When the nation-wide lockdown was announced on 22nd April, pet owners across the country went into a frenzy. After all, how were they supposed to provide food for their beloved furry friends? Unsurprisingly, there were a lot of frantic searches on the internet, like “pet shop near me ” or “pet shop online“; all to ensure that our furry friends do not have to starve during the lockdown.
Thankfully, the government deemed pet stores as essential throughout the lockdown. As such, most registered wholesale pet shops were open across the country. Hence, pet owners could avail of food, toys, and accessories for their pets. However, some places in the country were declared as “containment zones” and, the stores had to be closed in those places. The pet owners in these cities struggled to put food on their pets’ plates. However, as they say, “Necessity is the mother of invention”. The distress of the pet owners fuelled the rise of many pet care start-ups to cater to their needs and led to the rapid growth of the online pet care industry.
Local pet care start-ups lent a big helping hand to the distressed pet owners during these tumultuous times. They ensured the quick delivery of food and medicines for their cherished pets. On top of that, some of them also started online vet consultations during the prolonged lockdown. This enabled pet owners to talk to vets right from their homes about their queries, from vaccinations to severe ailments. Being considered as key workers, vets were open during the lockdown. However, in reality, they were seeing only the “essential” appointments to lessen the risk of infection. The pet owners were at a loss as to how to care for their pets in these unprecedented times. They were constantly worried about their pets’ mental and physical health. As such, the advice of veterinarians was more needed than ever and, the start of online vet consultations was a boon for the concerned pet parents.
As Unlock 4.0 is being unrolled pan-India, normalcy, at least to some extent, is being restored in the country. The lockdown amidst the COVID-19 pandemic gave a much-needed push to the online pet care industry in the country as several start-ups grew to cater to the rising demand.