Pet tech and food startups see fresh capital injection

Pet tech and food startups are attracting new investments, and a dedicated venture fund has entered the scene to support early-stage innovators. 

Digitail, United States

Atlanta-based software platform for veterinary clinics, Digitail, raised $23 million (€21M) in its Series B funding round on 10 November. The investment was led by Five Elms Capital, with participation from existing investors.

The new capital will advance the platform’s global expansion and AI capabilities. Digitail is an AI-powered cloud-based platform that consolidates scheduling, medical records, invoicing, client communications, inventory management and wellness plans, among others.

“Our goal is to build the most comprehensive AI-native operating system to power the entire clinic, helping veterinary teams spend less time behind screens, see more patients, and get home on time,” says Sebastian Gabor, Founder and CEO of Digitail.

Founded in 2016, the platform supports 10,000 veterinarians and 3 million pet owners across independent clinics, multi-location practices and mobile vets in 40 countries.

nextProtein, France

French insect player nextProtein raised €18 million ($19.8M) in its Series B funding round on 4 November.

The new capital injection will enable the company to open a second production facility in Tunisia, which is expected to be fully operational in 2027. The facility will produce 12,000 tons of insect-based ingredients annually, including 2,500 tons of protein powder.

nextProtein produces insect-based protein and oil for animal feed ingredients from black soldier fly larvae.

Marleybones, UK

UK-based dog food brand Marleybones closed its recent funding round with £2.5 million ($3.4M/€3.1M) capital raised on 29 October. The round was led by TAW Ventures, an investment firm founded by American billionaire Jane Lauder, and received participation from existing investors.

Marleybones will use the capital to scale creative, customer experience, retail and marketing efforts, as well as for acquisitions.

“We’ve built strong traction across D2C [direct to consumer] and retail, expanded into supplements, and proven category demand with triple-digit growth. With TAW Ventures and JamJar by our side, we’re ready to accelerate our journey to make Pantry Fresh® a household standard,” Mikala Skov, Co-founder of Marleybones, says.

The company is a female-founded dog food producer based in London. Since its founding in 2020, it has expanded into supplements, oils and treats.

Muttley Crew, India

Indian pet food brand Muttley Crew raised $425,000 (€387K) in its seed funding round to scale operations, expand retail presence across India and enhance product development, the company tells GlobalPETS.

Muttley Crew collaborates with veterinarians and pet nutritionists to craft its product range. It also partners with Bangalore cafes to co-create premium, pet-friendly offerings.

“This funding is more than a financial milestone – it validates our belief that pets deserve the same quality and care in their food as humans do,” says Smriti Thomas, Founder and CEO of Muttley Crew. 

“With the support of our investors and the strength of our team, we are ready to expand our footprint to more than 100 locations by the next quarter and redefine pet nutrition across India,” she adds.

Currently, Muttley Crew is present in 20 outlets across Bangalore and has expanded into new cities such as Mysore, Hyderabad, Goa and Kochi.

Pawsible Ventures, Canada

On 9 October, Canadian venture capital firm Pawsible Ventures launched a CAD10 million ($7M/€6.1M) venture fund and studio dedicated to the global pet health and wellness market.

Backed by the Victory Square Technologies accelerator, Pawsible Ventures aims to back 15 to 20 startups globally over the next 3 years. Portfolio companies will have access to early-stage capital, an in-house venture studio and instant distribution. 

“Pet health is one of the fastest-growing industries on the planet, but early-stage founders are starved for capital and support,” says Alex Chieng, Co-founder and CEO of Pawsible Ventures. 

The Cat Health Company, Romania

Romanian biotech startup The Cat Health Company has raised $1.2 million (€1.1M) in its recent funding round on 2 October.

The funding will be used to expand the company’s research team, acquire more specialized equipment and support the ongoing clinical trials for its longevity-focused veterinary medicines. 

“A portion of the funds will also go toward further developing our regulatory and legal infrastructure, ensuring we can efficiently navigate the approval processes of pharmaceuticals,” Alexandru Băcița, Chief Operating Officer of The Cat Health Company, tells GlobalPETS.

Băcița says that the investment will also allow them to boost research and development (R&D) capabilities, ramp up expansion efforts, particularly into the USA, and solidify patent protection for some of their key discoveries, enabling eventual commercialization of these treatments.

The company also plans to partner with firms in Western Europe as part of its preparations for the global distribution of its future treatments. “In the next few years, we aim to obtain initial regulatory authorizations for our first therapeutics, expand our scientific collaborations, and scale up our clinical programs,” Băcița says.

The Cat Health Company produces longevity medicine for cats. It was founded in 2024 in Bucharest, Romania.

Lil Luv Dog, United States

American pet care brand Lil Luv Dog raised $1 million (€860K) in a pre-seed funding round led by AniVC, an early-stage investment firm focusing on animal health. 

The new capital will be used to scale production, invest in marketing and customer acquisition, support talent acquisition and enhance operations infrastructure, including website optimization, fulfillment systems and retail integration technology.

“This allocation is designed to support our current monthly operations while building the foundation for our product expansion roadmap, which includes an ambitious 2026 roadmap,” Cara Santana Leto, Co-founder of Lil Luv Dog, tells GlobalPETS.

The company also plans to expand its retail footprint into Europe and the UK.