What Adopt-a-Pet.com does

Adopt-a-Pet.com, founded in 2004 and operated by Kinship Partners, Inc. (an affiliate of Mars, Incorporated), is North America's largest non-profit pet adoption website. The platform connects individual pet adopters with adoptable dogs, cats, and other animals listed by a network of more than 15,000 shelters and rescues across the U.S. and Canada, having facilitated over 223,000 adoptions cumulatively. Core technology consists of a web-based marketplace with advanced search filters (by breed, age, size, location, gender, and color), an automated New Pet Alerts notification system, a peer-to-peer Rehome service for owner-surrendered pets, and an emerging AI SmartSearch feature. The product portfolio is rounded out by Breed 101 educational guides covering 300+ dog breeds and 50+ cat breeds, an Adoption Guidebook PDF resource, and a searchable Shelter & Rescue directory.

The business operates a freemium model: adoption search and shelter/rescue listings are free for both consumers and animal welfare organizations. Revenue is generated entirely through advertising, sponsorships, and affiliate commerce with pet-related brands. Named commercial partners include PetSmart (affiliate shop integration), Pedigree and Zoetis (footer sponsorships), Banfield Pet Hospital (free first-vet-visit coupons for new adopters), and broader Mars petcare sister brands such as Kinship. The go-to-market motion is product-led growth: consumers self-serve through the website, traffic is driven by an extensive SEO content library (breed pages, location pages, blog), and adoption alerts are delivered via email. Customer segments include individual pet adopters (primary), animal shelters and rescues (primary supply side), and pet owners seeking to rehome (secondary, via Rehome). The platform is web-only with no native mobile app, though the site is mobile-optimized, and the company operates with 11–50 employees.

Name

Adopt-a-Pet.com

Legal name

Kinship Partners, Inc.

Website

https://adoptapet.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Adopt-a-Pet.com, operated by Kinship Partners (a Mars affiliate), is North America's largest non-profit pet adoption platform connecting 15,000+ shelters and rescues across the U.S. and Canada with pet adopters, funded through advertising and affiliate partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pet Adoption Services

NAICS

Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services (812910), Pet and Pet Supplies Retailers (45991)

akta.pro primary industry

Animal Shelters & Adoption Services (BPAGAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Pet Care & Pet Services Platforms (Sitting, Walking, Grooming) (BPAMAHAI)

Keywords

• Pet adoption platform
• Animal shelter directory
• Pet rehoming service
• Breed information resource
• Online pet marketplace

Headquarters

HQ city

Claremont

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Advertising and Sponsorships: The platform generates revenue through advertising partnerships with pet-related brands including PetSmart, Pedigree, and Zoetis. The website features sponsored content, affiliate links, and promotional placements from pet care companies.
2. Affiliate Commerce: The Shop section features affiliate links to pet products (PetSmart) and DNA testing services, earning commissions on referred sales.
3. Mars/Petcare Ecosystem: As an affiliate of Mars Incorporated, Adopt a Pet benefits from the broader Mars petcare ecosystem which includes multiple pet care brands and services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Adopt-a-Pet.com is a free, web-based pet adoption marketplace that aggregates listings from 15,000+ animal shelters and rescues across the U.S. and Canada, enabling individual adopters to search adoptable dogs, cats, and other animals by breed, location, age, size, and gender. The platform also operates Rehome, a peer-to-peer service that lets pet owners directly list their pets for adoption.

Product overview

Adopt a Pet is a free pet adoption platform that connects potential pet adopters with over 15,000 shelter and rescue partners across the U.S. and Canada. The core platform enables searchable pet adoption by breed, location, age, size, and other filters. The product portfolio includes the main adoption search platform, the Rehome peer-to-peer rehoming service, comprehensive Breed 101 educational guides, New Pet Alerts notification system, an Adoption Guidebook PDF resource, and breed-specific search directories for both dogs and cats, all unified under the Adopt a Pet brand to support pet adoption from initial search through final adoption.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rehome: A peer-to-peer pet adoption service that helps pet owners who can no longer care for their pets to post them for adoption.

Products and services

• Adopt a Pet Platform Free pet adoption search platform enabling individuals and families to find adoptable dogs, cats, and other animals from 15,000+ shelter and rescue partners across the U.S. and Canada, featuring search filters by breed, age, size, color, gender, and location.
• Rehome Peer-to-peer pet rehoming service that helps pet owners who can no longer care for their pets safely list them for millions of potential adopters to see, providing an alternative to surrendering pets to shelters.

Quantifiable outcome

• 223k+ pet adoptions facilitated through the platform
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• KinshipcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerKinship is a sister brand under Mars Incorporated that helps new and potential pet parents with tips, tools, and expert-written content. Adopt a Pet cross-promotes with Kinship for new pet parent advice and adopter kit programs.
• PedigreeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPedigree is a sponsor of Adopt a Pet, appearing as a logo partner in the footer. The sponsorship includes website footer placement and co-branded marketing.
• PetSmartminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPetSmart partnership includes affiliate shop links on the Adopt a Pet website, earning commissions on referred pet product sales.
• ZoetisminorGTM or Marketing PartnerZoetis is a pet health company partner, appearing as a logo in the footer. They provide breed-specific health content and veterinary resources.
• Banfield Pet HospitalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBanfield Pet Hospital offers free first vet visit coupons to new pet adopters through Adopt a Pet, providing new pet parents with veterinary care resources.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Petfinder: Petfinder is the most established online pet adoption directory in North America, connecting adopters with shelters and rescues. It directly competes with Adopt a Pet for shelter listings, adopter mindshare, and sponsor dollars, and offers an analogous search-and-matching experience.
• RescueGroups.org: RescueGroups.org provides pet adoption listings and shelter management software, making it both a competitor for adoption traffic and a partner-channel for shelters. Its overlap with Adopt a Pet in serving rescue organizations directly competes for shelter relationships and adopter engagement.
• PawBoost: PawBoost operates a lost-and-found and pet rehoming platform that overlaps with Adopt a Pet's Rehome service and adoption listings. It targets similar individual pet adopters and rehomers via a free, ad-supported model.
• GetYourPet: GetYourPet is a peer-to-peer pet adoption platform that directly competes with Adopt a Pet's Rehome service, allowing owners to list pets for direct adoption rather than surrendering to shelters.
• Rehome by Petfinder: Rehome by Petfinder is Petfinder's peer-to-peer rehoming service, directly comparable to Adopt a Pet's Rehome sub-brand. It targets the same owner-surrender use case with similar screening and listing workflows.

Broad incumbents

• Petco Love: Petco Love (formerly Petco Foundation) is a national animal welfare organization supporting adoptions across Petco-adjacent shelter partners. It overlaps with Adopt a Pet through adoption promotion, shelter funding, and national campaign reach, though its core model is grantmaking rather than marketplace listings.
• ASPCA: The ASPCA is a large, well-funded national animal welfare organization with its own adoption programs and grantmaking for shelters. It competes for donor mindshare and adoption messaging, though its primary function is advocacy and direct operations rather than aggregator listings.
• Best Friends Animal Society: Best Friends Animal Society operates the 'No Kill' network and supports shelter adoptions nationally through partnerships and its own adoption listings. It competes for adopter attention and shelter partnerships at a brand and campaign level.
• PetSmart Charities: PetSmart Charities funds adoption programs and in-store adoption events across thousands of shelters, making it both a potential partner and a competing channel for adoption-driving activities. Its ties to PetSmart, a sponsor of Adopt a Pet, create overlap in commercial relationships.
• Humane Society of the United States: The Humane Society of the United States is a major national animal welfare organization with adoption advocacy and shelter support programs. It competes for donor mindshare and policy influence rather than direct listing traffic, but operates in the same animal-welfare ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/adopt-a-pet-com

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Adopt-a-Pet.com