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In the year 2000, when Angie O’Brien loaded up all of her belongings – including her dog and cat – to relocate to Austin from San Francisco with her husband, she had no idea that nine years later she would be helping millions of pet owners across the globe, like herself, do the same.
Recalling the memories of the move, Angie laughs and shakes her head. “I remember at one point when we stopped in Las
Vegas we were ready to just ship our cat back. She just was not enjoying the trip.”
Now, thanks to Angie, pet owners can avoid similar unpleasant moving experiences, by enlisting the help of a team of specialists at PetRelocation.com, the Austin-based pet relocation company Angie, now CFO, and her husband Kevin, CEO, launched in 2002.
Relying on the simple and undeniable love pet owners have for their animals – “Because I always say when moving, pet owners care more about their pet than their couch” – the couple’s now multimillion dollar company has grown 1000% in the past five years, she says.
It is an impressive achievement since the company began as a small, local pet taxiing service that Angie initiated as a side project when she first moved to Austin in 2000.
“I began to explore the possibilities of expanding it to an increasingly global and corporate market,” she says, describing the inception of the company. “And I slowly connected the dots and realized that moving an animal from point A to point B does not have to just be local.”
And although PetRelocation.com was originally started by Angie in its early years, (as Kevin was involved in other work), Angie says they now really act as a team. To be more precise, “like a ship,” she says.
“I would say he keeps the ship moving forward and I keep it from sinking,” she laughs. “And it’s been like that since day one.”
In fact, the couple developed and managed every aspect of the company by themselves until 2005, when they hired their first employee.
Now, the company employs 11 staff members that help coordinate their clients’ moves, with each specializing in the extensive and sometimes daunting requirements of moving a pet to different regions of the globe. A necessity, since a majority of their business, which includes a fairly equal number of both corporate and personal moves, does not even touch U.S. soil.
And with the launch of a new, more user-friendly website in May, and the recent development of associated websites such as My Pet Move and Twitpets.com, the company is anything but local anymore.
“It’s like seeing the globe with a flashing ‘open’ sign,” Angie says with a smile as she makes broad, animated gestures with her hands. “We can help anyone. Our options are endless.”
Angie explains that the specialists at PetRelocation.com handle every small detail necessary to pick your pet up at your old doorstep and deliver them safely to the doorstep of your new home – whether it’s just across town or across the Atlantic Ocean, and whether it’s a goldfish or a horse.
Or, even whether it’s shipping diabetic ferrets to Egypt, 40 dart frogs to Switzerland or a Beta fish to Amsterdam, all of which PetRelocation.com has helped successfully execute, says Angie.
There is a wide range of options available to pet owners at Pet
Relocation.com, from full services in which a specialist personally manages a majority of the process to a more do-it-yourself method for the more ambitious.
Angie says the company recently released a new package for pet owners who cannot afford their full services. The Pet Travel Kit includes checklists of requirements, various paperwork, calendars and useful travel accessories – everything an owner needs to be fully prepared and organized to relocate their pet on their own, customized to their pet type and final destination.
My Pet Move and Twitpets.com, also pioneered by Angie and Kevin, provide other educational and social outlets to learn more about the process from other pet owners, and enable pet owners to take on the endeavor by themselves.
These social networking sites were created because “people are so crazy about their pets!” Angie says. “And I wanted to create a place that would connect pet owners together and allow them to gather and share their experiences.”
Angie says a lot of misconceptions exist about pet relocation, which is why it is important to get feedback from those who know or have been through the process themselves.
For instance, “many people think their pets have to endure a long quarantine once they reach their final destination,” she says, “but for a majority of the relocations, that’s not the case anymore.”
Angie says relocating a pet is just a matter of being prepared and working closely with local veterinarians to make sure all of the essential and critical paperwork, vaccinations and blood work are taken care of and up-to-date before the move.
Crate training your animal before the move is also critical for an enjoyable experience, Angie stresses.
“As soon as you know you are going to be moving, you should buy a crate in order to precondition your animal to it before the move. You should try to make the crate a familiar and comfortable place for the animal – put treats and pillows in it. On moving day, put in something that smells like you, like a pillowcase,” she says.
Angie also strongly recommends against sedation. “Altitude, by itself, is a natural sedative,” she explains. “When an animal undergoes sedation, it makes it harder for their bodies to react to and cope with the stresses of traveling and their new environment.”
So whether a pet owner chooses to purchase PetRelocation.com’s full services, or simply use the site to interact with other avid pet lovers, the benefits received from this burgeoning company are endless.
And along with her thriving, ever-expanding company, Angie has seen growth to other areas of her life over the years.
The cat and dog that she and Kevin began their adventure with in 2000, has increased to a cat and three dogs now. (One of the dogs, a mutt named Maddie, was actually given to the couple while they were waiting to relocate her for a client.)
And in 2006, the couple became a family of three with the birth of their first daughter, Isabella. And with the most recent growth – that of Angie’s tummy – she and Kevin welcomed another daughter, Kenzie, to the O’Brien family on July 30th.
Angie doesn’t seem too worried about juggling her career and a newborn baby at home though, even as she predicts and expects the company will continue its steady growth in the upcoming years.
The key lies in the fact that “the business is set up to where it’s not a job,” she says, “it’s just more a part of our lifestyle.”
MORE INFO
www.petrelocation.com
www.mypetmove.com
www.twitpets.com