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Press Press Releases 2003 Pethealth Inc. announces a 3-year extension of its strategic partnership agreement with Petfinder.com, and announces the Petfinder.com endorsement of its 24PetWatch microchipping program. OAKVILLE, ON, May 20, 2003 Pethealth Inc. ("Pethealth" or "the Company") (TSX Venture Exchange Tier 1: PTZ) today announced that it has signed a 3-year extension of its strategic alliance agreement with Petfinder.com. The companies originally joined forces to offer pet health insurance to shelter pets in November, 2001. Pethealth is the exclusive provider of pet insurance to the North American Petfinder.com network through its wholly owned subsidiaries, PetCare Insurance Brokers Ltd. in Canada and PetCare Insurance Agency, Ltd. in the United States. The Company is currently the no. 1 pet insurance provider in Canada and the no. 2 provider in the U.S. (and is the only North American pet insurance provider). Petfinder.com is the largest online adoption agency in North America, and through its more than 5,200 member shelters and rescue organizations, was responsible for the adoption of over 1 million dogs and cats in 2002. As of today’s date, over 110,000 dogs and cats were listed for adoption on www.petfinder.com. The agreement with Petfinder.com will see Pethealth continue to exclusively distribute ShelterCare Pet Insurance, a pet insurance program designed specifically for adopted dogs and cats through the Petfinder.com network of member shelter and rescue organizations across North America. Additionally, Petfinder.com will continue to pre-pay the first two months of coverage for adopters. Since the launch of ShelterCare in January, 2002, over 120,000 dogs and cats have been enrolled in this unique pet insurance program. The renewal of this agreement is a significant milestone for Pethealth. In Q1, 2003, 36,493 new ShelterCare policy sales were realized, vs 4,421 new ShelterCare policy sales in Q1, 2002, the first quarter of the program. The active ShelterCare policies at the quarter end totalled 24,791 policies vs. 3,667 at the end of Q1, 2002. Pethealth provides pet owners with a range of program options to continue pet insurance coverage after their 60-day gift has expired, providing a strong upselling opportunity. The success of this program is expected to continue to build throughout 2003 and over the course of the agreement. In a related development, Pethealth Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, Pethealth Services (USA) Inc., has also announced that Petfinder.com will exclusively endorse its microchip distribution and national pet recovery registry under the brand name 24PetWatch. The Petfinder.com endorsement of the 24PetWatch program will immediately provide Pethealth with a significant and complementary distribution platform for the 24PetWatch program within the shelter and rescue community throughout the 48 continental states. Shelters will have the opportunity to register adopted pets’ microchip information with the 24PetWatch registry regardless of the supplier of the microchip and without registration fees – another first in the industry. The Company’s distribution of its 24PetWatch microchip and related scanner technology will be rolled out on a state-by-state basis beginning in Wisconsin during the second quarter of 2003. Pethealth plans to have its microchip and related scanner technology in as many as 6 states by the end of 2003. The 24PetWatch microchip program was initially launched in Ontario, in February 2003 and has subsequently been rolled out in Alberta and Nova Scotia. The Company intends to enter additional selected provinces during the second quarter of 2003. The Company began the cross promotion of its pet insurance programs to the pet owners registered on its Canadian pet recovery database in April 2003. “Clearly the broadening of our partnership with Petfinder.com is a significant milestone in the future development of our business,” said Mark Warren, Pethealth President and Chief Executive Officer. “Petfinder has been successful in increasing its market share of pet adoptions in the U.S. to where it is now the undisputed leader in the animal welfare industry. Our research has indicated that there is a tremendous and growing need for a robust microchip and pet registry service which is industry neutral and tied to an ISO technology platform. Petfinder’s unmatched relationship with the shelter and rescue group community will allow us to quickly satisfy this need.” “Petfinder.com exclusively endorses 24PetWatch as the microchip program and database registry specifically designed to ensure the safe return of lost pets over their lifetime,” said Betsy Saul, Petfinder.com Founder and Chief Executive Officer. “Returning a lost pet requires that the owner information be refreshed continually. Pethealth’s commitment to maintaining a robust database through a recurring revenue business plan, will provide the highest level of assurance that owned, lost pets will be returned, leaving space in our shelters for pets who are truly homeless.” About Pethealth Founded in February 1998, Pethealth is Canada's number one provider of pet insurance and is number two in North America, currently offering its PetCare pet insurance programs in 10 provinces, 45 states and Washington, D.C. Pethealth offers its pet insurance programs under a variety of names, including QuickCare, the PetCare Pet Insurance Programs, ShelterCare Pet Insurance Programs, Union Plus Pet Insurance, and betterpethealth. In the United States, the PetCare Pet Insurance Programs are underwritten by Lincoln General Insurance Company, York, PA, through Avalon Risk Management Inc. In Canada, the Company's pet insurance is offered to owners of dogs and cats through its wholly owned subsidiary, PetCare Insurance Brokers Ltd. ING Insurance Company of Canada, a member of the ING Group, and Kingsway General Insurance Company underwrite PetCare products in Canada. The PetCare programs also carry the exclusive endorsements of a number of industry leaders, including veterinary medical associations representing approximately four out of five practicing veterinarians in Canada. In addition, Pethealth, through its wholly owned subsidiaries Pethealth Services Inc. and Pethealth Services (USA) Inc., sells and distributes Allflex pet microchip supplies to the companion animal market in North America and operates the related pet recovery registry under the trade name 24PetWatch. Pethealth is based in Oakville, Ontario. Institutional investors include Dynamic Mutual Funds, through its Dynamic Venture Opportunities Fund. About Petfinder.com Petfinder.com, founded in 1995, is the largest searchable database of adoptable pets on the Web. It facilitated over a million adoptions in 2002. At Petfinder.com visitors can currently "meet" over 110,000 adoptable pets from over 5,200 animal shelters and rescue groups across the U.S. and Canada. The site also has a resource library and message boards to help educate new adopters about pet health, behaviour and care. Petfinder.com has partnered with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to ensure that visitors and member shelters have access to advice from the top pet experts. Support from sponsors such as the Ralston Purina Company, PETCO, BISSELL, Inc., Merial and Pethealth Inc. ensures that the site remains free to both shelters and rescue groups as well as to potential adopters. Forbes Magazine named Petfinder.com one of the 300 Best of the Web, and Family PC ranks it as one of the 100 best family sites. The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy of this release. Statements contained in this news release, if not historical, are forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results described in forward-looking statements. Not for dissemination in the United States of America or to United States news wire services. 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