Pet Protect: AI-Powered Lost Pet Matching for Your Community
A lost pet is one of the worst feelings a neighbor can experience. The panic sets in fast. You check every room, every closet, every corner of the yard. Then you start walking the neighborhood, calling their name, hoping someone has seen them.
In most communities, the next step is a desperate post on social media or a paper flyer taped to the mailbox. You hope the right person sees it. You wait.
Pet Protect changes that. It gives your community a built-in pet registry, instant lost pet alerts, and AI-powered photo matching that compares sightings against your pet’s photos automatically. When a neighbor spots an animal, they snap a photo and submit it. Within seconds, the AI analyzes the image and notifies you if it finds a match.
No more refreshing Facebook. No more wondering if anyone saw your flyer.
How Pet Protect Works
Step 1: Register Your Pet
Every resident in your HomeHerald community can register their pets in the community pet directory. Each profile includes:
- Species and breed
- Color, sex, weight, and age
- Up to 3 photos (front, side, any distinguishing features)
The more detail you add, the better the AI matching works. Three clear photos from different angles give the system the most to work with.
Step 2: Report a Lost Pet
When the worst happens, the pet owner marks their animal as lost. This triggers a community-wide banner alert that every resident sees when they open the app. No delay. No hoping someone checks the right Facebook group. Every neighbor in your community is notified.
Step 3: A Neighbor Spots a Pet
When a community member sees a stray or unfamiliar animal, they submit a sighting report with a photo directly through the app. This is where the AI takes over.
Step 4: AI Photo Matching
HomeHerald uses Google’s Gemini vision AI to compare the sighting photo against every photo of every lost pet in the community, up to 3 reference photos per animal. The analysis examines:
- Color patterns and coat markings
- Face shape and ear shape
- Body size and proportions
- Distinctive features (spots, scars, unique markings)
The AI returns a confidence score from 0 to 100, along with a detailed breakdown of matching features, differing features, and its reasoning.
When the confidence score hits 80 or above, Pet Protect automatically notifies the pet owner with the sighting details and location. No board member has to manually review matches. No one has to scroll through posts hoping to spot a resemblance. The AI handles the comparison and gets the information to the right person immediately.
Step 5: Reunion
Pet Protect tracks every case through a clear status workflow: PENDING, MATCHED, CONFIRMED, REUNITED. The owner connects with the person who spotted their pet, confirms the match, and brings their companion home.
Found Pet Reports
Pet Protect also works in reverse. If someone in the community finds an unfamiliar animal wandering the neighborhood, they can submit a Found Pet Report with a photo and description. The system searches registered pets across the community to find a potential match.
Found pet reports stay active for 30 days, giving the community time to identify and claim the animal.
Why This Matters for HOA Communities
Most Communities Have Pet Policies. Few Have Pet Tools.
Your CC&Rs probably include rules about pets: breed restrictions, leash requirements, waste cleanup, noise limits. But when a pet goes missing, those governing documents do not help. There is no policy for reuniting a scared dog with its family.
Pet Protect fills that gap. It turns your community into a connected network of neighbors who can help, with AI doing the heavy lifting of matching sightings to lost pets.
Speed Matters
The first 24 hours are critical when a pet goes missing. Traditional methods (paper flyers, social media posts, calls to local shelters) are slow and rely on luck. Pet Protect puts an alert in front of every resident in your community within seconds, and AI matching means a sighting gets connected to the right owner automatically.
It Builds Community
A pet registry might seem like a small feature. But it gives neighbors a reason to interact with the app, learn each other’s names (and their pets’ names), and feel like part of something real. When someone helps reunite a lost pet, that is the kind of moment that defines a neighborhood.
What Makes Pet Protect Different
Most “lost pet” solutions are standalone apps that require everyone in the area to download yet another app and create yet another account. That rarely happens.
Pet Protect works because it lives where your community already is. Every resident who joins your HomeHerald community has access to the pet registry and alert system automatically. There is no second app to install, no separate signup, no critical mass to build. If your community uses HomeHerald, Pet Protect is already active.
The AI photo matching sets it apart further. Instead of relying on people to visually compare a blurry sighting with a months-old photo, the Gemini vision AI analyzes physical characteristics systematically. It catches similarities a stressed pet owner or a well-meaning neighbor might miss.
Pet Protect Is Free
Pet Protect is included on every HomeHerald plan, including Free ($0/month for up to 50 properties). There is no premium gate, no per-pet fee, no “upgrade to unlock matching.”
If your community uses HomeHerald, every resident can register their pets and access AI-powered matching at no cost.
| Plan | Price | Properties | Pet Protect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0/mo | 100 | Included |
| Automate | starting at $49/mo | 200 | Included |
| Enterprise | custom pricing | Unlimited | Included |
Getting Started
Setting up Pet Protect takes minutes, not meetings.
- Your community joins HomeHerald. Board members set up the community and share the QR code or invite link with residents.
- Residents register their pets. Each resident adds their animals with photos and details.
- The safety net is active. If a pet goes missing, the alert and AI matching system is ready.
There is no configuration required from the board. No settings to toggle. Pet Protect is on by default for every community.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is the AI pet matching?
The Gemini vision AI analyzes multiple physical characteristics including color patterns, markings, face shape, ear shape, body size, and distinctive features. It returns a confidence score from 0 to 100 with a detailed explanation of what matched and what differed. Automatic owner notification triggers at a confidence score of 80 or above. The system is designed to surface strong potential matches, not to replace human confirmation.
Can residents register more than one pet?
Yes. Each resident can register multiple pets, and each pet profile supports up to 3 photos. We recommend including photos from different angles to give the AI the most reference material for accurate matching.
What happens if someone outside my community finds a pet?
Pet Protect currently works within individual HomeHerald communities. If someone outside your community finds a pet, they would need to be a registered resident to submit a sighting. For broader reach, we recommend combining Pet Protect with traditional methods like contacting local shelters and animal control.
Does the board need to manage Pet Protect?
No. Pet Protect is self-service for residents. They register their own pets, report their own lost animals, and submit their own sightings. The AI handles matching automatically. Board members do not need to review, approve, or manage any part of the process.
What types of pets can be registered?
Pet Protect supports any species. While the AI photo matching is most effective with dogs and cats (where visual feature analysis has the most reference data), residents can register any pet in the community directory.
Part of a Smarter Community Platform
Pet Protect is one of the AI agents built into HomeHerald. While it handles pet safety, the rest of the platform handles the operational side of running your community.
- Herald Chat answers resident questions using your community’s CC&Rs, bylaws, and rules.
- Communications reaches every resident through in-app messages, email, SMS, push notifications, and physical USPS mail.
- The full platform includes automated dues collection, violation management, and financial tracking.