Rover was founded by Greg Gottesman after he had a difficult time finding good pet sitter for his yellow Labrador.

At that event, Gottesman worked with interested supporters, including co-founder Philip Kimmey, and they later decided to move ahead with starting the company.

At that time, it was reported that total bookings on the combined sites amounted to $150 million in 2016, of which they kept about 20% in commission fees.

Rover has been sued multiple times for deaths of pets resulting from negligent care provided by sitters.

An article from 11ALIVE.com discusses a woman whose dog also escaped during a Rover boarding and was hit and killed by car.

Rover's first round of investment funding was secured in April 2012, led by Madrona Venture Group.

[6] One year later, in March 2015, it was announced that Rover raised a $25 million funding round led by Technology Crossover Ventures.