[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/","headline":"Revolutionising Pet Healthcare with ZumVet: Interview with Co-founder Athena Lee","name":"Revolutionising Pet Healthcare with ZumVet: Interview with Co-founder Athena Lee","description":"Athena Lee had always wanted a pet, but when she finally got a cat she realised how little she knew about caring for one, and how difficult it was to find reliable information on pet healthcare. Hence, she created ZumVet, a telehealth service for veterinary care.\u00a0 As an inexperienced pet owner, Athena was in for […]","datePublished":"2021-03-11","dateModified":"2022-04-15","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Ming%20En%20Liew\/#Person","name":"Ming En Liew","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Ming%20En%20Liew\/","identifier":132,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fe7a89455a989038349633329a6e4ad6299388f5e1e3ea83c28126090b2314f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fe7a89455a989038349633329a6e4ad6299388f5e1e3ea83c28126090b2314f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1615438098942_1280X626_281829.png","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1615438098942_1280X626_281829.png","height":626,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/","commentCount":"3","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/#Comment1","dateCreated":"2026-05-02 07:20:07","description":"This helped me a lot, thank you.","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"racing tv live stream free","url":"https:\/\/app.mobilize.io\/open_app\/20667?desktop_url=https:\/\/www.oneotv.com\/"}},{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/#Comment2","dateCreated":"2026-04-26 11:31:41","description":"This was very enlightening.","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Salomon shoe laces","url":"https:\/\/globalshoepalace.com\/product-category\/women\/Salomon-Women-Shoes"}},{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/#Comment3","dateCreated":"2026-04-24 05:44:57","description":"Subscribed instantly after reading this.","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Pink salomon shoes","url":"https:\/\/globalshoepalace.com\/product-category\/men\/Salomon-Men-Shoes"}}],"about":["Community","Local","Singapore"],"wordCount":1399,"articleBody":"Athena Lee had always wanted a pet, but when she finally got a cat she realised how little she knew about caring for one, and how difficult it was to find reliable information on pet healthcare. Hence, she created ZumVet, a telehealth service for veterinary care.\u00a0As an inexperienced pet owner, Athena was in for a rude shock upon getting her first cat. Besides trying to juggle her career and being a new pawrent, Athena was also faced with many uncertainties on how best to take care of her new pet.\u00a0\u201cIt wasn\u2019t just about… spending time with your cat and feeding them. There\u2019s also a lot of behaviour that I really wasn\u2019t sure how to handle,\u201d she shares. Her cat was exhibiting strange behaviours such as peeing outside the litter box, but she was unable to figure out why.\u00a0It was only a year later that Athena realised her cat had actually been suffering from an undiagnosed case of urinary tract infection all this while.\u201cThat\u2019s really what led me to start thinking about creating a better solution,\u201d she muses.ZumVet: A solution for lost pet ownersZumVetDrawing on the wealth of experience she has gained in the digital health space over her career, Athena started ZumVet in 2020.ZumVet\u2019s mission is simple \u2013 enable pet owners to get \u201caccurate, reliable, professional advice\u201d from qualified vets online barrier-free.\u00a0While seeking a solution for her own pet troubles, Athena realised that resources for pet care were not centralised. Most pet owners research online, but the sheer vastness of the net meant that it was difficult for them to decipher what was accurate and what was not.\u00a0Furthermore, she noted that pets were idiosyncratic, with each animal having its own temperament and personalities, even if they were of the same species or breed. These factors made it difficult for pet owners to truly understand their pets\u2019 behaviour without contacting a professional.\u00a0Yet, a consultation with a vet is not the first choice for many pet owners.\u00a0In fact, Athena\u2019s research prior to launching ZumVet revealed that a whopping 70 per cent of pet owners were not going to the vet.\u00a0\u201cThey just don\u2019t know any better,\u201d Athena clarifies. \u201cThis basic education isn\u2019t ingrained in them… it\u2019s not that they don\u2019t want to put their pet\u2019s health at the forefront of their mind, it\u2019s just that they didn\u2019t know they had to.\u201dShe adds, \u201cA lot of [pet owners] were looking online and trying to find answers, but a lot of times, you don\u2019t really get the full picture. What we\u2019re trying to do [at ZumVet] is to encourage them to just step out of their comfort zone and make that first contact… there are no silly questions, right? Really, talk to a professional, try to figure out what the healthcare regimen should be, and then go from there.\u201d\u00a0A complement to traditional veterinary medicineCanva\u201cTelemedicine does not replace your normal clinic visits,\u201d Athena stresses, \u201cMore than half of the cases that come through to our platform are actually referred to clinics in person.\u201d\u00a0By leveraging on technology, ZumVet is able to help pet owners triage emergency situations and can serve as a first point of contact for owners to decide if a physical consultation is required.Encouraging a more proactive approach to pet healthAs the saying goes, prevention is better than cure, and Athena is a firm believer.\u00a0\u201cIf you know firsthand more about your pet\u2019s health and [can] prevent anything from happening, that\u2019s really the best thing to do.\u201d\u00a0But she has observed that many pet owners prefer to take a wait-and-see approach if their pets exhibit any unusual symptoms.\u00a0\u201cA lot of times, that\u2019s already too late,\u201d she explains. \u201c[Pets are] very small, they don\u2019t necessarily tell you or show you that they aren\u2019t feeling you, and so once [symptoms] do start appearing, a lot of times, surgery is required or lots of medication is required.\u201d\u00a0To illustrate her point, Athena gives an example of how animals get up to no good during the year-end festive season and steal food. In such instances, what they have eaten can make a massive difference in the level of danger posed to the animals. While consuming bits of fatty pork might only cause temporary discomfort for the animal, ingesting foods like a durian seed can result in surgery if prompt action is not taken.\u00a0While the above example is a more extreme case, the bottom line remains. By providing pet owners with a more convenient and direct avenue to consult a vet, Athena hopes that people will learn to ask questions more early on and become more perceptive about their pet\u2019s daily needs, allowing them to intervene before more drastic action is required.Addressing concerns around telehealthCanvaAthena also addresses potential concerns regarding teleconsults, such as the possibility of a misdiagnosis without physical examinations and implementing stringent protocols to prevent such incidents.\u00a0There are certain conditions that ZumVet will not diagnose and treat through a teleconsult; instead, these pets will be referred to a clinic or a house call will be advised. Some of these conditions include prolonged or severe vomiting and\/r diarrhoea, the ingestion of foreign objects, dental issues, and most ophthalmic issues. When it comes to emergencies such as trauma or paralysis, ZumVet will also advise owners to proceed straight to an emergency facility.Further, telemedicine tackles another pain point for pet owners: the stress faced by both pet and owner during pet visits.As a furmum to three cats herself, Athena empathises with owners whose pets are uncooperative during vet visits.\u00a0\u201cWhen I bring [my cat] to the vet and she\u2019s trying to do a physical examination, [my cat] starts purring… out of fear,\u201d she shares with a laugh. Consequently, this prevents the vet from carrying out a thorough examination.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019d say that the stress of going to a physical clinic can sometimes reduce what you can get out of it.\u201d\u00a0For doubters, Athena revealed that much like human medicine, oral history is actually the most important factor when it comes to diagnosing pets, as opposed to a physical examination.She likens telehealth for pets to paediatric medicine, \u201cIf you\u2019re diagnosing a child or a baby, it\u2019s usually about what the parents are telling you and what they\u2019re articulating. Most diagnoses are put together based on oral history as opposed to a physical examination.\u201d\u00a0A social mission beyond revolutionising an industry(L to R): Dr Grace Su and Athena Lee. (Photo courtesy of ZumVet)Armed with a heart for animals and a vision for change, Athena is well on her way to revolutionising the traditional veterinary care industry in Singapore.\u00a0She has lofty goals for her budding start-up: To make healthcare affordable for all pets within the next three years, at a cost of a dollar a day to cover common conditions such as skin-related issues, recurring gastric issues, or mild infections of the ears, eyes, and nose.\u00a0While a worthy goal, Athena\u2019s heart for animals drives her and her co-founder, Grace Su, to pursue a mission that extends beyond the pet owners \u2013 palliative care for older pets.\u201cElder cats don\u2019t often get adopted just because they tend to be more skittish, they have existing medical conditions, and they\u2019re just harder to take care of,\u201d observes Athena, \u201cbut we have a soft spot for them.\u201d\u00a0Grace herself had adopted an older cat, who was already seven by the time she brought it home. Prior to that, the cat had spent its entire life in a shelter. It had been caged and its legs had weakened considerably, due to the lack of opportunities to walk around and exercise.For elderly cats and others like them, Athena and Grace hope to create a hospice in Singapore, where they can provide palliative care and chronic disease management to pets and ensure they live out their best lives in their silver years.\u00a0Says Athena, \u201cThis is definitely something we want to focus on because it\u2019s going to become an increasing problem, both from a public health perspective, but… also just from a humanity perspective.\u201dJoin the conversations on THG’s\u00a0Facebook\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram, and get the latest updates via\u00a0Telegram."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Revolutionising Pet Healthcare with ZumVet: Interview with Co-founder Athena Lee","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/revolutionising-pet-healthcare-with-zumvet-interview-with-co-founder-athena-lee\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]