Wag Pet Care Platform Starts Accepting Dogecoin in Payment for Services

Cryptocurrencies have generated consistent curiosity among investors. Despite a market crash recently and a crackdown by authorities in some countries, they are gaining a slow but steady acceptance among companies eyeing the huge market base of rapidly increasing digital coin users. Wag, an American pet-care services company, has now decided to jump onto the bandwagon and accept Dogecoin as payment through BitPay. It said pet parents can use the cryptocurrency to purchase credits, that can be used to pay for on-demand dog walks, overnight care, pet training, veterinary advice, and any other service offered by it through its app.

Pet care services companies were hit hard during the COVID-19 pandemic in the US, as most people stayed at home, or decided to take their pets out on a walk on their own. So, these companies moved swiftly to a more sustainable business model. They deployed digital payments technology and began focussing more on delivery and providing online support.

In a tweet, Wag! Revealed the “big news” and added that they will “now accept Dogecoin using @BitPay”.

The company also said that it has also decided to donate a portion of the proceeds from each cryptocurrency transaction to carbon-offsetting environmental efforts in “alignment with the DOGE community's motto to #DoOnlyGoodEveryday”. On its official website, Wag! stated that pet parents can “purchase Wag! credits with Dogecoin,” and added that “a tree is planted with every purchase.”

At the time of writing, Dogecoin price in India stood at Rs. 19.1.

Wag! CEO Garrett Smallwood said they are very excited to have integrated cryptocurrency into their platform and make it easier for people to pay as they please. “Plus, how could we not accept Dogecoin as a form of payment?” Smallwood added in a statement.

The company said it found that there was a clear demand for this form of payment after months of engaging with the cryptocurrency community on social media.

Welcoming Wag! to the world of cryptocurrencies, BitPay tweeted that “Pet Parents can use cryptocurrency to purchase @WagWalking  including #dogecoin of course!

Sonny Singh, Chief Commercial Officer, BitPay, said as cryptocurrency increasingly becomes “a preferred way” of payment, companies like Wag!, are realising its importance, and added that “Wag! will benefit greatly from enabling its users to participate in the future of payments through a consumer-driven initiative.”