Proflight Walkies Dog Drone Wants To Be Your Pup's Best Friend

Most pet owners will agree that there are some days when walking the dog is the last thing you want to do. A drone retailer in the UK called Dronesdirect has a customized version of the Proflight drone that is specifically designed to take Fido for a walk when you just don't feel like it. This sounds like a great idea, as long as your dog is good on a leash and you don't mind those nearby assuming you to be the laziest dog owner ever.

The drone is called the Proflight Walkies Dog Drone and it has a retractable lead to keep the dog safe and under control. Like the Proflight drone that it is based on, you don't have to actively pilot the drone so you can sit back and marvel at your own tech prowess as a flying robot takes your dog for a walk. The drone will follow the GPS route you pick and since it has an integrated camera that streams video back to your smartphone, you can keep an eye on how the walk is going even if you can't see the pooch and drone.

Who needs bones when you can give the dog a drone?

The drone is able to maintain a steady flight altitude, which is important if you are using the drone to walk dogs of different sizes; the altitude for a Chihuahua will be different than the altitude best for a Great Dane. The drone also promises to be quiet, which is perfect for skittish dogs, and it has integrated collision avoidance tech. The drone can fly for 30 minutes per charge and has a 2km range so your dog can go on long walks without you.

There are, however, quite a few potential issues with this drone. There is no indication that the Profilight Walkies Dog Drone has the ability to stop its flight if your dog has to stop and take care of doggie business or simply sniff a particularly nicely scented clump of dirt. We also have to wonder exactly how the drone will fare if your pooch sees a squirrel and makes a break for it; you would have an expensive broken drone if that happens.

The big catch is that most dogs will to relieve themselves while on walks, and only bad pet owners leave the "business" behind for others to step in. If your dog is being walked by a drone a kilometer from where you are, there is no one to clean up after it. Perhaps the biggest barrier to drone walkies for fido is that the drone costs £1,999 in the UK where it is available, or about $2,600.