Alpha Vet Tech’s WirelessZoo technology transforms animal health surveillance and provides data-rich veterinary care focused on welfare.
Veterinary surveillance has long presented a paradox. Although accurate vital signs are essential for diagnosis, treatment, and recovery, the methods used to capture them are often invasive, episodic, or stressful for both patients and clinicians. Manual thermometers, chest straps, and wired ECGs remain standard in many practices.
WirelessZoo, a wearable surveillance platform developed by Alpha Vet Tech, offers a new alternative. Designed in collaboration with veterinarians, nurses and researchers, the system continuously captures and transmits real-time vital signs data to minimize the natural behavior of animals.
Clinical trials and early field use have demonstrated the ability to reduce wireless zoom handling, improve baseline accuracy, and provide continuous physiological data across a variety of settings, including postoperative recovery, anesthesia, and mobile veterinary transport. These benefits are particularly prominent in high-speed or high-stress environments where early changes in vital signs often precede observable clinical degradation.
Rethinking how to monitor
In practice, physiological surveillance often involves trade-offs between accuracy, invasiveness and workflow practicality. Rectal thermometers, auscultation, and manual Spo₂ checks remain routine, but only provide point-in-time data and require varying degrees of patient handling.
Even continuous monitoring setups such as wired ECG and tether pulse oximetry can be introduced to introduce artifacts, limit patient mobility, or used in anesthesia or severely sedated patients. This not only affects data quality, but can consume technicians’ time and damage patient welfare.
WirelessZoo addresses these limitations by providing continuous live streaming vitals through wearable devices designed to minimize suppression and integrate into existing workflows. Device Monitor:
Heart Rate (HR) Blood Oxygen Saturation (SPO₂) Body Temperature
It is most commonly cut into the tail and is chosen for its low motion artifacts and ease of access – in species where the tail is not feasible, other anatomical sites can be used. Shaving is not necessarily required, but in certain cases it is recommended to optimize sensor contact and signal integrity.
What sets Wirelesszoo apart is its ability to capture clinically relevant data without interfering with the patient’s natural behavior. More accurate baseline measurements, earlier detection of degradation, lower dependence on manual spot checks or sedation.
Designed for workflows – actually, during transportation, on-site
Wirelesszoo is being tried in common practices, specialized hospitals and academic institutions in Australia, Switzerland, the UK and the US. In these settings, the veterinarian team reported increased efficiency, more reliable monitoring of pre- and post-operative recovery and transport, and reduced patient and staff stress.
This system has been successfully applied to a wide range of companion animals. Although no testing has been done on horse and livestock patients, the portability, adaptability and wireless design of the platform offer powerful possibilities for future use, especially in large animal settings, in environments where traditional surveillance infrastructure is not practical.
WirelessZoo supports the entire surgical workflow. Preoperatively, we provide baseline vitals to assess the risk of anesthesia and inform you of your induction plan. Intraoperatively, it provides continuous monitoring without tethering or rearrangement, reducing interference and facilitating patient access.
The previous applications are:
Postoperative monitoring in recovery suites or overnight hospitalizations. Anesthesia cases, especially when longer procedures or intraoperative follow-up are required. Pre-op assessment provides non-invasive baseline vitals for ASA grading and decision-making. Both emergency and routine patient transport, where wireless surveillance can provide real-time updates in transit. General treatment and daily treatment clinic. Remote or low-contact monitoring reduces stress in anxiety, reactive, or brachiomatous patients. In the case of home and outpatient monitoring, particularly in cardiac, oncology or palliative care care, continuous data can inform treatment response and allow early intervention without the need for hospitalization.
Dedicated anesthesia chart
Depending on clinician feedback, Wirelesszoo includes a built-in digital anesthesia chart developed to streamline collection of key indication data, anesthesia protocols, drug administration, and technician observations on one central platform.
This feature:
Automatic capture of WirelessZoo real-time data. Additional observations and manual input of administered medication. A consolidated record with a time stamp for each case. Digital storage and export for audit, training, or clinical reviews.
This chart not only simplifies the workflow during surgery, but also enhances the continuity of care and postoperative handover by ensuring that shifts and important details are not lost between teams.
AI-based clinical decision-making support
WirelessZoo’s cloud-based platform is not simply a passive repository of data. It incorporates a growth suite of AI-enabled tools designed to support evidence-based veterinary care.
Veterinary experts can use the system to:
If a critical parameter deviates from the expected threshold, you receive a real-time alert. It tracks patient trends over time to support early intervention or discharge planning. Refer to the AI knowledge base that includes clinical questions about treatment protocols, drug interactions, or risk-adjusted management options. Access peer-reviewed references and citations linked to washing results to support informed clinical decisions.
By combining machine learning with clinical context, the platform enables more aggressive care. It not only detects degradation, but also helps clinical teams predict, plan and act early.
“We are committed to providing a range of services that are important to us,” said Joe Impellizeri, Chief Medical Officer at Apha Vet Tech.
Improved compliance, record management and research standards
WirelessZoo adds value beyond direct patient care. When objective data with timestamps is automatically recorded, the platform supports:
Ethical surveillance in a research environment. Welfare documentation in the context of transport or shelter. Transparent, shareable records for case reviews or referrals. Audit support for anesthesia protocols and postoperative monitoring.
These features provide an additional layer of confidence and accountability, especially in academic or regulated environments, as expectations for record-keeping and welfare transparency improve.
The global shift towards connected veterinary care
Wirelesszoo is currently used throughout North America, Europe, Australia and Asia. Early recruits include general and professional practice veterinarians, animal transport, pharmaceutical R&D, and veterinarians working in academic research.
But WirelessZoo is more than just a device. This is part of a larger move towards a globally connected approach to animal health, combining real-time data, clinical expertise and welfare-driven innovation. Through ongoing collaboration with veterinary experts, research institutes, industry partners and regulatory authorities, we are committed to creating new standards in physiological surveillance and increasing patient outcomes in all settings.
The future of veterinary surveillance has arrived
Veterinary medicine is now undergoing its own transformation as connected devices and AI-driven insights reconstruct human healthcare. Wirelesszoo brings that evolution to practice. It can be adapted to species, workflow-friendly, and clinically meaningful.
This is more than just a change in tools. This is a shift in thinking, from episode monitoring to continuous insights, reactive interventions to aggressive decisions, restraint-based workflows to patient-centered care.
The future of veterinary surveillance is wireless. That’s clever. It’s compassionate. And with wirelesszoo, it’s already here.
This article will also be featured in the 22nd edition of Quarterly Publication.
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