Source: Pethealth Inc.

Year-End PetPoint Report Indicates Cat Intakes Declining, Dog Population Stable

Pethealth Inc. Releases the First Aggregate Year-Over-Year PetPoint Report, an Annual Gauge of Pet Adoptions and Relinquishments Affecting Animal Welfare

OAKVILLE, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 18, 2012) - Pethealth Inc. (TSX:PTZ) ("Pethealth" or the "Company") released the first annualized PetPoint Report today, a comprehensive year-end report comparing same shelter aggregate data from 2011 and 2010, emphasizing key trends in animal welfare related to cats and dogs in the United States.

Notable figures include a 6% year over year decline in feline intakes, including a 5% decline in owner surrenders and a 9% decline in stray cat intakes. Alongside this reduction in the overall population of cats in animal welfare organisations (AWO's), euthanasia of cats declined 11% year over year in 2011, representing nearly 40,000 animals. Lost cat returns to owner increased 5% year over year.

Conversely, overall intakes and outcomes of dogs in AWO's in 2011 remained even with 2010. Dog adoptions increased 2% year over year, while euthanasia of dogs declined 3% over the same period. Transfers of dogs into and out of reporting organisations increased 2% and 6% year over year indicating AWO's are successfully employing transfer strategies to reduce canine euthanasia.

"We are very excited to be able to offer the first annualized PetPoint Report to our network and the interested public," says Brad Grucelski, Vice President, PetPoint Solutions at Pethealth Inc. "From this larger pool of aggregate data we can see beyond monthly fluctuations in intake and outcome types and measure the widespread impact of animal welfare efforts in the United States. Based on the information disclosed here, 2011 was a good year for animal welfare and all key indicators point to continued success in 2012."

The 2011 year-end report aggregates data from 795 animal welfare organisations using PetPoint. Findings were based on 1,537,961 intakes and 1,508,754 outcomes for dogs and cats that entered or left animal welfare organisations over the course of 2011. PetPoint is the most widely used animal management application in North American animal welfare with licensed organisations now serving over 75% of the human population in the United States.

For the 2011 year-end report, data was aggregated only from those organisations that were using PetPoint in 2010 and 2011. By comparing data from 2011 and 2010, the following can be summarized:

  • Overall intakes and outcomes of dogs over the course of 2011 remained even with 2010 whereas intakes and outcomes of cats declined 6% and 5% respectively year over year.
  • Adoptions of both cats and dogs increased 2% year over year.
  • Euthanasia of cats and dogs declined 11% and 3% respectively year over year.
  • Returns of cats previously adopted from the same organisations increased 5% year over year.
  • Lost pet returns to owner increased 5% for cats and declined 1% for dogs year over year.
  • Average adoption fees for cats declined 3% for those less than one year of age and 11% for those more than one year old.
  • Average adoption fees for dogs less than one year old increased 3% year over year but remained even with 2010 for dogs more than one year of age.

Pethealth, the owner of the cloud-based PetPoint application, hosts the data for all its licensed users, allowing data to be aggregated in a seamless and timely fashion. Today, over 1,770 animal welfare organisations in the United States and Canada have licensed PetPoint to manage their day to day operations. Pethealth aggregates more data on dogs and cats in animal welfare organisations than any other company.

Interested organisations can subscribe to receive more detailed reports including localized regional and state data for a monthly fee. The full report can be accessed by visiting http://www.petpoint.com/petpoint-report-year-end-2011.asp. The monthly December PetPoint report can be accessed by visiting http://www.petpoint.com/petpoint-report-01-18-2012.asp.

PetPoint reports are issued on the third Monday of each month, except statutory holidays in which case they are issued the following business day.

About PetPoint

PetPoint, first introduced in 2005, is now licensed by over 1,770 animal welfare organisations in North America and has facilitated the adoption of over 3.5 million pets. As a hosted application, animal welfare organisations can not only better organize and care for their homeless and abandoned animals, but can also reduce significantly, if not eliminate, their IT-related infrastructure costs. PetPoint is provided free to animal welfare organisations on the basis that these same organisations use the Company's 24PetWatch microchip program for all companion animals adopted. The 24PetWatch microchip program is the most widely used microchip and lost pet recovery service operating in both Canada and the United States.

About Pethealth Inc.

Pethealth is a leading provider of companion animal services in North America. In addition, the Company is the leading provider of management software to North American animal welfare organisations through its cloud-based application and is the leading provider of pet related database management services to the North American companion animal industry. Pethealth offers a unique range of products and services for veterinarians, shelters and pet owners through a number of wholly owned subsidiaries using a range of brand names including PetCare, 24PetWatch, Pet Protect, Petpals Direct, ShelterCare, PetPoint, Petango.com and ThePetangoStore.com.

Pethealth is based in Oakville, Ontario. To find out more about Pethealth, visit the web site at www.pethealthinc.com.

Contact Information:

Pethealth Inc.
Brad Grucelski
Vice President, PetPoint Solutions
(866) 630-7387 x284
www.pethealthinc.com