The story behind Dopties

Last summer, a community cat in our Pune apartment complex gave birth to three kittens on the terrace stairs. One of them didn't survive a fall. My husband and I wanted to make sure the other two were safe, so we took in the mother and her kittens, Lilly and Lizzie. A kind foster helped us care for the little ones while their mother was spayed.

Once they were safe, I thought the hardest part was behind us. I was wrong. Finding them a home turned out to be its own challenge.

I shared their photos in Facebook adoption groups, hoping the right person would come across them. Days turned into weeks, and we were running out of options. Then Sia's father saw one of my posts. His family had been looking for two kittens who could grow up together, and after searching through countless posts, they found Lilly and Lizzie.

They had what they needed to make a decision because I'd shared the right photos and details. I couldn't stop thinking about how much luck was involved. What if their family had never seen that post? What if it had disappeared into the feed?

I wished there had been one place where they could search for exactly what they wanted, and where people like me could share animals looking for homes without having to hope the right person happened to be scrolling.

So I started building it. When I showed the early idea to Sia after Lilly and Lizzie had gone home, she said she would have loved to have something like it while searching for them.

That was the nudge I needed. The idea became Dopties.

Anyone who has helped an animal find a home knows how much happens behind the scenes. There are vet visits, feeding schedules, expenses, late-night worries, and the constant hope that someone will come along who can give that animal a good life.

And then there's the search itself. You post, answer messages, explain the same things to different people, and ask questions of your own. You want to know what kind of home they can offer, whether they understand the animal's needs, and whether it feels right. You care too much to take that decision lightly.

I wanted to make at least one part of this easier. Rescuers already have enough to do without having to piece together every enquiry across different apps and posts.

Dopties gives people looking to adopt a place to explore pets and learn about them, while giving rescuers a better way to share listings and manage the adoption process.

Individual rescuers can verify their identity, and rescue organisations can have a dedicated page where their listed animals live together. Potential adopters can find the details they need before reaching out, making that first conversation a little easier for everyone.

The rescuer still makes the decision. They know the animal, understand what they need, and should always have a say in who takes them home. Dopties is there to support that work, not replace the care and judgement behind it.

And there's one thing we won't compromise on: Dopties is for adoption, not for buying or selling animals. We want to help rescue pets find homes, not turn them into products.

We're a small team, and Dopties is still growing. There's plenty we want to improve, and we know the people doing rescue work will have ideas we haven't thought of yet.

If you're a rescuer, an adopter, or someone who cares about animals finding good homes, we'd love to hear from you. Tell us what's working, what isn't, or what you wish Dopties could do. You can reach us at support@dopties.com.

This all began because I struggled to find homes for two kittens. They found their family in the end, but the experience left me wondering how many other animals were waiting simply because the right people hadn't found each other yet.

Dopties is my attempt to make that meeting a little easier, for every animal and every person hoping to bring one home.