More and more of us having been getting dogs in the pandemic, but pooch companionship comes with a price—dogs go missing at an alarming rate.

According to Mars Petcare brand IAMS, one in three pets will be lost at some point in their life, and so the brand, together with agency Adam&Eve/DDB has developed an innovative new app to help owners to locate them when they go missing.

The app, NoseID, uses a dog's nose like a fingerprint to identify individual dogs using their unique biometric record. Owners scan their dog's nose then make a profile for the dog. If the dog goes missing, an alert will be sent to all other users of the app in their local community and whoever finds a lost dog can scan its nose to see if it matches the profile. According to Craig Neely, vice president of marketing at Mars Petcare, the app is "designed to be a community resource, so whether someone has a dog or not, they'll be able to join the NoseID community to help reunite lost dogs with their families in their own neighborhood."

The app has just debuted as a beta version in Nashville and the surrounding area, just in time for National Pet ID Week (April 17-23). Those outside the region can still download the app and sign up to be notified when it’s available in their city.

Available for both Apple and Android, the app is being supported by a campaign that includes digital ads, a Facebook channel, media and eventually, out-of-home billboards.