Petzila is rolling out the PetziConnect, a webcam and treat dispenser designed to let you interact with your pet, even when you’re not home. Hey, it beats dogTV!
My dog routinely outsmarts us. He figured out long ago that he gets treats for two reasons: someone’s at the door, and we don’t want him to eat them, or we’re leaving, and we want him to go lay down on his bed and be a good boy. Bribing him when guests are over is easy since we can keep an eye on him, but the problem with the treats+leaving combo is that he now knows when we leave that we’re gone for a while. So he doesn’t nicely stay on his bed anymore and instead sleeps in any and all off-limits areas: the couch, our bed, the baby’s room, etc. So based on the description alone, I am VERY intrigued by the potential remote-dog-control options with PetziConnect, a way to dispense treats and check out your pet while away from home.
PetziConnect is a pretty clever concept: it’s a video camera with two-way audio that lets you spy on your pet AND dispense treats at your command. Basically, you can check to see if your pet is being good, talk to them through the PetziConnect, and when they do what you want, reward them with a treat. Or, if you’re trying to control my dog, note that he’s probably on the couch, consider the likelihood that he’ll lick a hole in this couch as he did to the last one, and then pray that dispensing treats somewhere other than the couch will keep Licky McLickerson from washing down his “we’re leaving” treat with a nice side of fabric.
The folks behind PetziConnect have an app and web interface to spy on your four-legged friend, plus you can snap photos, take video, and share that latest “oh look how cute my dog is” photo on Facebook and Twitter. In fact, if you read their full description on IndieGoGO, it was the desire to share pet photos that led to the rise of PetziConnect! It’s a very clever idea with lots of potential…the biggest risk is that owners and pets get too addicted to it, and the company needs to launch a PetziFitness to combat a rise in doggy obesity!