PDSA

What PDSA does

PDSA (The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals) is a UK-registered veterinary charity founded in 1917 by Maria Dickin to provide free and low-cost veterinary care to sick and injured pets whose owners cannot afford private veterinary fees. The organisation operates a network of 49 Pet Hospitals across the United Kingdom, supported by over 110 high street charity shops, an e-commerce platform (the PDSA Pet Store) selling the proprietary PDSA Vet Care product range, and a pet insurance offering underwritten by Pinnacle Insurance. In 2023, PDSA delivered 2.2 million veterinary treatments, helped over 430,000 pets and supported 6.6 million people, cumulatively delivering more than 100 million treatments to 20 million pets across its 108-year history.

The underlying technology stack is standard non-profit infrastructure rather than a proprietary platform: e-commerce runs on Shopify, marketing automation and donor engagement run on Dotdigital, and Meta Custom Audiences supports digital fundraising. PDSA also uses Experian Mosaic for demographic segmentation supporting retail site selection and supporter communications. Underwriting capacity for the PDSA Pet Insurance brand is provided externally by Pinnacle Insurance Ltd, with PDSA Trading Limited acting as an introducer appointed representative. The charity operates through three wholly owned trading subsidiaries — PDSA Trading Ltd (e-commerce and insurance introducer), PDSA PetAid Enterprises Limited (income generation), and PDSA Property Services Limited — to ring-fence commercial activities from charitable operations.

PDSA's revenue model is hybrid and non-profit. The primary income stream is donations and fundraising (monthly recurring subscriptions from £5 to £100+, one-off gifts, gifts in wills, corporate partnerships, and fundraising events such as the London Marathon team and weekly lottery); secondary streams come from charity shop retail sales (over 110 stores), e-commerce of PDSA Vet Care products, and commissions/introducer fees on PDSA Pet Insurance sold directly or via price comparison sites. The charity states that running its 49 hospitals costs more than £64 million annually and that fundraising exceeds £1 million per week, with 85p of every pound directed to treating pets. Leadership is headed by Director General Jan McLoughlin (in role since 2008), with a recently refreshed executive team including COO Sander Kristel (joined February 2025) and Director of Marketing, Fundraising and Engagement Rebecca Cogswell (joined 2024).

Name

PDSA

Legal name

The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals

Website

https://pdsa.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1917

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

PDSA is a UK veterinary charity founded in 1917 that delivers free and low-cost veterinary care to sick and injured pets of owners in financial need through 49 Pet Hospitals, funded by donations, 110+ charity shops, e-commerce, and pet insurance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Telford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices30 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: PDSA relies primarily on donations from supporters, including monthly recurring donations and one-off contributions. The charity raises over £1 million per week to fund operations.
2. Charity Retail: PDSA operates over 110 charity shops across the UK, selling donated goods to generate income for the charity.
3. Pet Insurance: PDSA offers pet insurance policies (Lifetime and Time-limited) through their website and price comparison websites. Every policy sold contributes to their life-saving charitable work.
4. E-commerce (PDSA Pet Store): PDSA Pet Store sells veterinary-approved products including the PDSA Vet Care range through an e-commerce platform operated by PDSA Trading Ltd.
5. Gifts in Wills: PDSA receives legacy gifts from supporters who leave donations to the charity in their wills.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

PDSA is the UK's leading veterinary charity, providing free and low-cost veterinary care to sick and injured pets of owners who cannot afford private vet fees through a nationwide network of 49 Pet Hospitals. The charity supplements its charitable veterinary mission with commercial income streams including pet insurance (PDSA Pet Insurance), an e-commerce pet store (PDSA Pet Store selling the PDSA Vet Care range), over 110 charity shops, and a weekly lottery.

Product overview

PDSA operates as a veterinary charity offering a unified portfolio of charitable and commercial services united around pet welfare. The core offering is the Pet Hospitals network — 48-49 UK-wide hospitals providing free and low-cost veterinary care to eligible owners. This core is supplemented by the commercial PDSA Pet Insurance (offering Lifetime and Time-limited pet insurance via Pinnacle Insurance), the PDSA Pet Store e-commerce platform (operated by PDSA Trading Ltd on Shopify, selling PDSA Vet Care branded products), the PDSA Pet Health Hub (online information resource), and the PDSA Lottery (weekly fundraising draw). Additional services include the PDSA Animal Awards Programme, charity shops (100+ retail locations), and education programmes. The portfolio integrates charitable veterinary services with income-generating commercial activities that directly fund the mission of keeping pets and people together.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PDSA Pet Store: Online e-commerce store operated by PDSA Trading Ltd selling pet care products including the PDSA Vet Care range
• PDSA Pet Insurance

Products and services

• PDSA Pet Hospitals
• PDSA Pet Insurance
• PDSA Pet Store
• PDSA Vet Care Range
• PDSA Weekly Lottery
• PDSA Charity Shops

Quantifiable outcome

• 2.2 million veterinary treatments provided in 2023 alone
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, core and minor.

• Experian LtdsupportingTechnology or IntegrationPDSA uses Experian's Mosaic postcode-based segmentation tool to understand demographic make-up of geographical areas in the UK. This is used for charity shop location planning, event planning, and to tailor communications geographically.
• ShopifysupportingTechnology or IntegrationPDSA Pet Store e-commerce website is operated using Shopify's recognized e-commerce platform to process orders. Shopify acts as a data processor for payment processing and fraud screening.
• DotdigitalsupportingTechnology or IntegrationPDSA uses Dotdigital marketing automation platform to tailor future communications based on supporter interactions with website, email, and SMS communications. Platform uses tracking pixels and link tracking for engagement measurement.
• Meta (Facebook, Instagram, Threads, WhatsApp)supportingGTM or Marketing PartnerPDSA participates in Meta's Custom Audiences program to display adverts to existing supporters when they visit social media platforms. Email addresses and phone numbers may be shared for audience matching.
• Pinnacle Insurance LtdcoreTechnology or IntegrationPDSA Trading Limited is an introducer appointed representative of Pinnacle Insurance Ltd for PDSA Pet Insurance. Pinnacle is authorized by the Prudential Regulatory Authority and regulated by the FCA.
• Dame Kelly Holmes TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRebecca Cogswell, PDSA's Director of Marketing, Fundraising and Engagement, serves as a voluntary advisor to this charity supporting young people facing disadvantage.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Blue Cross: UK pet welfare charity providing free and low-cost veterinary services to pet owners in need, running its own network of hospitals and rehoming centres. Closely comparable to PDSA in mission, beneficiary segment, and hospital-based delivery model.
• Cats Protection: UK's leading cat welfare charity providing veterinary care, neutering services, and rehoming across a national network. Comparable to PDSA in its charity-funded veterinary model and focus on companion animal welfare at scale.
• RSPCA: Major UK animal welfare charity operating a national network of animal hospitals, clinics, and wildlife centres. Comparable to PDSA in running veterinary hospitals funded by donations, with overlapping beneficiary populations (pet owners in financial need and animals requiring medical care).
• Dogs Trust: Largest UK dog welfare charity operating rehoming centres with on-site veterinary facilities and community veterinary programmes. Directly comparable to PDSA as a national animal welfare charity with veterinary service delivery and fundraising-driven operations.
• Battersea Dogs & Cats Home: London-headquartered UK animal rescue charity operating on-site veterinary hospitals at its centres. Directly comparable to PDSA in combining charitable fundraising, veterinary service delivery, and high brand recognition.
• Woodgreen Pets Charity: UK pet welfare charity operating veterinary services and rehoming in the South East. Comparable to PDSA in its charity-funded veterinary model, though smaller in geographic reach.

Emerging players

• ManyPets: UK-focused digital pet insurance provider offering lifetime and accident-only cover. Comparable to PDSA's pet insurance stream in product structure, but a digital-native commercial insurer rather than a charity-branded offering.
• Animal Friends Insurance: UK specialist pet insurance provider underwriting lifetime and time-limited policies. Comparable to PDSA Pet Insurance on the insurance product side, though it underwrites its own policies rather than acting as an introducer to a third party.

Broad incumbents

• CVS Group: One of the largest UK veterinary groups, operating Vets4Pets and other small animal practices nationwide. Comparable as a UK veterinary services operator with national footprint and diversified clinical offerings, though operating as a profitable commercial group rather than a charity.
• IVC Evidensia: One of Europe's largest veterinary groups with extensive UK clinic presence following multiple acquisitions. Comparable to PDSA in providing UK-wide veterinary services, but operates as a PE-backed commercial group rather than a charity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PDSA_HQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/PDSAhq

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries3 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 PDSA