Tel Aviv, the Dog-Friendliest city in the World Launches Digi-Dog: the First-ever Municipal Digital Service for Dogs
Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality 6 February 2017
The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality is proud to launch “Digi-Dog,” a first of its kind initiative to equip dogs and their owners with the digital tools they need to thrive in a “Smart City”. Tel Aviv is home to 25,000 registered dogs, and the ratio of dogs to humans (1:17), is considered one of the highest in the world.
Digi-Dog is based on the city’s award-winning “Digi-Tel” resident card program, which is offered freely and used by over 1/3 of the city’s residents and offers discounts to outdoor events, cultural institutions, sport and leisure activities as well as live updates on what’s happening in their neighborhood and around the city.
Digi-Dog will provide similar features to dog owners, tailored specifically to their needs and will give the Tel Aviv dog owners access to important information and special offers, including: reminders about vaccinations, lists of nearby veterinarians, information about upcoming events, discounts at local businesses, listings of available dog walkers, training courses, and directions to the nearest dog park. Card holders can choose to receive updates via an online newsletter and text messages.
With 1 dog for every 17 residents, Tel Aviv is the city with the highest amount of dogs per capita in the world. Tel Avivian dogs enjoy 70 public dog parks; 1.3 dog parks for every square kilometer. Last year, the city celebrated its first-ever Dog Day, which included pet-friendly stalls, a DJ, an adoption booth as well as a special screening of the hit movie “The Secret life of Pets” where pet owners were invited to bring their dogs.
Tel Aviv, selected in 2014 as world’s “Smartest City”, has long been recognized as a world leader in animal welfare policies, and the city has heavily invested in efforts to prevent animal cruelty and promote a healthy environment for the animals who call Tel Aviv their home. The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality operates a no-kill shelter, a 24/7 service for homeless animals, and a city animal patrol that follows-up on complaints of animal abuse. The Municipality also coordinates the spaying/neutering of stray cats and works with volunteers to find loving homes for pets.
Tel Aviv Global & Tourism’s CEO, Eytan Schwartz: “Tel Aviv is an amazing city for dogs: We have beaches for dogs, parks for dogs, and we even hold film nights for dogs. Tel Aviv is also an amazing city for startups: With 1500 technological startups, Tel Aviv enjoys the highest concentration of technological companies per capita in the world. Today we are combining both assets – a dog-friendly city and a technology-friendly city – to create a revolutionary service. If you like it – bark!”
Reuven Ladianski, the Tel Aviv Council member who oversees environmental and animal-related issues: “Digi-Dog is an innovative platform that represents a significant leap forward in terms of providing municipal services to dog owners. This program will empower residents to take advantage of everything the city has to offer both to them and to their pets.”
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