In today’s busy society, some “paw-rents” might not be able to find the time to take their pets to the groomer or veterinarian. Others might find it a hassle driving through traffic or finding parking when they bring their four-legged friends for an appointment.
Enter Jojo Pets, a startup that aims to help pet owners with these struggles. Describing themselves as the “first pet transportation service app in Malaysia”, owners can easily access a list of pet groomers, hotels, and veterinary clinics via the app, and book one of Jojo Pets’ taxi drivers to transport them to any of these places.
The app has the convenient function of allowing direct bookings with groomers and hotels, although pet owners will have to make appointments with vets directly.
The service also includes transport from one location to another, not just those specified on the app. Pet owners can opt to travel with or without their pets.
Seow Kim Chin, 26, told FMT he came up with the idea in December 2019 when he found it difficult to find a private driver to bring his Siberian Husky puppy to the groomer. He would name the business after his puppy.
In January last year, Seow and his team began developing the technology for the Jojo Pet Taxi app and had a soft launch in October. “We had 20 trips booked in that first month alone,” he revealed.
Both the team and their customer base have grown since then. News spread by word of mouth, Seow said, as well as through social media and the internet.
Presently, Jojo Pets only offers services in the Klang Valley, although operations manager Tracy Soon said they hope to expand to other states in due course.
And although they previously transported only dogs and cats, they have recently included an interesting new addition. “We have just started our services for sugar gliders,” Soon, 47, shared with a laugh. “Surprisingly, sugar gliders need grooming, too.”
In good hands
Jojo Pets has six drivers who undergo training provided by the business itself, conducted by a professional animal trainer. The drivers are taught topics such as the type of behaviours exhibited by different breeds, and the basics of pet handling.
“We want to provide quality service to our users, and this training helps us filter out those who are not really passionate about being a pet driver,” Seow explained.
He added that part of the training includes how to handle dogs who are feeling anxious or stressed. “Talk to them, or even switch on the radio in the car to distract them, but don’t keep them in an anxious state,” he said.
An obvious criterion to become a driver is one has to love animals. True to this, 33-year-old Kanagesan Palasubramaniam decided to be a driver because of his love for animals.
He explained his strategy for managing pets that get nervous about boarding a strange car. “I will talk to them to calm them down. Then, I will take them for a short walk before bringing them to the car.”
For Kanagesan, one of the joys of this job is the reaction of pets who have been on trips several times and have grown comfortable with him.
“There is a husky who now recognises me and jumps on me and licks me whenever he sees me. I feel happy because he is like a son to me,” he said warmly.
However, one challenge in this business is that animals can’t talk. “Pets don’t complain or file a report,” Seow said. “So we have to keep studying them and spend time getting feedback from our drivers on areas of improvement.”
For instance, they learnt they had to improve their transport equipment, which led to them importing larger cages from China as they could not find suitable sizes locally.
Seow concluded by sharing: “I love animals because they love you regardless of how you behave, and they are very forgiving. So, to pet owners, love your pets.
“We have this tool for you so you don’t have to say you don’t have time. We are here for you and your pets.”
Learn more about Jojo Pets via its website, Facebook, and Instagram profiles.