Users download the ‘Finding Rover’ app to their smartphone or tablet, then take a picture of their beloved pet. The photo will be scanned and added to the app's system. Essentially, owners are registering their dog in case he or she ever gets lost.
The app finds dogs by using facial recognition technology to scan recently added photos in an effort to locate a missing pet, while also sending our alerts to neighbours to be on the lookout for the dog in question.
Daniel DeSousa, Deputy Director of the San Diego County Animal Services Department, explains that the app looks at eight different points on a dog's face. He says:
"If the dog comes into us, we take the same kind of photo and if that dog has been reported lost, it makes that connection.”
Between January 1 and 11, 10 San Diego families had already been reunited with their lost dogs thanks to the Finding Rover app.
The app is free and available to the public. Finding Rover's developer said he simply wanted to give dogs the chance to be reunited with their families.
To spread the word about the app outside of social media, postcard printing services and Flyers may be useful.Get a Free Quote for Flyers