A lawyer, Animesh, discovered his passion for pets in 2017. He introduced animal-assisted therapy to India in 2017, offering stress relief and emotional support. Since 2017, Fur Ball Story has provided services to over 5,000 residential setups and 200 offices, including Wipro and Maruti Suzuki. Animesh has also worked as an intellectual property lawyer and a trained animal behaviourist. During the pandemic, he introduced ayurvedic medicines for dogs to keep them healthy organically.

Animesh Katiyar is the founder of Fur Ball Story, a pioneering pet services company. A lawyer by education, he discovered his true passion for pets and launched his venture in 2017. Notably, he introduced animal-assisted therapy to India, a concept originally from the USA, to provide stress relief and emotional support to people.

He reveals that before 2016, he was afraid of animals and never had a positive experience with them. However, his perspective changed dramatically during that year. Amidst the stress of national festivals and a demanding schedule, his college introduced two Labrador puppies for recreational purposes. When his college principal suggested he spend time with the puppies to alleviate his stress, Animesh experienced an unexpected surge of happiness and rejuvenation. This transformative experience sparked his curiosity about puppy therapy and ultimately led him to explore and embrace the world of animal-assisted therapy.

He notes that initially, as animal-assisted therapy was a novel concept in India, his organization faced a slow start with no clients in the first four months. However, after being featured by ScoopWhoop, interest grew and inquiries began to pour in. Since 2017, Animesh has successfully provided services to over five thousand residential setups and around two hundred offices, including notable clients like Wipro and Maruti Suzuki.

Talking about his legal journey, Animesh describes his career as having included practice at the Delhi High Court and working as an intellectual property lawyer for a business firm in Gurugram. However, while practicing law, he developed his concept for Fur Ball Story and gradually transitioned to this new career. Animesh later became a trained animal behaviorist after completing several courses and maintains a professional balance by providing legal counsel to family and friends.

Speaking about the pandemic, Animesh adds that during the lockdowns, pet owners became more interested in the dog training and walking services supplied by his firm. In COVID, he launched a new product in the form of ayurvedic medicines for dogs to keep them healthy organically.

Animesh's dogs are also stationed at Mumbai International Airport, which he believes to be one of his most memorable experiences. He also pays trips to old-age institutions and orphans, using his initiative to bring joy to everyone.

He urges budding pet entrepreneurs to first study animals and their interactions with people. He emphasises the need to understand the animals' anatomy and genetic features.

Besides being a dog enthusiast, Animesh is an adventurous guy who has tried scuba diving and skydiving. He enjoys lengthy drives and visiting new areas. Animesh spends his leisure time listening to music and reading about space and politics.