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Press Releases 2006

Pethealth Announces that Florida Keys SPCA has Completed its Software Conversion to PetPoint

Oakville, ON August 3, 2006.  Pethealth Inc. (TSXV: PTZ) (“Pethealth” or “The Company”), is pleased to announce that The Florida Keys SPCA, Inc. (“FKSPCA”) has completed its conversion to PetPoint.  PetPoint was created by Pethealth, a leading provider of pet health insurance, RFID technology and related services to the animal welfare industry, in 2005.  PetPoint is the first ASP .NET management software solution created for the shelter community.  It provides a fully hosted solution, allowing shelters to have their data kept in a secure offsite location.

FKSPCA was badly affected by hurricane Wilma in 2005.  While successfully able to evacuate its animals to another location prior to the hurricane’s arrival, the shelter lost all of its hardware and most of its data in the storm.  Before the creation of PetPoint, animal welfare organisations were restricted largely to traditional software programs which required them to maintain their own server networks and databases on site, thus leaving their IT infrastructure vulnerable to hurricanes, tornadoes and other extreme weather conditions.  Now, should FKSPCA face another emergency forcing evacuation of their animals, staff would only need to take their laptops with them to their temporary accommodation.  Simple access to the Internet at their temporary location will allow them to fully resume their work using PetPoint.

“Hurricane Wilma very badly affected our ability to operate,” said Dr Gwen Hawtof, Board President of Florida Keys SPCA.  “Water levels within our building approached four feet, resulting in almost a total loss of our computer hardware and servers.  More importantly, all our data relating to the pets in our shelter was badly affected.  Now with PetPoint, we know that our data is secure and easily accessible and our ability to operate from a remote location will be possible should weather again force us to evacuate.”

FKSPCA is one of 378 animal welfare organisations that have now licensed PetPoint, making PetPoint the most widely used program by shelters and rescue groups in the United States and Canada.  PetPoint (www.petpoint.com) is provided free to animal welfare organisations using Pethealth’s 24PetWatch microchip program (www.24petwatch.com). Organisations can also take advantage of Pethealth’s ShelterCare insurance program (www.sheltercare.com), the most widely used pet insurance in the shelter community. Of these licensed entities, 28 organisations in Florida, 38 in Texas, and 5 in Louisiana have already moved to full-time, exclusive use of PetPoint, providing evidence that PetPoint is being seen more and more as the emergency response software of choice for shelters and rescue groups throughout the U.S. and Canada.

“Unless you have visited the Florida Keys SPCA, it is impossible to appreciate the degree of weather-related exposure they operate under,” said Mark Warren, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pethealth.  “I was truly staggered by the extent of damage that was caused by hurricane Wilma and its impact on Dr Hawtof’s organisation.  We are pleased to be able to assist them in this way and know that PetPoint will allow them to continue to operate should they suffer a similar event in the future.”

About Pethealth

Pethealth is a leading provider of pet health insurance and pet-related data 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, ShelterCare and 24PetWatch.

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

The TSX Venture Exchange Inc. has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

 

For further information, please contact:
Mark Warren, President & C.E.O.

Steve Zeidman, Director of IT

Pethealth Inc.

(905) 842 2615

 

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