About JotAboutMe

Buoy is an 11-pound Havanese. He was a rescue, about seven months old when our family brought him home, papers and all, with no real idea what to expect. I hadn't had a dog in thirty years, so there was a lot to re-learn. It took a little patience on everyone's part, but we figured each other out. Two years later, I honestly can't imagine our home without him. The amount of laughter he has brought into our house has carried us through more than he'll ever know.

Along the way we had our share of accidents and missed steps, and a lot of conversations that went like this: "I thought you took him out." "No, it was your turn." If you share a pet with anyone, you know the drill.

One night my wife said we just needed to jot it down, so we'd know the last time he went out. My son laughed and said there had to be an app for that. Being a bit of a nerd, I built one. And, in true family tradition, I took it a little further than planned.

JotAboutMe is a shared care board for pets and barn animals. Each pet gets a profile with its food, medications, care notes, and emergency contacts. Day-to-day care lives in "jots": a breakfast, an evening pill, a walk, a stall to muck out. Jots can repeat daily, weekly, or monthly, everyone looking after that pet gets a reminder when one is due, and whoever does it taps done, so nothing is missed or doubled.

Shelters and rescues run on volunteers, fosters, and shift changes, which is exactly where feedings get doubled and medications get missed. Animal shelters, rescues, and 501(c)(3) nonprofits can use JotMe+, our paid plan, at no cost. Household subscriptions are what make that possible, and they help fund other gifts to animal shelters too.

We also write free, practical guides on the questions that come up when care is shared: feeding schedules, bringing home a rescue, signs a cat is unwell, emergency and hurricane planning, senior pets, backyard chickens, and more. They're free to read, and no account is needed.