Chattapets: Pet app has directory of more than 300,000 animals

The best-known animals on Apple's App Store may be perturbed fowl, but one app provides happier endings for adoptable cats, dogs and - yes - birds.

In February 2010, Petfinder.com launched a free iPhone app allowing users to search an online adoption database of 300,000 animals by location, breed, age, size and sex. In addition to common pet varieties, the app also includes exotics such as scorpions, macaws and pythons.

Since its release, the app has been downloaded more than 600,000 times and was listed as one of the Top 10 iPhone apps of 2010 by CNN and Time Magazine. In early May, the app won a People's Voice Webby Award in the Mobile: Utilities and Services category.

Having an iPhone app offers potential adopters one more inroad to making the right decision, said Petfinder associate producer Jane Harell, the app's project manager.

"The main thing is that it's actually finding pets homes," Harrell said. "It's lowering the barrier to adoption even lower and making it easier for people who might not consider adoption to find a pet and save a life."

Petfinder was founded in 1996 and coordinates with 13,500 shelters in North America. During the last 15 years, 17 million animals have been adopted through Petfinder, Harrell said.

Contact Casey Phillips at cphillips@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6205.

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