Boston’s Embark Veterinary Gets $75M To Scale Its Dog Genetics Offering

Dogs genetics company Embark Veterinary has announced $75 million in Series B funding, a press release says, which represents the largest amount of funding a pet startup has garnered so far.

“If there’s one thing we’ve learned over the past year, it’s that there’s nothing more important than the health of our family — and pets are a big part of our families,” said Ryan Boyko, cofounder and CEO of Embark. “We’re proud to be partnering with veterinarians, breeders, and dog owners all around the world to substantially increase the health and lifespan for all dogs, and — ultimately — for humans as well.”

The new funding will be used to add more development for the company’s discovery engine, which the press release says will help allow more discoveries for dogs to get better healthcare.

Embark’s goal, according to the release, is to increase dogs’ life span by three years within the next decade.

Embark boasts that it has a DNA test for dogs which can test for more than 350 breeds and over 200 health risks.

The round was backed by Lydia Jett of SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and previous investors like F-Prime Capital, SV Angel, Slow Ventures, Freestyle Capital, and Third Kind Venture Capital pitched in, too.

Pet health companies have done well for themselves recently, with another one, online pet pharmacy Mixlab, getting a $20 million investment led by Sonoma Brands, with participation from Global Founders Capital, Monogram Capital, Lakehouse Ventures, Brand Foundry and others.

Keith Levy, operating partner at Sonoma Brands and former president of pet food manufacturer Royal Canin USA, said that “[d]igital-based entrants into the human pharmacy space are indicative of an expectation of fast delivery and great service, and pet parents want the same experience for their beloved companions.”

More on this: Mixlab Notches $20M For Modern Pet Pharmacy

The COVID-19 pandemic saw a surge in pet adoptions as people were spending more time at home.