logo
Your Pet Cam Questions Answered: Safety, Cost, Installation and More

Your Pet Cam Questions Answered: Safety, Cost, Installation and More

CNET11-05-2025

With Amazon's big Pet Day sale on its way this week, it's the ideal time to think about adding tech like a pet cam to your home.
When I talked to Andrey Klen, co-founder of Petcube, he mentioned how he uses his pet cam: "My Pomeranian has separation anxiety but honestly so do I. Leaving home for longer stretches of time gets tough for both of us. Interactive cameras prove to be very handy," he told me. "I chime in with real-time audio and some play time with treats."
That's just the start of what pet cams can do: From Petcube and Furbo to PetSafe and Tapo, cameras of all kinds are made to watch over our four-legged friends. But that invites some health and safety concerns as well as advantages. Here's what you should know.
Read more: The Best Pet Cams of 2025
Are pet cams safe for pets?
Usually, yes. But every pet is different and some run into trouble with smart pet tech. We've seen instances of pets attacking or chewing on automated food dispensers, for instance. Smart pet cams, on the other hand, can cause anxiety in some pets. They may not recognize the voice coming through the speaker or they may see a moving camera as a threat while their owner is away.
Because of this uncertainty, we suggest setting up a few scenarios with your pet. Try leaving a smartphone (on speaker settings) or smart display near your pet, then walk out of your home and make a video call so you can talk to and view your pet through the device. See if this agitates your pet or causes problems.
Likewise, consider how your pet responds to the toaster, timed air purifier or (if you have one) robot vacuum. That's a good indication of how happy they'll be with a pet cam. When in doubt, ask a trusted vet for advice.
Pet cams help keep tabs on pets but it's important to test your pet's reactions first.
Getty Images
Why would I connect a vet to my pet cam?
Some pet cams offer subscriptions to 24/7 vet communication services, consultations or similar offerings. Overall, we don't think any of these vet services are necessary. You're far better off downloading a concerning video to your phone and showing it to your own vet, who knows your pet and can give in-person advice (or local emergency vet services, if necessary).
An online vet consultation is unlikely to make much of a difference and we're concerned it could increase owner paranoia rather than helping out.
Can a pet cam save recordings for me?
It should. Saving videos is an important part of a pet cam, whether you want to post a cute clip on Instagram, prove the dog really did eat your homework or send your vet a video of a pet acting strangely. We'll discuss more options below in our recommendations but pet cams usually allow you to save footage through cloud video storage -- which can require a subscription -- or with local storage via a microSD card, etc.
Pet cams can help some pets but make others anxious: Understand your pet's needs before you buy!
Petcube
Do pet cameras need to connect to Wi-Fi?
Yes. Today's pet cams need to be connected to your Wi-Fi for remote viewing and control through their apps. Always put the cam in an area where you have a strong signal with your current Wi-Fi router.
Is tossing treats from a device healthy for pets?
On the positive side, tossing treats can help pets feel better if they suffer from separation anxiety and may even be used in distance training efforts. However, some pets will happily dig into a cam looking for the source of the treats, which can quickly lead to damage. Also, if your pet is on a diet plan or in danger of gaining too much weight, having their treats at your fingertips isn't a good idea for either of you.
Where do I put a pet cam in my home?
Most pet cams are designed to be placed on the floor or on low shelves. Some can be mounted to lower positions on the wall. Placement is about interactivity and treat launching: The closer to your pet, the higher the risk that pets may damage the cam but proximity is also important for interactivity. Give cams a good view of areas where pets can play -- or get into trouble, like the living room.
Animal detection can be as simple or as complicated as you want.
Google
Are pet cams secure?
Pet cam security isn't always equal to the security practices of larger home security brands (which can occasionally run into problems of their own). To keep your personal data private, we suggest sticking with companies that encrypt their data and using strong passwords on all your pet cam accounts.
If you'd like to watch your rambunctious pet in an outdoor setting then swing by our list of the best outdoor home security cams too and our picks for the best wireless cams. And if pet cam prices are making you wince, take a look at the best cheap security cams.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Trump's Crackdown on Foreign Students Threatens to Disrupt Pipeline of Inventors
Trump's Crackdown on Foreign Students Threatens to Disrupt Pipeline of Inventors

Wall Street Journal

time41 minutes ago

  • Wall Street Journal

Trump's Crackdown on Foreign Students Threatens to Disrupt Pipeline of Inventors

Ajay Bhatt had never been on a plane when he left India for City University of New York to pursue a graduate degree in 1981. More than four decades and 130 patents later, billions of people are still using Bhatt's most-recognizable invention, the Universal Serial Bus, or USB. 'My dad really didn't want me to go,' Bhatt recalls. But, he said, 'This was the country where you could get the very best education, and everybody was welcoming.'

Sam Altman Says AI Has Already Gone Past The Event Horizon But No Worries Since AGI And ASI Will Be A Gentle Singularity
Sam Altman Says AI Has Already Gone Past The Event Horizon But No Worries Since AGI And ASI Will Be A Gentle Singularity

Forbes

timean hour ago

  • Forbes

Sam Altman Says AI Has Already Gone Past The Event Horizon But No Worries Since AGI And ASI Will Be A Gentle Singularity

Speculating on the future of AI including artificial general intelligence (AGI) and artificial ... More superintelligence (ASI). In today's column, I examine a newly posted blog piece by Sam Altman that has generated quite a bit of hubbub and controversy within the AI community. As the CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman is considered an AI luminary, of which his viewpoint on the future of AI carries an enormous amount of weight. His latest online commentary contains some eyebrow-raising indications about the current and upcoming status of AI, including aspects partially coated in AI-speak and other insider terminology that require mindful interpretation and translation. Let's talk about it. This analysis of an innovative AI breakthrough is part of my ongoing Forbes column coverage on the latest in AI, including identifying and explaining various impactful AI complexities (see the link here). First, some fundamentals are required to set the stage for this discussion. There is a great deal of research going on to further advance AI. The general goal is to either reach artificial general intelligence (AGI) or maybe even the outstretched possibility of achieving artificial superintelligence (ASI). AGI is AI that is considered on par with human intellect and can seemingly match our intelligence. ASI is AI that has gone beyond human intellect and would be superior in many if not all feasible ways. The idea is that ASI would be able to run circles around humans by outthinking us at every turn. For more details on the nature of conventional AI versus AGI and ASI, see my analysis at the link here. We have not yet attained AGI. In fact, it is unknown as to whether we will reach AGI, or that maybe AGI will be achievable in decades or perhaps centuries from now. The AGI attainment dates that are floating around are wildly varying and wildly unsubstantiated by any credible evidence or ironclad logic. ASI is even more beyond the pale when it comes to where we are currently with conventional AI. In a new posting on June 10, 2025, entitled 'The Gentle Singularity' by Sam Altman on his personal blog, the famed AI prognosticator made these remarks (excerpts): There's a whole lot in there to unpack. His upbeat-worded opinion piece contains commentary about many undecided considerations, such as referring to the ill-defined and indeterminate AI event horizon, the impacts of artificial superintelligence, various touted dates that suggest when we can expect things to really take off, hazy thoughts about the nature of the AI singularity, and much more. Let's briefly explore the mainstay elements. A big question facing those who are deeply into AI consists of whether we are on the right track to attain AGI and ASI. Maybe we are, maybe we aren't. Sam Altman's reference to the AI event horizon alludes to the existing pathway that we are on, and he unequivocally implies and states that in his opinion, we not only have reached the event horizon but that we are avidly past it already. As espoused, the takeoff has started. Just to note, that's a claim embodying immense boldness and brashness, and not everyone in AI concurs with that viewpoint. Consider these vital facets. First, in favor of that perspective, some insist that the advent of generative AI and large language models (LLMs) vividly demonstrates that we are now absolutely on the path toward AGI/ASI. The incredible semblance of natural language fluency exhibited by the computational capabilities of contemporary LLMs seems to be a sure sign that the road ahead must lead to AGI/ASI. However, not everyone is convinced that LLMs constitute the appropriate route. There are qualms that we already are witnessing headwinds on how much generative AI can be further extended, see my coverage at the link here. Perhaps we are nearing a severe roadblock, and continued efforts will not get us any further bang for the buck. Worse still, we might be off-target and going in the wrong direction altogether. Nobody can say for sure whether we are on the right path or not. It is a guess. Well, Sam Altman has planted a flag that we are incontrovertibly on the right path and that we've already zipped down the roadway quite a distance. Cynics might find this a self-serving perspective since it reinforces and reaffirms the direction that OpenAI is currently taking. Time will tell, as they say. Another consideration in the AI field is that perhaps there will be a kind of singularity that serves as a key point at which AGI or ASI will readily begin to emerge and keenly showcase that we have struck gold in terms of being on the right pathway. For my detailed explanation of the postulated AI singularity, see the link here. Some believe that the AI singularity will be a nearly instantaneous split-second affair, happening faster than the human eye can observe. One moment we will be working stridently on pushing AI forward, and then, bam, the singularity occurs. It is envisioned as a type of intelligence explosion, whereby intelligence rapidly begets more intelligence. After the singularity happens, AI will be leaps and bounds better than it just was. In fact, it could be that we will have a fully complete AGI or ASI due to the singularity. One second earlier, we had plain AI, while an instant later we amazingly have AGI or ASI in our midst, like a rabbit out of a hat. Perhaps though the singularity will be a long and drawn-out activity. There are those who speculate the singularity might get started and then take minutes, hours, or days to run its course. The time factor is unknown. Maybe the AI singularity will take months, years, decades, centuries, or lengthier to gradually unfurl. Additionally, there might not be anything resembling a singularity at all, and we've just concocted some zany theory that has no basis in reality. Sam Altman's posting seems to suggest that the AI singularity is already underway (or, maybe happening in 2030 or 2035) and that it will be a gradual emerging phenomenon, rather than an instantaneous one. Interesting conjecture. Right now, efforts to forecast when AGI and ASI are going to be attained are generally based on putting a finger up into prevailing AI winds and wildly gauging potential dates. Please be aware that the hypothesized dates have very little evidentiary basis to them. There are many highly vocal AI luminaires making brazen AGI/ASI date predictions. Those prophecies seem to be coalescing toward the year 2030 as a targeted date for AGI. See my analysis of those dates at the link here. A somewhat quieter approach to the gambit of date guessing is via the use of surveys or polls of AI experts. This wisdom of the crowd approach is a form of scientific consensus. As I discuss at the link here, the latest polls seem to suggest that AI experts generally believe that we will reach AGI by the year 2040. Depending on how you interpret Sam Altman's latest blog post, it isn't clear as to whether AGI is happening by 2030 or 2035, or whether it is ASI instead of AGI since he refers to superintelligence, which might be his way of expressing ASI or maybe AGI. There is a muddiness of differentiating AGI from ASI. Indeed, I've previously covered his changing definitions associated with AGI and ASI, i.e., moving of the cheese, at the link here. We'll know how things turned out in presumably a mere 5 to 10 years. Mark your calendars accordingly. An element of the posting that has gotten the gall of especially AI ethicists is that the era of AGI and ASI seems to be portrayed as solely uplifting and joyous. We are in a gentle singularity. That's certainly happy news for the world at large. Utopia awaits. There is a decidedly other side to that coin. AI insiders are pretty much divided into two major camps right now about the impacts of reaching AGI or ASI. One camp consists of the AI doomers. They are predicting that AGI or ASI will seek to wipe out humanity. Some refer to this as 'P(doom),' which means the probability of doom, or that AI zonks us entirely, also known as the existential risk of AI or x-risk. The other camp entails the so-called AI accelerationists. They tend to contend that advanced AI, namely AGI or ASI, is going to solve humanity's problems. Cure cancer, yes indeed. Overcome world hunger, absolutely. We will see immense economic gains, liberating people from the drudgery of daily toils. AI will work hand-in-hand with humans. This benevolent AI is not going to usurp humanity. AI of this kind will be the last invention humans have ever made, but that's good in the sense that AI will invent things we never could have envisioned. No one can say for sure which camp is right and which one is wrong. This is yet another polarizing aspect of our contemporary times. For my in-depth analysis of the two camps, see the link here. You can readily discern which camp the posting sides with, namely roses and fine wine. It is important to carefully assess the myriads of pronouncements and proclamations being made about the future of AI. Oftentimes, the wording appears to brazenly assert that the future is utterly known and predictable. With a sense of flair and confidence, many of these prognostications can be easily misread as somehow a bushel of facts and knowns, rather than a bundle of opinions and conjecture. Franklin D. Roosevelt wisely stated: 'There are as many opinions as there are experts.' Keep your eyes and ears open and be prudently mindful of all prophecies concerning the future of AI. You'll be immeasurably glad you were cautious and alert.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store