Speculations about social media for pets called "Petbook"

Every human-pet household has at least one Christmas photo. It used to sit in a frame on a shelf but in the past years more and more end up on social media. Many people take it even further and set up their pet friend's own profile. In the Czech Republic this is a relatively new thing and it is on the rise. The worldwide pet hall of fame isn't just about cats and dogs but there are profiles with thousands of followers belonging to a hedgehog or a fox. Meta, a company that's behind Facebook and Instagram, is wanting to meet the demand for this phenomenon and the rumours about social media specifically for pets seem to be true.

In the USA, 85 million families own a pet, which is 67 percent of all households. The situation in the Czech Republic is similar. 4.7 million households own a pet. There is massive potential in this statistic and the social giant is well aware of it. It has already registered a "Petbook" trademark in Mexico and the European Union, which only confirms the long-standing speculations about the launch of the new service.

Animal Breath

The pioneer in bringing breeders together through social media was Animal Breath with its platform launched two years ago. However, this didn't result in cute furry balls disappearing from Facebook and Instagram. The owners made a decision. Getting together to share breeding tips is one thing but it will not replace the dopamine injections in the form of likes and hearts. My cat and I are in it as well. We're not driven by the desire to become a pet icon but the possibility to comment on events from a cat's perspective is a welcomed bit of fun.

#petstagramer

The world's national top ten has been kicked off and it couldn't be anyone else basking in the glory of social media other than the Pomeranian @jiffpom with almost 9 million followers. Here in the Czech Republic, it's Štefan from Kofola and his profile @tunameltsmyheart with 2 million followers. Even though Štefan does Czech adverts, he's from L.A. So, it seems that the path to becoming a pet pleaser of an online crowd is still free.

This Christmas we continue filling Facebook and Instagram but let's see what Meta prepares for the proud pet owners next year. And if your furry friend doesn't want to wear that red jumper and wouldn't stand with the reindeer antler headband, don't be angry with him. Cuddle him a lot and treat him to a nice long walk.

Happy Christmas everyone!

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