Complexity adds stress, no matter what we're talking about. I've come to this realization as I've become more observant of stress in myself and others.
Since this is a pet related blog I will start with an example that has to do with pets. Pet foods are moving towards becoming simpler, because the complex formulas filled with grains and other fillers have started to cause stress on the digestive systems of many of our pets. These complex formulas have also caused various types of allergies in many pets, which is why simpler Hypo-Allergenic foods are gaining in popularity as well.
Just so you know, rovr delivers some simpler diets, such as Blue Buffalo's "Basics" and "Wilderness" formulas, Natural Balance's "Limited-Ingredient Diets" formulas, Acana and Orijen's grain-free formulas and some others :)
Generally, the simpler the diet the less stress on our pets. Our own bunny, Russell, has been to the emergency vet a couple of times because of G.I. Stasis, during which his digestive system got blocked up, leading to painful buildups of gas. The first time was caused by giving him too many blueberries and the second time was caused by him finding and eating a few bird pellets on the ground when he was running around outside his cage. Both times the vet said rabbits have a very sensitive digestive system and that their diet should be simple, consisting of hay, a few rabbit pellets and some greens. That's it. So it surprises me a bit when I see so many rabbit treats on store shelves, filled with sugar and other fillers.
Now, in my own experience, I find that the more I complicate my thinking by focusing on things I cannot act on the more stressed I get. In other words, when I stray from the present moment and start thinking about the distant future or the distant past I get stressed very easily. Relieving that stress has always been about simplifying my perspective so that I focus on the only thing that matters, which is the present moment. Can you tell I've been reading The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle? :)
Coming back to rovr, I have created this service because I want to simplify the process of buying pet food and supplies. I want to eliminate unnecessary add-on sales and allow customers to focus on the small number of things their pet honestly needs. Pets are not complicated, but we've made the industry that caters to their needs unnecessarily complex.
I have experienced that joy is about eliminating "filler" and focusing on what matters. When it comes to our pets what truly matters, to us and to them, is spending time together. rovr helps pet owners do that. It's a small step, but it's a step in the direction of simplicity, which is always welcome.