Walk For a Dog is a smartphone app that donates money to national dog shelters and rescues based on how many people are using the app to log miles with their pooch.
The Baltimore-based organization WoofTrax, which launched the app last year, has already doled out about $65,000 in donations to shelters around the country. An upgrade for iPhones and Androids should be available in early May.
"Millions of people are walking their dogs every day — or they should be — and we figured there are thousands of dogs, if not millions, in shelters and rescues," said CEO Douglas Hexter. "We wondered how we could align those two efforts with people doing fundraising."
So far the Humane Society Naples and Collier County Domestic Animal Services have only made $7 and $9 respectively through donations. But that amount increases as more people sign up because the way the app works has nothing to do with how many miles you walk.
Instead, WoofTrax takes its annual advertising dollars and sponsorship money and divides that among the represented charities based on how many people are walking for each. If more people walk for Collier and Lee shelters, they'll get a bigger piece of the free pie.
"We don't make donations on a per-mile basis because we don't want to penalize someone who can't walk five miles a day," Hexter said.
As of April 15, 96 people in Collier County had downloaded the app to walk for six organizations. In Lee County, 72 people are walking for four organizations.
Shelters here say it's a good way to help raise money without spending any of your own, given that the app is free to download and the funds come through WoofTrax.
"Some people can't purchase our wish list items, or don't have or maybe can't afford that $20," said Rachel Johnston, a development associate for Humane Society Naples "This is a great and fun way to help."
A new feature allows users to make donations to the shelter of their choice directly through the app, Hexter said. The "refer-a-friend" feature will donate money to a shelter of your choice if people you've told about WoofTrax download the app.
"The Walk For a Dog app is a great way to create awareness for local shelters and raise money for the DAS Donation Trust Fund," said Daniel Christenbury, a spokesman for DAS. "Also, it's just one more reason to get some exercise for you and your furry friend."
Users can register their dogs on the app, indicating their breed, name and age and even uploading a photo. Once registered, the app maps your walk, telling you your mileage and how long it took.
"There's a fourth dimension here for a fitness paradigm," Hexter said.
©2015 the Naples Daily News (Naples, Fla.) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
