HOW AI MATCHING WORKS

Finding your pet —
smarter than ever

When a pet goes missing, every second counts. Here's a plain-language look at how our AI works behind the scenes to find the best possible matches — and what it means for you.

fatsa.pet AI matching flow diagram A left-to-right flow showing: a Lost or Found report (with photo, breed, colour, location and time) feeds into the matching engine, which creates a visual fingerprint then cross-checks breed, colour, size and gender, and applies closeness and freshness multipliers. Results are grouped into three confidence bands — Strong, Possible, and Low (worth a look) — and surfaced in the app with a notification to the owner. REPORT MATCHING ENGINE RESULTS 📷 Lost / Found Report Photo Breed & colour Location & time Size & gender Visual Fingerprint AI reads coat pattern, markings & face shape across any photo pose Cross-check Details Breed & colour (flexible matching), size, gender + closeness & freshness Rank & Score All signals combined into one confidence score. You always see the photo. STRONG Likely a match — check it POSSIBLE Worth reviewing closely LOW Worth a look — you decide Shown in app + owner notified
Plain language

How it finds your pet — step by step

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We start with the photo

The moment you upload a photo, our AI creates a unique "visual fingerprint" — capturing coat pattern, markings, and face shape. That fingerprint stays the same even if the next photo is taken at a different angle, in different light, or by a stranger who spotted your pet.

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Then we cross-check the details

Breed, colour, size, and gender are all weighed in — flexibly. Writing "Lab" or "Labrador Retriever" both count the same. If details are missing or uncertain on either side, we simply don't penalise the match. More information always helps, but a gap never rules a pet out.

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Distance matters — but pets travel

A sighting near where your pet went missing boosts confidence. One further away is given less weight — but it's never ignored. Pets wander, get picked up, or are carried further than you'd expect. A strong photo match a few towns over still makes it into your results.

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Freshness matters too

A report filed yesterday carries more weight than one from several weeks ago. Older sightings don't vanish from your results, but recent ones rise to the top — because the sooner a match is acted on, the better the chances of a reunion.

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We rank confidence, not yes or no

Results come back as Strong, Possible, or Low — worth a look. You always see the photo and make the final call. A "Possible" could be your pet on a bad photo day; a "Low" is still worth a glance. We surface candidates — you confirm.

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A human always makes the final call

The AI never closes a case or confirms a match on its own. It does the searching; you — the owner or finder — always confirm. Think of it as having a tireless assistant who never sleeps, scanning every report, so you don't have to.

What the confidence labels mean

Every result in your match list carries one of three labels. Here's what each one is telling you.

STRONG

Multiple signals line up well — photo similarity, details, and location all point in the same direction. Worth contacting the finder or owner right away.

POSSIBLE

Promising visual similarity but not everything lines up perfectly — maybe the photo angle is awkward, or one detail differs. Review the photo; your eyes are better than the AI's at recognising your own pet.

LOW — WORTH A LOOK

A lower overall score, but still surfaced because the visual similarity crossed the bar. These are the "long shots" — rarely a match, but occasionally the one that matters most. A glance takes five seconds.

Ready to protect your pet?

Register your pet today and let the AI do the watching — so you can focus on the search.

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