PetProov is the UK’s first pet verification platform, using government-grade technology to ensure our animal friends go to safe, loving homes.
See our guide to this year’s hottest new businesses and most exceptional founders in the complete 2026 Startups 100 index.
Founders: Kate Margolis and Garry Clarke
Year founded: 2023
Website: petproov.com
It should have been a joyous experience. But, when trying to buy a puppy, Kate Margolis was scammed out of £500. Together with her PetProov co-founder, Garry Clarke, she realised that often, in the pet industry, it is impossible to know who to trust.
“Adverts were often misleading and the risk of scams or poorly treated animals was everywhere,” she says. “The result is financial loss, heartbreak for buyers, and, most tragically, animals suffering in the wrong hands.”
PetProov brings government-grade identity verification to the pet world, offering peace of mind for everyone involved. It protects buyers and adopters while giving ethical breeders confidence that their pets are going to trusted homes.
Adverts were often misleading and the risk of scams or poorly treated animals was everywhere,
For £4.99 per pet, PetProov users create an account, complete a secure verification process – similar to online banking – and get verified. Sellers can also use the platform to upload relevant documents, like vaccination records, which the firm can independently validate.
They’ve had to fight to earn their own credibility, however. “We were entering an industry where trust is everything, yet we were a new startup asking people to hand over sensitive data and believe in a new way of doing things”, say the founders. “Buyers were cautious, breeders were sceptical, and rescues were overwhelmed with existing processes.”
PetProov has leaned on industry leaders to prove its concept. PetProov is the chosen technology partner for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare, helping it to develop an official Innate Health Assessment (IHA) tool for dogs. Plus, the team has collaborated with names like Napo Pet Insurance and the charity All Dogs Matter.
our goal is to make identity and welfare checks as normal in pet ownership as they are in banking – a simple step that everyone expects and relies on
Following two years of fundraising and campaigning, the team successfully secured a six-figure investment from serial entrepreneur and angel James Butcher in July 2025.
Together, the founders say their hope is to bring reassurance to even more potential pet owners. As they state simply, “our goal is to make identity and welfare checks as normal in pet ownership as they are in banking – a simple step that everyone expects and relies on”.
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