API Connection Issues #

If PetMatchPro can’t connect to your shelter management system, you’ll see a connection error on your search or detail pages. This guide helps you diagnose and fix the problem.

Timeout Issues #

Symptom: Pages take a long time to load and then show a connection error.

Causes:

• Your web server can’t reach the partner’s API endpoint
• The partner API is experiencing high load or downtime
• A firewall on your hosting server is blocking outbound connections

Fixes:

1. Wait and retry — Partner APIs occasionally have temporary outages. Refresh after a few minutes.
2. Check partner status — Contact your partner’s support to check if their API is operational.
3. Check hosting firewall — Ask your hosting provider if outbound HTTP/HTTPS connections are allowed. Some managed WordPress hosts block external API calls by default.
4. Enable API caching — Junior+ users can enable API caching in General Options to reduce API calls and speed up page loads. Cached results will display even if the API is temporarily unavailable.

Authentication Failures #

Symptom: Connection error mentioning authentication, invalid key, or access denied.

Fixes:

1. Verify your API key — Go to General Options and confirm your API key is entered correctly. Watch for extra spaces before or after the key.
2. Check for key expiration — Some partner API keys expire. Contact your partner to verify your key is still active.
3. RescueGroups: Check Organization ID — Make sure both your API key and Organization ID are entered. Both are required.
4. AnimalsFirst: Check API Source — If you’ve configured an API Source, verify it’s correct for your account.

Empty Results (No Animals) #

Symptom: PetMatchPro connects successfully but shows no animals or a “no results” message.

Fixes:

1. Verify animals exist — Log into your shelter management system and confirm you have active animal records for the method type you’re searching (adopt, lost, found, etc.).
2. Check shortcode parameters — A species filter or exclude parameter may be filtering out all results.
3. Check method type — Make sure the type parameter matches a method you have animals for. For example, type="lost" only shows lost animal reports.
4. Check filter settings — Admin filter configuration may be excluding animals unintentionally.

Partner-Specific Issues #

PetPoint #

• PetPoint’s XML API may return malformed data occasionally — these “Parse Error” messages are usually temporary
• If you see XML-related errors consistently, contact your PetPoint representative

AnimalsFirst #

• Check that the API Source setting matches your AnimalsFirst configuration (if applicable)
• AnimalsFirst has a maximum of 250 results per API call — if you have more animals, pagination handles this automatically

RescueGroups #

• Both API key and Organization ID are required — missing either will cause a connection failure
• RescueGroups uses POST requests with a 30-second timeout — if your server has a shorter timeout, it may cut off the request
• Only the adopt type is supported — other types will display a warning message

Diagnostic Tools #

PetMatchPro includes built-in diagnostic tools in the Tools tab:

• API Diagnostics (all tiers) — Test your API connection and see response details
• System Info (all tiers) — View your server configuration, PHP version, and WordPress environment

Next Steps #

• Common Error Messages — Understand all error types
• Animals Not Displaying — Full debug checklist
• How to Contact Support — Get help