Ron Levi | Chief Content Officer & Founder, DOGTV
How DOGTV went from a single experiment with YouTube videos for a lonely cat into a global media company built on science, pet behavior, and a completely new category of television.
Ron Levi is the founder and Chief Content Officer of DOGTV, the world’s first television network scientifically designed for dogs. What started as a personal experiment to ease separation anxiety for his own pet has evolved into a global media company reaching millions of dogs—and their humans—around the world.
In this interview, Levi shares how DOGTV came to life, the skepticism he faced early on, the science behind creating content for animals, and why streaming has become the future of the business.
What was the original idea behind DOGTV?
I got my cat, Charlie, from London, and we lived in Tel Aviv. When we moved from London to Tel Aviv, I noticed that Charlie wasn't too happy about it. He looked sad every time I left for work. I thought something had to be done because it was not okay to leave Charlie alone by himself with nothing to do. So, I started playing some music, but he didn’t react to it well. Then, I put some content on TV.
This was the end of 2006, and a new website called YouTube had just come out. I downloaded some content from YouTube, like birds and squirrels, and put it on the old TV. Charlie jumped on the TV and reacted so beautifully to it. I thought, "Wow, this is great, I can leave the TV on for the cat or dog and feel less guilty about it." That was the original idea of DOGTV.
It evolved from cats to both cats and dogs and eventually to just dogs because of the significant need for a channel like this, especially in the US. Many people leave their pets alone, and having the right content on TV can help relax them and make them feel less stressed and alone during the many hours they spend at home alone each day.
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