Scratchpay Wins VMX Pet Project

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In partnership with The North American Veterinary Community (NAVC), pet technology brands PetCoach and Whistle have announced Scratchpay as the winner of Pet Project 2018, a live pitch event that invited entrepreneurs in the vet health industry to bring their ideas to the stage at the annual Veterinary Meeting and Expo, VMX. This is the second installment of the Pet Project venture program aimed to encourage innovation in the $65 billion pet industry by providing support to entrepreneurs with winning ideas or products intended to improve the veterinary practice and future of pet medicine.

Scratchpay, a startup offering simple, friendly payment plans for immediate access to veterinary care, was selected by a panel of four expert judges including veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker; Mars Petcare’s VP of Digital Health, Jeannine Taaffe; Brock Weatherup, EVP Strategic & Digital Experience at Petco; and NAVC CEO Tom Bohn, CAE. As the standout pitch of Pet Project 2018, Scratchpay will receive a $25,000 cash prize and critical feedback to help accelerate ITS idea into a thriving business.

“I was thrilled to take part in this event alongside some amazing entrepreneurs in the veterinary space,” said John Keatley, founder and CEO of Scratchpay. “The prize and industry recognition will help us ensure that more pets have access to the medical care they need to live happy lives.”

Pet Project was developed in 2017 by Brock Weatherup, EVP Strategic & Digital Experience at Petco, and Ben Jacobs, co-founder and CEO of Whistle.

“The NAVC is proud to join Mars Petcare, Petco, Whistle and PetCoach to support entrepreneurs, help them clear the hurdles startups typically face within the industry and bring their innovative ideas to the veterinary healthcare world at a faster pace to advance our profession,” Bohn said.

Scratchpay was joined on stage at the VMX Pet Project 2018 live pitch by the following startup finalists:

VetSpire – a cloud-based veterinary medical records and practice management company

Petnostics – creators of at-home tests to identify early warning signs

Fuzzy – comprehensive in-home veterinary care

Future Pet – SMS patient history collection for veterinary visits