But as any Chicago iPhone app developer knows, explosively popular industries often harbor opportunity in the most unlikely of places; and mobile app startup company Kuddly is living proof of that fact, finding a sleeper hit in a service that brings the concept of healthcare apps to the veterinary world; a vertical largely dominated by pricey pet hospitals and smaller local offices with limited, inconvenient hours.

The concept of Kuddly, which has been available to download since this summer, is simple enough: pet owners need advice for how to care for their animals, and many visits to the vet end with simple advice. Kuddly saves pet owners money and veterinarians time by connecting the two in a mobile app marketplace that crowdsources answers to specific questions from pet owners from qualified, vetted animal health professionals. (Pun intended.)

Advice via email costs $2, and 12 minutes of live chat with a vet goes for $10 on-demand. For many pet owners, Kuddly has proven to be a lifesaver, helping them determine if a full visit to the vet is necessary, as well as implement expert guidance on how to resolve pet health issues right away — rather than a week later, when there’s finally a spot open at the local animal hospital and it may be too late.

Kuddly iPhone app developers haven’t been the only group to see opportunity in the pet healthcare mobile app arena. In October of this year they received a massive $1.5 million investment from Exponential Partners. Sources at the company have stated that the funding will be put to use expanding the technology behind their platform and driving growth within the marketplace.

For iPhone app developers, the message here is loud and clear: in crowded industries, sometimes the biggest opportunities come when you start to think small.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) December 06, 2011

Dog lovers are drooling over the newly released iPhone app Dog Boogie, the ultimate app for dog owners, from Dogtown Media LLC. The highly interactive app, now available for free on the App Store, was created to enhance the relationship between pet owners and their four legged friends.

Utilizing user generated content to its fullest potential, the dog app allows pet parents to up the brag factor or take an educational journey into the fascinating world of canines. Key features packed into the Dog Boogie app include:

• Dog Factbook — A robust virtual encyclopedia contains the breeding history, temperament, and physical appearance of over 400 dog breeds with corresponding high quality photos.
• Picture Sharing — Flip through thousands of high quality dog pictures and rate each image on its level of cuteness from 1 to 5 stars.
• Puppy Profile — Create a personalized profile around a dog’s interests and save essential information like their dog’s birthday, breed, and favorite treats.
• Social Sharing — Photos uploaded to Dog Boogie are easily shared via Twitter, Facebook, and email. Personalized comments and descriptions of favorite dog pictures can be posted to a user’s Facebook profile.
• Account Backup — Automatically have data backed up in the safety of the cloud, allowing for instant account restoration on any iPhone in the event of a lost phone.

“Dog Boogie was created by dog lovers for dog lovers,” says co-developer, Rob Pope. “With an unshakeable admiration for man’s best friend, we decided to develop an app that allows dog owners to engage with their pooch in ways never before possible, deepening the bond between pet and parent.”

Dog Boogie’s iPhone app for dogs is available to download for free on the iTunes app store. More information on the iPhone dog app is available at PetBoogie.com, a community for pet owners.

Keep an eye out for the upcoming iPhone app releases of Cat Boogie and Past Life Pets.