Pet SafetyNet

05/12/2025

🎉Celebrating 12 months of SafetyNet PetAssist 🎉

25th November marked one year since SafetyNet PetAssist began supporting vulnerable pet carers and strengthening the bond between people and their loved pets.

This milestone reflects what’s possible when veterinary teams, community and support services come together with a shared purpose: breaking down barriers to essential veterinary care and ensuring every pet receives the veterinary attention it needs, regardless of their carer's circumstance.

Over the past 12 months, together we have:
🐾 458 pets supported
👥 421 people assisted
📞 518 interactions delivered through telehealth or in-clinic care
❤️ 50 pets avoided euthanasia due to financial barriers
💰 $406,000 of essential veterinary care provided
🏥 16 veterinary hospitals delivering compassionate, community-centered care
🤝 51 community partners helping raise awareness with people who need support

Behind each number is a story, a pet who stayed with the family they love, a person whose burden was lightened and a community working together to make care accessible.

To our incredible partners VetPartners Australia and New Zealand, VetChat, Animal Referral & Emergency Centre and all the veterinary teams and community organisations who have championed this work — thank you. Your commitment has made a life-changing difference for hundreds of pets and their carers.

Here’s to another year of partnership, compassion, and helping pets stay with the people who need them most.

📸 Here are some of the wonderful pets supported over the past year.

26/11/2025

🐾 SafetyNet PetAssist Spotlight 🐾

⭐️ ACE ⭐️

Today we helped a big, gentle boy through our Safety Net Program — and he absolutely stole everyone’s hearts!

His owners were incredibly lovely, and it was wonderful for the team to support this family. 💛

SafetyNet PetAssist is a collaborative initiative co-designed with PetSure, VetChat, VetPartners Australia and New Zealand and our clinic to improve access to veterinary care for pet parents experiencing financial hardship.

For more details visit https://petsafetynet.com.au

17/11/2025

Thank you to the Montrose VetCentre Team for the compassionate care provided to Mr Burns and Sophie. Your support made this positive outcome possible, we’re genuinely grateful for your partnership and the exceptional care you deliver!

It’s wonderful to see Sophie doing well and able to head home with Mr Burns — wishing her a smooth and full recovery.

Our team was absolutely over the moon to be able to help Mr Burns and his beloved companion, Sophie — a 9-year-old Maltese who urgently needed her eye removed due to severe infection, ulceration, and glaucoma.

Mr Burns was unable to afford the cost of Sophie’s care, but thanks to SafetyNet PetAssist we were able to provide the surgery she needed. Seeing Sophie head home safely, and witnessing the smile on Mr Burns’ face when they were reunited, was incredibly moving for our entire team. Moments like these remind us why we do what we do — keeping people and pets together, supporting animal welfare, and bringing purpose and joy to veterinary teams.

SafetyNet PetAssist is a collaborative initiative co-designed with PetSure, VetChat, VetPartners Australia and New Zealand and our clinic to improve access to veterinary care for pet parents experiencing financial hardship.

For more details visit https://petsafetynet.com.au

20/10/2025

Vulnerable pet carers in Tasmania and Port Macquarie, on the NSW Mid-North Coast, will have easier access to essential veterinary care from today.

SafetyNet PetAssist™, an innovative program co-designed by PetSure, VetPartners Australia and New Zealand , and VetChat , today launches in Tasmania and Port Macquarie, following success in other regional NSW locations, to provide free 24/7 telehealth consultations and subsidised in-clinic care to eligible pet parents for urgent and essential presentations.

Eligible pet carers include those in financial hardship, receiving a Centrelink or Department of Veterans Affairs support payment, and hold a health care or pensioner concession card.

PetSure (Australia)-commissioned research shows 30 per cent of pet carers would consider economic euthanasia if a veterinary treatment cost more than $3,000, with a potentially lower threshold for those on social assistance.

Dr Simone Maher, PetSure’s Chief Veterinary Officer, says: “In a tight household budget, pet medical care can be the expense that forces impossible choices. This program eases pressure on families and on vets who carry those difficult conversations around treatment cost.

“The vast remote and rural parts of Tasmania present logistical challenges to accessing care at physical clinics, so the telehealth component of the program will help break down geographical and mobility barriers in helping vulnerable pet parents access timely care for their pets.”

SafetyNet PetAssist™ helps ensure that no pet goes without the care it needs due to their guardian’s circumstances.

In Tasmania, SafetyNet PetAssist is available at North West Veterinary Centre , Burnie Vet Centre, Spreyton Veterinary Services, Launceston Veterinary Clinic, Montrose VetCentre, and New Norfolk VetCentre.

Participating Port Macquarie vets are East Port Veterinary Hospital

Since launching in NSW in 2024, the program has helped more than 350 pets, providing $260,000 in veterinary support and helping 35 pets avoid finance-driven euthanasia.

To find out more about SafetyNet PetAssist, visit petsafetynet.com.au

09/10/2025

This Veterinary Nurses Week, we pause to recognise the extraordinary individuals who are the backbone of every veterinary clinic — veterinary nurses 💙

In every consult room, treatment area and hospital, there’s a vet nurse quietly working behind the scenes — providing reassurance to anxious pet owners, monitoring a patient’s recovery, assisting in surgery and ensuring that every pet, receives care delivered with dignity, kindness and skill. Their ability to balance technical expertise with empathy and unwavering support for both pets and their people is truly inspiring.

To all the veterinary nurses, and particularly those who help make SafetyNet PetAssist possible — thank you for your dedication, compassion and tireless energy in delivering care to each and every patient. 🐾

A special shout-out to the nurses in our incredible partner clinics — Wallsend Vet Newcastle , Hamilton Veterinary Clinic, New Lambton Veterinary Clinic, Coast Animal Health Lakehaven Erina Heights Veterinary Hospital Macquarie Vetz Animal Centre Ourimbah Veterinary Hospital Animal Referral & Emergency Centre — who continue to go above and beyond every single day.

18/09/2025

⚠️ Tick Paralysis – What Every Pet Carer Needs to Know ⚠️

Paralysis ticks are common along Australia’s east coast and can be life-threatening for dogs and cats (any breed and age are at risk). Cases peak between August–February, but ticks can be dangerous all year round.

👉 Signs to watch for:
- Wobbly back legs or weakness
- Trouble breathing, coughing, gagging
- Vomiting or refusing food
- Changes to voice/bark/meow, eyes, or a droopy face
- Collapse or paralysis

⏱️ Tick paralysis can still happen even after the tick is removed. If you find a tick (or a “crater” where one was) – seek vet support straight away.
💉 Treatment: Tick antitoxin and prompt vet care can ensure a positive outcome — severe cases may need extended hospitalisation and intensive care.

💡 Prevention is key:
- Use vet-recommended tick prevention (many also cover fleas & worms)
- Daily tick checks by running your hands through your pet's hair
- Keep long-haired pets clipped (ticks can be tiny!)
- Avoid bushy areas where ticks thrive

🚨 If you find a tick, seek immediate vet advice.

💙 Need help affording care?
If you suspect your pet dog or cat has a tick, you’re receiving Centrelink benefits and in financial hardship, you may be eligible for support through SafetyNet PetAssist (T&Cs and eligibility criteria apply).

👉 Check your eligibility: www.petsafetynet.com.au

Staying on top of prevention and knowing where to turn for help, keeps your furry family safe from stress and heartbreak 🐶🐱

04/09/2025

🐾 Meet Bella and her loving human, David. 💙 When David faced difficult times, affording urgent vet care for Bella felt out of reach. Thanks to SafetyNet PetAssist™, Bella received the treatment she needed to ease her pain — and today, she’s still happily by David’s side.
We’re proud to stand alongside pet carers when they need it most. If you or someone you know is struggling with vet costs in the Central Coast or Newcastle of NSW, we’re here to help.
📍Learn more & apply: https://petsafetynet.com.au/
👉 Sharing this post could help save a pet’s life!
🐾💙

12/08/2025

🆘 Struggling to access urgent or essential vet care for your pet? 🆘

We know times are tough, and sometimes the vet can seem out of reach when your pet needs them most. That’s why SafetyNet PetAssist™ is here—offering free 24/7 vet telehealth and subsidised in-clinic care for eligible pet parents facing hardship in Newcastle & the Central Coast of NSW.

📍 Find out more & check eligibility: https://petsafetynet.com.au/
📢 If you know someone struggling to access urgent vet care and facing hardhsip, please share this post—it could save a pet’s life. 💙🐾


Eligibility criteria and Terms and Conditions apply.

07/08/2025

🐾🏠 Homelessness Week 2025: Homelessness Action Now
📅 4–10 August 2025

This Homelessness Week, SafetyNet PetAssist stands alongside communities, advocates, and frontline services calling for urgent action on the growing homelessness crisis in Australia. There are many people and organisations doing important work to raise awareness and support those facing housing insecurity and homelessness, including REACH Homeless Services, Hunter Homeless Connect, Coast Shelter and Uniting

In the current economic environment, more people are facing housing challenges - making action and awareness more critical than ever:
🔹 In 2023–24, 280,000 people were assisted by specialist homelessness services (AIHW annual homelessness data)
🔹 Rental stress is worsening and lasting longer. In 2023, 54% of low-income renters were in rental stress, with 21% paying more than half their income in rent — the highest rate in a decade (State of Housing System Report 2025).
🔹 Persistent homelessness — defined as being without a home for more than seven months over a 24-month period — has increased by 25% over the past five years (AIHW annual homelessness data).

For pet carers doing it tough, these pressures are even more complicated. Finding shelter, food, and medical care for themselves and their companion animals can feel overwhelming.

🐶🐱 SafetyNet PetAssist is here to help.
We support people experiencing disadvantage by providing support for urgent and essential vet care should their pet become sick or injured.

💬 If you or someone you know is experiencing homelessness or facing disadvantage in the Newcastle and Central Coast regions of NSW, and needs vet support for their pet, please let them know about SafetyNet PetAssist - https://petsafetynet.com.au/ T&Cs and eligibility criteria apply.

This week is a time to shine a light on these important issues — because everyone deserves a safe place to call home, and to stay with the pets they love.

31/07/2025

Yesterday the SafetyNet PetAssist team had the privilege of joining an incredible network of people and organisations (including The Stay Foundation, BaptistCare HopeStreet, City of Newcastle, and many others) at the Hunter Homeless Connect Day in Newcastle.

👏 A huge thank you to Michelle Faithfull and the entire Hunter Homeless Connect Team for coordinating such a compassionate and impactful event that remind us how powerful collaboration can be in supporting communities.

The day provided a valuable opportunity for the team to raise awareness of the support available for pet carers doing it tough through SafetyNet PetAssist — and we were especially heartened to hear from people who had previously accessed the service and shared how it had made a difference for their pets.

We were also very grateful for the opportunity to speak with Tim Crakanthorp MP who dropped by to hear more about the work our team is doing to improve access to veterinary care for people and pets who need it most.

23/07/2025

📢 SafetyNet PetAssist is proud to be part of Hunter Homeless Connect Day 2025! Hunter Homeless Connect

We’re looking forward to joining the Newcastle community next Wednesday, 30 July from 9am–2pm at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre, alongside a wide range of incredible community service providers and support organisations.

This free event is designed to support people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity — providing access to services, practical resources and a welcoming space for connection.

The SafetyNet PetAssist team will be there to share information about our work helping people facing hardship to access veterinary care when their pet is sick or injured.

Whether you're looking for support, working in the community sector, or want to learn how we can work together to improve outcomes — this event is for you.

We're looking forward to being part of such an important event supporting the Newcastle community 💙🐾

🔗 Learn more:

Hunter Homeless Connect Day CLICK HERE TO ACCESS HUNTER HOMELESS CONNECT DAY 2025 EVENT INFORMATION NEXT EVENT Wednesday 30th July 2025Newcastle Entertainment Centre9:00am – 2:00pm REGISTER YOUR SERVICE REGISTER TO […]