HouseMyDog merges with competitor and Europe's 'leading' dog walking platform

HouseMyDog, an online community enabling dog owners to find and book local, trusted dog walkers and sitters, is to merge with European competitor, Gudog.

The merger makes the company the largest platform of dog walkers in Europe and a front-runner in the pet services space, with more than 25,000 approved dog sitters and walkers in over 70 cities across eight European countries.

HouseMyDog, which has offices in London, Dublin and Berlin, was founded by brothers Timothy and James McElroy in 2015 when they had difficulty finding a reliable dog sitter and walker for their family dog, Holly.

Madrid-based Gudog was founded by Loly Garrido and Javier Cuevas when they also saw the need for a trusted platform for dog owners to find pet care. The pair will assume the roles of CPO and CTO respectively.

James McElroy, co-founder of HouseMyDog, said: “We’ve had a close relationship with the Gudog team since we met in 2016. We admire what they have achieved and their passion for the community they have built.

“While today’s announcement makes strategic sense in combining our market share to accelerate our growth, we are also delighted to be working with a team that shares the same values and vision for the future of pet services in Europe.”

HouseMyDog and Gudog will continue to operate under the existing brands and will roll into a single brand this year.

With a current headcount of 21, the merged company expects to more than double revenue in 2019 and plans to grow the team to 35 to drive this European growth.