stronger bonding
If you need information that’s not on the app menu, don’t worry: There’s even an AI-generated chat function that answers questions about cat care.
Lumsters is currently available for iOS only and is free with additional in-app purchases.
3. Pet First Aid Offers Emergency Pet Care Information
Pet emergencies can happen anywhere and anytime. From providing information on when to call a veterinarian to tips on building a pet first aid kit and supplies to have on hand in case of an evacuation, Pet First Aid by the American Red Cross takes the worry and guesswork out of caring for your pet.
Pet First Aid provides valuable emergency care information for pet parents, such as:
- Videos and step-by-step instructions for more than 25 emergency situations
- List of early warning signs
- Animal hospital locator
- Pet profile including photo and list of medications
Pet First Aid is free and available for iOS and Android.
4. Rover Lists Trusted Pet Sitters & Walkers
When you can’t be there for your beloved pet, you want a pet sitter or a walker you can trust. The Rover pet-sitting finder app helps pet parents find sitters, walkers, and other pet care providers.
With Rover, you can filter to find providers who are home all day or who allow dogs on their furniture. You can even arrange a “meet and greet” to help you find a good fit for your dog or cat.
Rover offers information on the following services:
- Sitting and walking
- Overnight boarding
- Drop-in visits at your home
- Doggy daycare
- Sitter background checks
- 24/7 support
- Photo updates
- GPS walk tracking
- Secure booking and payment
Available for iOS and Android, Rover is a free app that helps you search for the right provider for your pet’s personality and your lifestyle.
5. BringFido Finds Dog-Friendly Hotels & Attractions
Traveling with your dog? The free BringFido app brings you information on pet-friendly hotels, letting you search for and book based on price, location, popularity, and other factors. It even lets pet parents filter searches to find hotels that accept large dogs or that won’t charge a pet fee.
In addition to hotels, BringFido also helps pet parents find:
- Pet-friendly restaurants and attractions
- Nearby veterinarians and groomers
- Local dog walkers and sitters
- Pet supply stores
When you book through BringFido, you’ll also have access to a team of experts who can answer all your pet travel questions.
BringFido is free and available for iOS and Android.
6. Tractive Locates Your Pet & Monitors Their Activity
Thanks to GPS technology, the Tractive pet-tracking app lets you track your pet’s location so you can always have peace of mind. Plus, you can use the app to monitor health habits, too.
The Tractive app features:
- Live tracking with location updates every 2-3 seconds
- Alerts when your pet is outside of safe zones you set up
- Reports on dangers nearby like poison baits
- Sleep and activity tracking
The Tractive pet app requires a subscription plan and is available for iOS and Android.
7. Sniffspot Provides Access to Safe & Private Dog Parks
Dogs love their off-leash time, but public dog parks can be a scary place for some pups and their parents. From aggressive dogs to disease transmission, public spaces are not always the best option for a furry friend.
The Sniffspot app gives dog parents a safe alternative by providing access to controlled, private spaces, as well as:
- Ability to browse and view private spots
- Private dog park booking
- Dog park searches filtered by size and fencing
- Reviews of local spots
- Safe and private play dates
- Distraction-free exercise time
Sniffspot is free and available for iOS and Android.
8. Cat Fishing 2 Keeps Your Cat Busy With Fun Games
Give your cat the mental stimulation they need and satisfy their hunting instinct with Purina Friskies Cat Fishing 2. Just lay your mobile device near your cat and watch your feline friend tap the screen and score points with simulated fishing games.
A variety of settings and features makes the second Cat Fishing app even more fun:
- 10 different fish and pond settings
- Friskies Fun Membership option for ad-free, unlimited play
- “Meow” alert when your cat doesn’t play for 30 seconds
With Cat Fishing 2, available for free for iOS and Android, your cat just might forget about using your favorite chair as a scratching post.
9. Budgie Book Has Answers for Parakeet Parents
As parakeet parents know, these friendly and lovable birds make engaging pets. Budgie Book is a free app for parents of parakeets, also known as budgerigars or “budgies.” This pet care app offers information on budgie-related topics, including species identification, training and breeding.
Budgie Book users have a wide range of parakeet care information at their fingertips:
- Tips for adopting a parakeet
- Information on choosing a cage
- Parakeet care information
- Parakeet diseases
- Map of wild species
- Fun tricks and training tips
- Photo identification of your parakeet species
Budgie Book is free to install for iOS devices and contains some in-app purchases.
10. My Guinea Pigs Teaches You About Your Small Furry Friend
Small animals need comprehensive pet care just as much as dogs and cats. For guinea pig parents, My Guinea Pigs offers useful information and tools for beginning and experienced pet parents, including:
- Best and worst foods for your guinea pig
- Meal planning tool
- Weight and diet tracking
- Vet visit tracking
This pet app is free to download for iOS and includes some in-app purchases.
Pet Care Information as Close as Your Mobile Device
Pet parents lead busy lives, and it helps to know that pet care information is always available whether you’re at home, at the park, or on the road. Maybe you want to play a new game with your dog or perhaps you’re wondering if you should worry about that limp. With the right pet apps for pet parents, the answers to all your questions are at your fingertips.
