California's once-prestigious tech company worth $650M files for bankruptcy
Wag! — the online marketplace for dog walking and other pet services — took off during the on-demand boom of the 2010s.
At its peak the company had a valuation of $650 million, and was used by celebrity A-listers such as Mariah Carey and Kendall Jenner.
However, the company has now been reduced to a value of less than $6 million.
After years of mounting debts and failing to turn a profit Wag! filed for bankruptcy in Delaware on July 21.
Core services including gig‑work dog walking, pet sitting, pet insurance, and its veterinary platform will continue to operate through the restructuring, the company said.
If a judge approves its plan, Wag! will be delisted from the stock market and taken private by one of its biggest creditors, Retriever.
'Monthly revenues declined rapidly after March 2020 as a result of the Covid pandemic' CFO Alec Davidian wrote in court filings.
As workers were trapped at home and able to walk their own pets business curtailed overnight.
Davidian said the company lose $69.5 million between 2022 and 2024.
Another major factor in Wag!'s demise was a loan taken out from Retriever in 2022 that stated it had to have a certain level of cash on hand at all times.
This year the company fell below that reserve and failed to find other creditors for a cash injection.
Since its debt obligations come die in August the company was 'facing a dire liquidity crisis' and filed for bankruptcy protection.
Under its restructuring proposal Wag! would eliminated its 2022 debt with Retriever.
'Through the Restructuring [Wag] will emerge from these Chapter 11 Cases a stronger company, with a more sustainable capital structure that is better aligned with [Wag's] present and future operating prospects,' Davidian wrote in the legal documents.
Earlier this week another anima;-related company was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
CFO Alec Davidian said the company faced a 'dire liquidity crisis' in the bankruptcy filing
Gulf World Marine Park in Panama City, Florida has now closed after more than fifty years.
The park was raided by police after five dolphins died between October 2024 and May while performing shows.
'These are not isolated incidents — they are signs of failure, and they demand immediate action,' Senator Jay Trumbull said in a Facebook post.
Parent company The Dolphin Company has since filed for bankruptcy protection, seeking $8 million to restructure.
Economic strain is also hitting pet owners as more are giving up their animals to shelters as they can no longer afford to keep them.
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