Friday, November 24, 2017

Millennial Pets Will Be The Big Winners this Christmas

 Today's pets are enjoying an almost human existence with many of Australia's 5.7 million pet loving households, spending thousands of dollars each year to secure the health and happiness of their treasured animal companion.

Known as 'pet-parents', rather than 'pet-owners', these passionate pet lovers across Australia are indulging their four legged canine and feline 'fur-kids' with clothing, gifts and products to celebrate milestones and festivities.

Around 50% of pet owners are expected to buy a gift for their pet this festive season with toys, treats and gifts packs set to be the top sellers.

The affectionate terms, 'fur-baby', 'fur-kid' and 'pet-parent' particularly resonate with young Millennials who consider their pets as 'starter children'. Three out of four Millennials admit that  they are more likely to splurge on an item for their pets, rather than on something for themselves.

Petpreneur, Katrina Thomson, founder of Australian personalised pet products business, IdPet (www.idpet.com.au), says that pet parents are increasingly humanising their furry best friends and spoiling them with their very own customised and personalised accessories.

"It's about showing that you are a proud pet parent with an eye for what your Doggo needs, and believe you me they need that personalised Furburry Neckerchief or custom superhero collar and lead set. Non essentials are becoming the new must-have essentials when it comes to your fur-baby - there is no such thing as over spoiled," Ms Thomson explained.

IdPet is preparing for a busy Christmas period with spending on their bespoke, custom made pet products already receiving steady orders from Australian and international pet lovers even before the festive season as begun.

"We create a personalised squeak plush Candy Cane Toy and can personalise gift packs complete with homemade treats, a Christmas themed plush toy and treat bag for the all-in-one gift for every pet."

IdPet began specialising in custom made and printed pets clothing and products in 2013 and now boasts a strong loyal customer base.

"Our personalised range has expanded so much over the past year. Now we're custom making birthday themed neckerchiefs and matching toys," Ms Thomson explained.

"We're also finding that many pet lovers treat welcoming a new puppy into their home just as they would a new baby, so our 'Puppy Essentials Pack' with collar, lead and also prove popular."

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Managing your pet’s life from your desk is only a tap away

Managing your pet’s life from your desk is only a tap away blog article image
With Australians working longer hours than ever before, and trying to juggle home life - pets are often the ones that get neglected with annual vaccinations missed, grooming appointments get further apart, and de-sexing is put on the back burner.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics says 5 million of Australia's 7.7 million full-time workers put in more than 40 hours per week.  Of them, 1.4 million put in more than 50 hours per week. Around 270,000 put in more than 70 hours per week.
According to the RSPCA, there are estimated to be 4.2 million pet dogs in Australia; 19 dogs for every 100 people. Cats are the second most common pet, with 29% of households owning a cat. There are estimated to be 3.3 million pet cats in Australia; 15 cats for every 100 people. So this means that a lot of pets are in need of up to date care.
Australian owned and run website PetCloud.com.au is here to help Pet Owners manage their pets life more easily.  With thousands of Pet Care Service Providers across the country, the website even offers Pet Taxi services ready to help you with pick up and drop off whenever you need, and it can even be discreetly booked online while at work. 
Australian current drivers licenses are verified for anyone offering Pet Taxi Services through the website.  Pet Owners can come home to a freshly groomed, walked, vaccinated, or de-sexed pooch or pussycat rather than needing to take annual leave.
PetCloud Pet Taxi Service
Pet Care Service Professionals set their services and prices. However, as an example, doggy day care is around $20 per day, pet taxi round trip pick up and drop offs to the Vet’s or Groomers are around $30.  Some Pet Sitters are also groomers themselves and grooming prices are around $55.
PetCloud App
The site went live in April last year and has since been booming. The key to their success, as founder Deborah Morrison says is “Our high standard of safety checks & verifications we maintain. With more women these days running their own business or out travelling, we need to be able to reply on a service that places the safety of women as a priority, as well as advocating the high standards of pet care that the RSPCA promote.”

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

SANDY PAWS & WAGGING TAILS RETURN TO FIRST POINT

The VetShopAustralia.com.au Surfing Dog Championships will be back on the shores of Laguna Bay Noosa for a seventh consecutive year in 2018.
A firm favourite for not just locals, but also national and international visitors to Noosa, images and film of the dogs are shared across the world to hundreds of thousands of viewers. The surfing dogs will once more be donning their rash vests, zinc-ing up their noses and taking to the waves, but this time with a couple of new tricks up their furry sleeves!
VetShopAustralia will be running free workshops in the lead-up to next year’s event, perennial competitor Paul Jones sharing tips and skills for surfing dogs and their two-legged co-pilots. All are invited to these unique workshops, helping owners to better connect with their dogs through standup paddling, as well as back on dry land, assisting and improving training and bonding skills.
After a busy year, ‘Mr DogSurf’, Chris De Aboitiz, and his SupDogOz team are looking forward to returning to Noosa next March:
“The Noosa Festival with the VetShopAustralia team was such a good vibe this year,” says Chris. “We loved the massive turn out of people at Noosa for the Dog Spectacular. 
 
“SupDogOz kicked off the year with a great dog workshop tour. It was awesome to capture the key dog training tips to share in our upcoming training videos. We even taught ‘Bondi Vet’, Dr Chris Brown how to surf with Gypsy the dog.”

As if hosting workshops across the country and presenting the Noosa Festival’s Surfing Dog Championship wasn’t enough, Chris has been teaching his old dogs new tricks, elevating above the waves with his canine companions on SUPs and kiteboards mounted with hydrofoils. The relatively new phenomenon of foil surfing is taking the world by storm, and Chris and his four-legged friends weren’t going to be left behind. With the right conditions and a little luck, Chris will be demonstrating this gravity-defying new talent to the ever-appreciative Noosa crowd in 2018.

To top off his jam-packed 2017, De Aboitiz and his dog team set a new world record:

“So stoked we did it,” Chris enthuses. “It took 25 dogs, a former world champion tandem surfer and an oversize standup paddleboard to break the rather peculiar world record. We trained and prepared to get the dogs onto a 17ft SUP to set the record for the most dogs surfing on a board, and the whole thing was recorded by the Queensland Weekender TV show!”

The Surfing Dog Championships have always had a strong focus on promoting pet health and care, and this year VetShopAustralia is excited to announce Simparica as its co-sponsor. Providing water-resistant flea and tick protection for all sizes of hydro hounds in a convenient and tasty chew, Simparica is the perfect partner for the aquatic antics of our canine counterparts.
With SupDogOz launching a video series of dog training solutions later this year and De Aboitiz once more hosting a ‘SUP with Your Pup’ workshop prior to the main event on Sunday 11 March next year, there is plenty of opportunity for everyone to get involved and excited for the 2018 VetShopAustralia.com.au Surfing Dog Championships.
Find out more about VetShopAutsralia and SupDogOz at www.surfingdogspectacular.com.au
For more information on the Noosa Festival of Surfing, please visit: www.noosafestivalofsurfing.com

First for Australian Online Pet Health Retailer Pioneers

PetScripts Helps Manage High Cost of Pet Meds
Many Australian pet owners know all too well the financial burden that comes when their vet diagnoses a pet with a long term condition that requires ongoing, expensive, prescription pet medications.

It won't come as a surprise to most, that the cost of medicines for ongoing pet health issues such as cardiac, arthritis or chronic skin complaints can now run in to hundreds of dollars a month. With no government subsidies or safety nets for pet drugs and less than 20% of Aussie pet owners holding pet insurance, finding that sort of money from the monthly budget on short notice can cause enormous financial stress on a pet owner. And having to consider the "unthinkable" alternative if you don't have the money readily available, is something no pet owner wants to do.

And while it doesn't magically make those expensive pet drug bills disappear, in what is an Australian, and possibly world, first for an online pet pharmacy, industry leader PetScripts.com.au has announced that it has joined with Australian fin-tech zipMoney to offer a Buy Now, Pay Later option.  By filling their vet's prescription online at PetScripts.com.au and choosing zipPay at checkout, pet owners can get the pet medicine they need home delivered right now, but pay off the cost in instalments interest free (up to $1000). The only charge is a small $5 monthly account management fee, and instalments and payment time can be as large or as small as the customer can handle.

Australian pet owners can now buy discount pet meds on credit
"When we launched PetScripts.com.au last year, we knew that offering discount prescription pet medication online would help the thousands of Australian pet owners struggling with the high cost of pet medicine " says PetScripts.com.au's CEO and Head Veterinarian Dr Mark Perissinotto. 

"Heartbreakingly though, we still had some customers telling us that while they'd do anything to relieve their beloved pets suffering, they really struggled. Some Medicines we sell cost $200, $300, or even more, and finding that money on short notice can be difficult for many of us". 

Dr Perissinotto, a pioneer of selling pet products online who founded Australia's first online pet health supplies store VetShopAustralia.com.au way back in 1999, went on to say "We chose zipPay as our Buy Now, Pay Later, partner not just because if it's strong reputation amongst online retailers for reliability and ease of integration, but because it's so easy for customers to use. When I placed a test order on the PetScripts.com.au website and chose to buy Now, Pay Later, with zipPay, I couldn't believe how quick the zipPay sign up process was. Less than 2 minutes from start to finish!"

"zipPay is there to help consumers pay for what they need when they need it in a responsible and transparent way.  Pet meds can be really expensive, but they are an essential cost.  As a company filled with pet lovers, we are really happy to be the first to be able to apply zipPay's "Buy Now Pay Later" option to solve this challenge for people who love their pets," said Eli Hecht, Head of Healthcare Solutions at zipPay.

 About PetScripts.com.au: Vet owned and using registered Australian pharmacists, PetScripts.com.au is Australia's leading online pet pharmacy, allowing Australian pet owners to save money by buying discount prescription pet medications for home delivery. PetScripts.com.au was founded by Dr Mark Perissinotto and his brother Steven Perissinotto,  online retail pioneers who launched Australia's first, and what is now Australia's largest and most awarded online pet supplies retailer, VetShopAustralia.com.au in 1999. Note: a valid prescription from an Australian veterinarian is required to order products from PetScripts.com.au