Hearing influences how an animal responds, behaves, communicates and feels secure in the world. Yet unlike vision, dental health, mobility and nutrition, hearing has rarely been included in routine preventive care for dogs and cats. Pet parents have largely been left to notice changes on their own—often after hearing loss has already begun to affect a pet’s behavior and quality of life.
Pet Acoustics is changing that.
Janet Marlow, founder and CEO of Pet Acoustics and a Certified Sound Behaviorist™, is a global leader in animal auditory wellness and the pioneer of an emerging category: hearing wellness for pets. Its Pet Acoustics+ platform brings together the world’s first mobile behavioral hearing screening for dogs and cats, personalized hearing wellness reports, educational resources and research-backed, species-specific sound therapy.
The platform gives pet parents and veterinary professionals an accessible way to screen hearing responses, monitor changes over time and better understand how sound may be influencing an animal’s behavior, stress and daily comfort. Pet Acoustics technology and research have reached animals, pet parents and veterinary professionals around the world, helping move hearing from an overlooked sense toward a measurable component of lifelong wellness.
Marlow’s work is supported by seven peer-reviewed biometric studies examining how species-specific sound affects animal physiology. The findings—including reduced cortisol, slower pulse rates and improved heart-rate variability—demonstrate that thoughtfully managing the auditory environment can provide measurable calming support.
We spoke with Janet about why hearing wellness has been missing from animal care, how dogs and cats experience sound differently from humans and how Pet Acoustics is creating the tools needed to make hearing screening and auditory support part of everyday pet wellness.
Q: Animals perceive sound very differently than we do. Can you explain the science behind how dogs and cats process everyday noises and why they experience auditory stress?
Janet Marlow: Dogs and cats live in an auditory world that extends well beyond our own. They can hear frequencies that are completely inaudible to us, particularly in the higher ranges. A sound that seems harmless or barely noticeable to a person may be much more intense or disruptive to an animal.
They also cannot understand the source or meaning of many sounds. A dog does not know that thunder will pass, and a cat does not understand why a vacuum cleaner or smoke alarm has suddenly disrupted the safety of the home. Their nervous systems may interpret these sounds as potential threats.
That reaction can appear as trembling, panting, pacing, hiding, vocalizing, attempting to escape or becoming unusually withdrawn. Sometimes what looks like a behavioral problem is actually a response to the sound environment. This is why I often say, “Sound comes before behavior.” When we understand what an animal may be hearing, we can better understand the behavior that follows.
Q: Many pet owners play standard classical music or leave the television on to calm their pets. Why does standard audio fail to provide the same support as species-specific music?
Janet Marlow: Music created for human enjoyment is designed around human hearing and human emotional preferences. It may contain frequencies, instrumentation, abrupt transitions, rhythmic patterns or changes in volume that are not calming to an animal. Television is even less predictable because it includes commercials, voices, doorbells, sirens, animal sounds and sudden shifts in intensity.
Pet Acoustics music is composed specifically for the hearing sensitivities of each species. The canine and feline programs are not interchangeable because dogs and cats do not experience sound in exactly the same way.
Every aspect of the music—including frequency, tempo, instrumentation, volume and pattern—is intentionally controlled. The objective is not simply to mask outside noise. It is to create an auditory environment that helps support the animal’s nervous system and encourages a calmer physiological state.
Q: The Pet Acoustics+ platform features the world’s first mobile behavioral hearing screening for dogs and cats. How does this non-invasive screening work, and why is it important for pet parents to understand their animal’s hearing health?
Janet Marlow: The Pet Acoustics hearing screening is a simple, non-invasive behavioral screening that a pet parent or veterinary professional can complete using a smartphone. It takes approximately two minutes and presents six calibrated tones across high, middle and low frequency ranges.
As the tones are played, the person observes the pet for natural behavioral responses, such as an ear movement, head turn or change in attention. The platform then produces a personalized hearing wellness report that can be saved, used to monitor responses over time and shared with a veterinarian.
The hearing screening is a wellness tool. It does not provide a medical diagnosis or replace a veterinary or audiological evaluation. Its value is that it gives pet parents and veterinary teams a structured and accessible way to recognize possible hearing changes earlier.
Hearing changes can occur gradually, and animals are remarkably good at adapting. A pet may stop responding when called, sleep more deeply, startle when touched or appear less engaged. These changes are sometimes mistaken for stubbornness, anxiety, cognitive decline or simply aging. Understanding hearing gives pet parents and veterinarians valuable context for interpreting behavior and supporting the pet more effectively.
Q: The calming music on your platform is backed by biometric studies showing lowered heart rates and reduced cortisol levels. Can you share how you formulated this music to achieve these physical results?
Janet Marlow: My work brings together my background as a composer and musician with more than 25 years of research into animal hearing, behavior and the physiological effects of sound. I began by studying the auditory range and sensitivity of each species and then developed music that remained within carefully controlled acoustic parameters.
The compositions use specialized frequency ranges, consistent volume, limited instrumentation, gentle tempos and predictable musical patterns. Sudden changes and unnecessary high-frequency content are avoided because unpredictability can stimulate alertness rather than relaxation.
The music has been evaluated through seven peer-reviewed biometric studies. Researchers have measured indicators including pulse rate, heart-rate variability and cortisol. The findings have demonstrated measurable calming effects, including slower pulse rates, improved heart-rate variability and reduced cortisol.
For me, this is an important distinction. The music is not based only on whether it sounds soothing to a person. It has been developed for the animal listener and evaluated by observing measurable physiological responses.
Q: Veterinarians are now using the Pet Acoustics+ platform in their clinics. How can calming an animal’s auditory environment and incorporating hearing screening improve the clinical experience?
Janet Marlow: Veterinary clinics contain many unfamiliar and potentially stressful sounds: barking dogs, ringing telephones, equipment, doors opening, people speaking and animals vocalizing. A pet may already be anxious from the car ride and then enter an environment filled with additional sensory triggers.
Species-specific sound therapy can help create a more predictable and supportive auditory environment in waiting areas, examination rooms, treatment spaces and recovery areas. When an animal is calmer, veterinary professionals may find it easier to approach, handle and examine the patient. This can reduce stress for the pet, the veterinary team and the pet parent.
The hearing screening adds another important layer. Veterinary technicians and assistants can complete it in just a few minutes as part of an existing appointment, without requiring a separate visit. The personalized report can begin a meaningful conversation about hearing, behavior and changes a pet parent may have noticed at home.
Hearing has traditionally been one of the senses that pet parents were expected to monitor on their own, without a structured way to screen it. We are helping to change that by making hearing wellness more visible, measurable and practical within everyday veterinary care.
Q: Pet Acoustics is establishing hearing wellness as a new category within animal care. What will it take for hearing screening and auditory wellness to become a routine part of a pet’s life?
Janet Marlow: I believe hearing wellness will become a recognized part of preventive animal care, just as we routinely monitor dental health, mobility, vision and nutrition. Hearing influences how an animal communicates, responds to its surroundings and feels secure within the home.
Our goal is to make behavioral hearing screening accessible throughout a pet’s life so responses can be observed and changes monitored over time. We are also expanding the use of species-specific sound therapy across veterinary hospitals, animal shelters, boarding facilities, grooming environments and homes.
The future is about bringing hearing screening, education and sound therapy together to create a more complete understanding of the animal. Sound can affect behavior before we see an obvious outward response, so improving the auditory environment has the potential to support animals during separation, thunderstorms, travel, veterinary visits, recovery, aging and many other challenging experiences.
Ultimately, Pet Acoustics is helping people listen to the world from the animal’s perspective. When we understand what pets hear, we can make better decisions about their comfort, behavior and lifelong well-being.
The insights from this interview reflect an important shift in how we approach animal wellness. By recognizing that pets experience the world through highly sensitive and species-specific auditory systems, pet parents and professionals can make hearing and the sound environment meaningful parts of everyday care.
The Pet Acoustics+ platform moves beyond guesswork by combining an accessible behavioral hearing screening, personalized hearing wellness reports, educational resources and research-backed sound therapy. It gives pet parents a practical way to observe hearing responses, monitor changes, support calmness and share useful information with their veterinarian.
As our understanding of animal behavior continues to grow, hearing wellness will play an increasingly important role in veterinary medicine and animal welfare. Through her continuing research and innovation, Janet Marlow is establishing hearing wellness as an essential part of understanding and caring for companion animals.
To learn more, visit Pet Acoustics.
