A new social media platform aims to create joy — rather than anxiety or rage — by only sharing videos of animals.
Fureelz is a global short-form video platform headquartered in Maine that launched April 9. The founder and CEO, Ashley Quincey, conceived of it when she found herself feeling anxious whenever using social media — except when she saw cute or funny animal videos, like a dog riding a skateboard.
She also listened to friends talking about concerns for their children’s welfare with the rise of bullying on social media.
“I was like, ‘Why can’t we just have a space where there is no bullying, no sexual content, no politics, and just purely what I’m doing already — which is enjoying animal videos — while at the same time, also giving back to animal welfare?’” she said. “That’s really what it’s all about.”
To that end, Fureelz partnered with Best Friends Animal Society and PetSmart Charities so that when users scroll to videos from the nonprofits, a little tab suggests “Donate Now” in case people are moved to support the animal welfare organizations.
Because Quincey has a rescue dog and a soft spot in her heart for animal rescue, she wanted to work with Best Friends Animal Society since they operate the largest no-kill animal sanctuary in the United States. In a similar vein, she chose PetSmart Charities since the nonprofit funds so many pet adoptions and animal welfare initiatives.
“They’ve been wonderful partners,” Quincey said. “We really appreciate their belief in us.”
Julie Castle, CEO of Best Friends Animal Society, appreciates that Fureelz is focused on giving back to animals in need.
“As a national nonprofit working to save the lives of pets in shelters, Best Friends was excited to join this platform that focuses on the joy that pets and other animals bring us,” Castle said. “By enjoying that content and interacting with other animal lovers on Fureelz, we hope more people will be inspired to choose the adoption option.”
The Early Days Of Fureelz
Studies have shown watching animal videos reduces stress and anxiety for viewers, so Quincey is not surprised that Fureelz has had a strong start.
“Since Fureelz launched in April, we’ve actually been able to increase about 40% and we’re downloaded in 76 countries, which has been wild and exciting because our PR launch was only within the US,” she said. “We have videos from Winifred the Giant Rabbit out of the U.K. We have beautiful miniature ponies out of Sweden. We have a wonderful influencer that’s out of Nigeria called Oga Duke, who is just wonderful. So it’s really exciting to see everybody.”
She’s gratified by the enthusiasm expressed by Fureelz users and by attendees at the pet industry trade show Global Pet Expo in 2026, where Fureelz was a featured start-up and was “mobbed” by brands and influencers at its booth.
Fureelz users can upload videos of their pets, and publicly “like” other videos by clicking a paw print, rather than a heart or a thumbs up emoji. AI moderation has safety protocols to prevent videos of animal abuse or other troubling content, she noted.
The Future Of Fureelz
As Fureelz grows, Quincey and her team plan to foster collaboration between content creators and brands that align with the mission of Fureelz. She also hopes to expand to support additional charities that help endangered species.
“As we scale, the whole point is to be able to have a platform where creators can monetize their content just as like they’re going to be able to with any other platform,” she said. “We’re not trying to monetize off of hate. We’re trying to truly, actually monetize off of joy.”
Quincey — who has two dogs, Fozzy and Maisy, aka the “Chief Snack Officers” at Fureelz — has over 20 years of experience in the tech space. She wants the company to garner grassroots support from animal lovers — not just venture capitalists — so it recently opened a regulation crowdfunding offering.
She hopes in the next few years to be able to create a 501c3 so that if there is a natural disaster like a hurricane or wildfire, Fureelz users will be able to easily donate to help affected animals. During an interview for this article, she teared up remembering a touching video of a Pacific Palisades resident reuniting with his beloved dog, Oreo, after the devastating L.A. wildfires.
Ultimately, she hopes people will feel good whenever they’re scrolling through animal videos on Fureelz.
“I have a bit of a phrase of, ‘Give joy, get joy,’” she said. “That’s really what this is all about. At the end of the day, when the world feels heavy, this is what I would like to have as a palette cleanser.”
