Petbarn and Greencross Vets Create Live Parasite Tracking Tool, PetWatch, with Howatson+Company

In Australia, up to 100,000 pets every year are affected by paralysis ticks, while thousands more suffer from other deadly parasites like heartworm and roundworm. Despite this, new data shows that pet owners often leave their pets unprotected from this invisible danger for 5-8 months of the year.

In response, Petbarn and Greencross Vets have partnered with Howatson+Company to launch PetWatch, a digital tool that uses live data to make parasite threats across the nation visible for the very first time. This allows pet parents to check the threat level in any suburb, learn more about the parasites around them, and find the appropriate preventative treatment.

Hoang Nguyen, chief technology officer at Howatson+Company explained, “To create our parasite threat level heat map, we cross referenced four years of clinic and hospital data from Greencross Vets and Petbarn, with information from external sources that correlate with ideal parasite breeding and activity conditions. This includes Greenspace satellite data, temperature, rainfall, and humidity data from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. This was only possible because of the existing data from the Greencross team, and our close working partnership.”

Nick Adams, COO at Greencross Pet Wellness company said, “it’s a sad reality that too many pets die or become severely ill from parasites when they could have been protected through affordable preventative products. For the love of pets, we were determined to put our minds to how to fix this.”

Dr Magdoline Awad, chief veterinary officer, Greencross Pet Wellness Company said, “Parasites are often out-of-sight and out-of-mind until it’s too late. In the past, this kind of information could only be accessed via a vet visit. PetWatch is one of the world’s first comprehensive resources for this information. I would encourage Australians to stay vigilant, check the PetWatch risk level in their area, and in the areas that they are travelling to over the holiday period.”

PetWatch is a full end-to-end customer journey, alerting people to the tool when the threat level has increased in their area through Social, CRM and text messages. There is also a product finder for flea, tick and worm treatment included in the experience to guide pet parents through finding the correct treatment for their pet.  

Jared Wicker and Elaine Li, creative directors at Howatson+Company added, “Australia has warning and alert systems for almost every other natural danger in Australia, from riptides to fires. But when it comes to our furkids, there was nothing. And that lack of knowledge was leading to preventable deaths.”

PetWatch also gives fresh, real-time insight into the severity and frequency of pet parasites. It’s revealed, for example, that paralysis ticks are a year-round threat, by tracking their seasonal fluctuation over the last several years.

Within the first three weeks, PetWatch has had over 350k suburb searches. To use the tool yourself, go to petbarn.com.au/petwatch.