Add a new pet profile

PawFinder paws image

This operation creates a new pet profile in the PawFinder system. Use this operation to add newly intake animals to shelter inventory, list pets for adoption after medical clearance and evaluation, or register animals transferred from other facilities.

Endpoint structure

POST /pets

Request headers

Header	Value	Required
`Content-Type`	`application/json`	Yes

Authentication

Required - include an API token in the Authorization header:

Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN

Request body

All fields required except for id, which is auto-generated.

Property	Type	Description	Value Format
`name`	string	Pet’s name	Any text
`species`	string	Pet’s species	`cat` or `dog`
`breed`	string	Pet’s breed	Any text
`age_months`	number	Pet’s age in months	Numeric value
`gender`	string	Pet’s gender	`male` or `female`
`size`	string	Pet’s size category	`small`, `medium`, or `large`
`temperament`	string	Pet’s personality traits and behavioral characteristics	Any text
`medical`	object	Pet’s medical information	See nested fields below
`medical.spayed_neutered`	boolean	Pet’s spayed/neutered state	`true` or `false`
`medical.vaccinations`	array	List of vaccinations the pet has received	Any text
`description`	string	Pet’s personality, needs, and background	Any text
`shelter_id`	number	Unique identifier of pet’s current shelter	Numeric value
`status`	string	Pet’s current adoption stage	`available`, `pending`, or `adopted`
`intake_date`	string	Pet’s shelter entry date	ISO 8601 format, “YYYY-MM-DD”
`id`	integer	Pet’s unique identifier	Auto-generated, read-only

cURL request

# Recommended base_url = http://localhost:3000
curl -X POST {base_url}/pets \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pawfinder-secret-2025" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ 
          "name": "Charlie", 
          "species": "dog", 
          "breed": "Beagle", 
          "age_months": 24, 
          "gender": "male", 
          "size": "medium", 
          "temperament": "curious, friendly", 
          "medical": { 
            "spayed_neutered": true, 
            "vaccinations": ["rabies", "dhpp"] 
          }, 
         "description": "Charlie is a friendly beagle who loves exploring.", 
         "shelter_id": 1, 
         "status": "available", 
         "intake_date": "2025-12-04" 
} 

Success response `201 Created`

Returns the created pet profile with the assigned id:

{ 
  "name": "Charlie", 
  "species": "dog", 
  "breed": "Beagle", 
  "age_months": 24, 
  "gender": "male", 
  "size": "medium", 
  "temperament": "curious, friendly", 
  "medical": { 
    "spayed_neutered": true, 
    "vaccinations": ["rabies", "dhpp"] 
  }, 
  "description": "Charlie is a friendly beagle who loves exploring.", 
  "shelter_id": 1, 
  "status": "available", 
  "intake_date": "2025-11-12",
  "id": 42
} 

Error responses

Code	Scenario	Response
`400`	Missing values	`{ "error": "Bad Request", "message": "Missing required field: name", ... }`
`400`	Invalid values	`{ "error": "Bad Request", "message": "Invalid value for 'species'. Must be one of 'cat', 'dog'.", ... }`
`401`	Missing API token	`{ "error": "Unauthorized", "message": "Authentication token is required for this operation.", ... }`
`403`	Invalid API token	`{ "error": "Forbidden", "message": "Invalid or expired authentication token.", ...}`

PawFinder Service API