27 November 2007 - Urban Animal Hits Fourth Year With Biggest Issue & Most Copies Ever
26 November 2007 - Urban Animal Submission to NSW Parliament on Bill to Ban Pet Mammal Sales
13 November 2006 - Supermarket Dog Treats At $210-$110 a Kilo the Latest Pet Ripoff: Secret Ingredients Exposed
15th August 2006 - 'Urban Animal' Revolutionises Pet Industry As It Unleashes 8th Free Edition In Two Years
9th May 2005 - Australia's First Free Pet Magazine Unleashed With Third Edition
20th October 2004 - 'Urban Animal' Unleashed as a Fur, Feather and Fin--Free Sydney Magazine
24th August 2004 - 'Urban Animal' To Debut as a Fur, Feather and Fin--Free Sydney Magazine

Press Release
For Immediate Release
November 27, 2007

Starting its fourth year with its biggest ever issue at 60 pages, Australia's foremost quarterly free cross-pet magazine has distributed 42,000 copies of the full gloss colour tabloid size pet lifestyle publication to over 400 outlets. With the support of over 80 ads from major brands to small businesses using its reach into the upper demographic readership as a major part of their marketing mix, Urban Animal reaches a peak which will allow its expansion to Melbourne.

Urban Animal has grown from 32 pages and 18 ads in late 2004 when it started as Australia's first free pet magazine and grown to outlast other imitators and watched the demise of upmarket newsstand titles like Ita Buttrose's 'Bark' and the lovely coffee table title 'Adore Animals'. Aside from its massive free circulation which it increased by 5% from 40,000 to 42,000 copies this issue for the summer season, it also has a large subscriber base and is available free in full on its website http://www.urbananimal.net where you enter and go to the Current Issue's Contents at http://www.urbananimal.net/current.php.

Here are features & stories packing our 60 page issue November 15-February 14

Features:
How do you Choose the Wet Pet Food Your Pet Chews?--What food is best for your pet?
Pet Photographer Sharon Montrose--Mutts on film
Showered with Love--Introduce your new littermate by throwing a Puppy Shower
The Puppy Shopping List--Preparing to bring your pup home
Pick a Pet Store--How to choose your pet supply store
Be Water Wise this Summer--Cool pet products that keep our critters safe
Pet Insurance--A look into some of the available pet policies
Growing up with Australian Birds--Raoul Slater--one of our country's most respected birders pictorial
Is Your Dog a Doggy Day Care Dog?--Is day care appropriate for your dog?
PLUS 2008, Year of the Rat--The number one 'exotic' pet
Cats and Dogs Come From Different Worlds--Dogs are from Venus and cats are from Mars
Mary Faustine--An artist that puts the Aloha into Arf and Maui into Meow
Tails From The Crypt--How to deal with the passing of a pet
Crate Expectations--Why crate training your puppy makes a good start

Columns:
Tid Bits--Press paws on the pause-pet news
Come! Sit! Stay!--We Love Wining in the Hunter Valley
Cuisine de Critters--Recipes for cooling summer treats
Creature Comforts (4 page special)--Featuring great new pet products and unusual things
Cat, Dog and Bird Pet Vets--The summer itch, kidney disease in cats & bird cage toys and accessories--what's safe & what's not?
Clicker Training Lessons--Train your pet to learn attention!
Sit Happens--Tips and techniques for training your pet
Internet Interpet--Ordering pet products online & more
Pet Reads--Compelling books on pets, care and just fun reading
Modern Manners & Furry Festivities--Petiquette questions answered
Furry Festivities & Animal Attractions now added to the Urban Animal website

We're proud to have entered our fourth year as Australia's first and leading free cross-pet magazine. We have maintained our integrity, never waivered from our no-advertorial stance, electing not to advertise pet junk food, unsafe products or ones that can cause pain or injury and we run no breeder ads.

All our previous 12 quarterly editions are also online at our Urban Animal website at http://www.urbananimal.net/current.php

Subscription are available (three copies per issue, four issues a year) at only $20 annually at http://www.urbananimal.net/purchase.php

Back issues can be bought at http://www.urbananimal.net/purchase.php#issue

For further info, contact Phil Tripp--Publisher on (02) 9557 7766 or email topdog@urbananimal.net

Press Release
For Immediate Release
November 26, 2007

As Australia's largest and most credible free cross-pet magazine, Urban Animal has responded to the recent Bill put forward to NSW Parliament by Clover Moore which would seek to ban sales of dogs, cats and other mammals from pet shops, markets, backyard breeders and other outlets as well as forbidding the advertising of this. Publisher Phil Tripp has submitted a seven page proposal to alter the intended legislation to more fairly address the issues for animals and balance the effects on the pet industry.

As Tripp states, "We agree that pets should not be sold from market stalls, out of car boots, through anonymous newspaper ads or by backyard breeders. But for those few pet stores which do choose to responsibly sell pets by maintaining excellent care and facilities as well as non-impulse marketing, we feel they should be able to do business as has been their traditional right. We are proposing an inspection and rating system to allow those great operators to continue while those pet stores that can not take proper care of livestock and not sell them appropriately or engage in deceptive practices are only allowed to sell pet products, not live animals."

The seven page submission looks at alternatives to a total ban on pet sales and a method--similar to inspections and ratings in the restaurant trade--which can guarantee a compromise solution that wins for consumers, animals and the industry. The submission has been sent to all Parliamentarians, presented to Clover Moore who drafted the Bill and is also online below.

As Tripp concludes, "We feel that the initial Bill proposed was somewhat extreme in its intended outcomes and not based on current statistics or real facts as well as being put forward with too much hype and emotion. We recognise the demand for progressive change in the pet industry as well as the need for compassionate care of all animals. Therefore we feel a tightly controlled and legislated method for protecting pets and consumers can be accomplished when NSW Parliament returns in the new year."

The submission has also been presented to the Pet Industry Association of Australia and will be circulated at the NSW State Meeting of the PIAA December 4 at the St. Georges Leagues Club.

For further info, call Phil Tripp (02) 9557 7766 or email topdog@urbananimal.net

Read the Submission... Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7

Embargoed Press Release
For Immediate Release
November 13, 2006

The press release below refers to a controversial article that is being published Wednesday November 15 in consumer pet magazine Urban Animal which outlines the high costs and hidden dangers in pet treats that consumers buy--out of guilt or ignorance--without regard to price or suspects ingredients.

Contact: Lisa Treen, Editor--Urban Animal Magazine (http://www.urbananimal.net)
Article has been placed fully online (as a PDF) at http://www.urbananimal.net/pdf/issue9/3pet_treats.pdf

The pet food and treat industry has been rocked by revelations that some supermarket brands of pet treats not only cost up to $110-$210 a kilo but also that some of the most popular dog treat brands contain a chemical cocktail of colouring agents, preservatives and grain ingredients rather than the 'meat' names they feature. The latest edition of consumer pet print magazine 'Urban Animal', released November 15, deals with the controversy in a four page piece "Good Treats, Bad Treats. How Much is Too Much?" It's also fully online at http://www.urbananimal.net/pdf/issue9/3pet_treats.pdf

Urban Animal Publisher, Phil Tripp, points to a lack of consumer information about the costs and contents of common pet treats as the reason the article was researched and released in the 9^th editon of the quarterly free, tabloid-size 40,000 copy magazine distributed free at over 400 pet businesses. "Discovering the incredibly expensive costs of some simple pet treats came quite by accident as I cruised the supermarket aisle where rows of brightly coloured treats beckoned, but where dried pig snouts were $210 a kilo, pigs ears $110 a kilo and even ordinary chunks of dried meat and biscuits cam in at $40 to $90 a kilo. On top of this, many ingredients were not listed or are very suspect."

The two year old, 48 page Urban Animal celebrates pet lifestyle with a witty and informative editorial mix coupled with high quality imagery and has the firm advertising policy of not accepting 'pet junk food' ads or doing advertorial as an inducement or a reward for advertisers. As Tripp explains, "We're a cross-pet magazine rather than merely a dog title. We're free as opposed to being available in newsagents. And we're credible due to tight editorial standards that set us apart from other titles. This is the type of article paid magazines that feed on multinational advertisers avoid like death!"

An example of one treat analysed is Schmackos Bakon Strips which had the following ingredients buried on their website and not as highly detailed on the actual wrapper consumers see: In order of weight--Wheat flour, soy grits, water, sugar, corn flour, bacon, animal fat (preserved with bha, citric acid), glycerin, hydrogenated corn starch hydrolysate, salt, natural bacon and smoke flavours, phosphoric acid, calcium carbonate, sorbic acid (a preservative), calcium propionate (a preservative), color added (titanium dioxide, yellow #6, red #40, red #3, and blue #2), and lecithin. As Tripp jokes, "Five artificial colouring agents? For a dog? Those sort of colours and preservatives could probably send a reactive kid Whacko with a reaction similar to ADHD! It's pet junk food any way you cut it"

Consumers need to do their maths if they buy commercial treats at a supermarket and not fall prey to the massive expense of multimillion dollar marketing budgets that add to the costs. They also need to check ingredients as many pets can fall ill due to allergic reactions to grain products or chemicals. "If you can't pronounce the ingredients, your pet probably shouldn't eat it." Tripp states. "It's better to buy locally produced healthy pet treats via pet stores from specialist suppliers who clearly label all ingredients and who are proud of the purity and content of their product as well as easily contactable." 'Urban Animal' is distributed quarterly, free to consumers, through over 400 Sydney regional outlets: pet stores, veterinary practices, groomers, boarding kennels, pet events, pet friendly cafes & businesses.

For interviews, images or printed copies of the article and magazine, contact Editor Lisa Treen on (02) 9557 7766 or by email at topdog@urbanimal.net. All 9 editions online www.urbananimal.net

Press Release
For Immediate Release
August 15, 2006

It was a risky dream two years ago when the Sydney-based music industry publishing team at IMMEDIA! introduced the new concept of a free, quarterly upmarket cross-pet publication into the Australian pet market, but 44 page, tabloid size 'Urban Animal' magazine is now a huge success. They plan to launch interstate, starting with Melbourne in 2007.

Publisher Phil Tripp and partner Editor Lisa Treen work out of a home office in Newtown with a staff of four humans, a pair of exotic parrots flying around the desks and Dalmatians dancing through it. They've had a hugely successful, 18 year-running music industry directory in print and online but decided to start a free consumer pet magazine-much like music street press in all major cities-after having seen one in New Orleans while on holiday in early 2004. Their logic was that pets, like music, are entertainment, but in a vastly growing market.

Knowing that there were no cross-pet magazines in Australia-just a few dog titles, a bird aviculture publication and no real cat, fish or other species-specific mags-they decided to take a $50,000 punt to create a new magazine that featured furred, feathered, finned, scaly and other pets. Their timing was perfect as it has grown immensely since launching in October 2004, matched by a huge increase of sales in the pet industry itself-from $3 billion then to $4.2 billion now. Because they are cross-pet, they attract a broad range of advertisers and readership.

Distributed free at pet stores, vets, groomers, boarding kennels, aquarium shops, pet friendly cafes, pet events & many other pet businesses in the Sydney region, they have expanded from 200 outlets when they started, to over 400 now as pet lovers and businesses embraced the magazine. Urban Animal also tripled its advertising base from a mere 17 in its first issue (six pages out of 32) to 55 in its present August 15-November 14 mag (18 pages out of 44). They print 40,000 copies, full colour gloss in Sydney for fast turnaround and better quality control, rather than cheaply offshore.

As Tripp analyses, "We didn't invent the media--we know of over 30 urban free pet publications in the US and Canada alone--we simply pioneered the concept here, but with a twist. We published the entire magazine on the Internet as PDFs at the same time we personally met our first 200 outlets as my partner and I drove our own deliveries with our first issue of 40,000 copies." It was that personal touch that overcame retailer suspicion and also started getting the publication known by major pet brands whose reps kept finding it everywhere. "We expanded our pawprint North to Newcastle, West to Katoomba and South to Wollongong, created in-store dispensers and displays, and kept our policy of no advertorials, no discounting on ads, no pet junk food products, no breeder ads and no ads for products that can harm or cause pain to animals. Keeping to those principles kept us clean."

It also meant Urban Animal was well established when the new breed of designer dog magazines hit the newsstands at $8.50 to $8.80, hoping to emulate the success of over-the-top overseas titles that pander to rich, indulgent, American upmarket dog owners. "We knew people would grab a free credible magazine at a reliable pet business and we also knew Australians weren't as celebrity-crazed and dog-decadent as the Yanks." Tripp continues. "Most newsstand pet magazines are so blatantly advertorial that consumers don't trust them and are so expensive that they're too often left behind on the racks as families contend with mortgage increases, petrol cost, etc."

Urban Animal has also attracted over 500 paid subscribers and their website at http://www.urbananimal.net gets massive traffic from readers in Australia and overseas. With its success in Sydney, plans to take the concept to Melbourne are being drawn up with a sharing of editorial and major advertisers but still giving local flavour for smaller businesses to invest. As Tripp concludes, "It's a concept that has legs--at least four--& we don't have to beg!"

For a sample copies, cover images, photos or interviews, contact Michelle Padovan at IMMEDIA! Public Relations
Email michelle@immedia.com.au, Phone (02) 9557 7766. Visit our website at http://www.urbananimal.net

Press Release
For Immediate Release
May 9, 2005

When the debut issue of Australia's first free, cross-pet, tabloid-sized full colour glossy quarterly 'Urban Animal' magazine hit the streets of Sydney in October 2004, it was a risky venture for music industry publisher IMMEDIA!, but one that has legs and just unleashed its third edition April 30. It's grown by leaps & bounds. As 40,000 copies are being placed in over 250 outlets throughout the Sydney region from Newcastle to Wollongong & out to Katoomba--available in pet shops, vets, groomers, boarding facilities, even pet friendly cafes or restaurants--new free street pet magazines are following its lead around Australia.

In Brisbane, the glossy A4 'Your Pet Magazine' launched in March. Perth will have a similar magazine this month. And 'Urban Animal' plans to expand to Melbourne later this year to capitalise on its success as a combined free print medium with an online presence that has the entire magazine on its website www.urbananimal.net where all three issue reside in full. In its revolutionary premium content, arresting visual quality and wide distribution, 'Urban Animal' created a sensation and has accumulated a huge subscriber base. It's also attracted major advertisers.

Publisher Phil Tripp points to its upmarket editorial that appeals to a high end readership that celebrate a pet lifestyle and who are avid readers with their pets as family members rather than just animals. "We knew, owning two dogs and a pair of parrots, that there was a huge cross-pet ownership like us which has driven an annual $2.2 billion market in Australia for pet products and services, growing at 10% a year. There are only a couple of single pet magazines for sale at newsagents-one for dogs, the other for birds-but none that combine fur, feathered, finned and scaly pets, and up until we leaped onto the market, none were free and distributed direct to people where they take their pets to be serviced or purchase products for them. That was our formula and it's been a predictable success. We'll be expanding with our fourth issue that comes out July 31."

A stunning purple cover of an Australian Bulldog & Diamond Python eyeing each other leads to the following content:

FEATURES:
* The Patron Saint of Pets--An Interview with Dr Harry
* The City of Cats & the City of People--A CATalytic Domestic Arrangement
* A Different Kind of Bird Dog--By Jill Hedgecock
* What the Dog Did? By Emily Yoffe--Tales from a Formerly Reluctant Dog Owner
* Rachael Hale--101 Salivations & Cataclysms With A Renowned Pet Photographer
* Training Animals in the Movies--Mark Forbes and Winn-Dixie
* Barketplace--Amusing & Amazing Ads from Around the World
* Pet Projects--From Carers to Careers--From Play to Pay as Entre-Pet-Neurs

COLUMNS:
* Cuisine de Critters--Making your own pet treats for dogs, cats & birds
* Internet Interpet--Top Pet Net Spots and Publications
* Sit Happens!--Our Animal Behaviouralist answers questions on problem pets
* Where Did You Get That Pet--Pet-Parazzi Shoots Pets & People on The Move
* Pet Reads--Book reviews on pets, pet care and animal related publications
* Creature Comforts--Featuring great new pet products and unusual things
* Pause for Paws & Claws--Glebe's pet secret spots revealed
* Pet Tails--The starting column for our amusing tales of unusual pets.
* Come! Sit! Stay!--Pet-friendly accommodation near Sydney for time out with your dogs, cats & birds.
* Three Pet Vets--Answering reader questions on dog, cat and bird care
* Animal Attractions & Furry Festivities--Sydney pet events & special spots

For Further Information, Interviews, Sample Copy, emailed Photos or Cover Images,
Contact: Phil Tripp--Publisher Phone: (02) 9557 7766 E: topdog@urbanaimal.net

Press Release
For Immediate Release
October 19, 2004

Australia's first, free, all-pet magazine is unleashed on the streets in Sydney with 40,000 full colour, glossy, tabloid-size, 32 page quarterly title 'Urban Animal' set to re-evolutionise the modern pet lifestyle, celebrating contemporary pets and animal lovestyles. An upmarket, glossy, visually stunning and witty read--it's 50% dog, with the rest cat, bird, fish & reptile.

Successful Newtown print & online publishers IMMEDIA!-who've produced the acclaimed AustralAsian Music Industry Directory for 33 editions since 1987 and who also created an Australian Music Guide in the US in March-are behind the new concept. 'Urban Animal' has already been unleashed on the Internet with initial editorial and an arresting 'cross-pet' cover on a continually evolving website http://www.urbananimal.net that matches the print version.

As Publisher Phil Tripp--who works in a six person home office with a Dalmatian underfoot and two parrots flying around--explains, "Because Australia is such a small country, and since newsagents won't stock or can't sell them, there are no all-pet magazines in this country-despite pet care being a $2.2 billion industry, growing at over 10% annually. Aside from the bimonthly Dog's Life and Australian Birdkeeper, no regular pet magazines have survived. People won't spend money on pet magazines, even if they could find them!"

"But we have a unique approach which is creating a free, combined gloss stock and newsprint publication of high editorial and print quality--supported by a website where we built the magazine page-by-page--with massive free distribution at places where people and pets congregate." Tripp reveals. "Like music press that are stacked at CD stores, clubs and youth lifestyle venues, Urban Animal will be freely available from pet stores, vet clinics, grooming and minding services, boarding kennels, animal shelters, pet events (like the Newtown Festival and Sydney Pet Expo in early November) plus key pet-friendly inner urban cafes and regional accommodations which cater to an upmarket animal-lover demographic." He points to recent statistics to back up this concept of marketing to a smart & affluent pet lifestyle owner base.

The pet industry is growing at 10% a year, represents $1.2 billion in pet food, $700 million in pet health care and $169 million in pet products. We have the highest per capita pet ownership in the world. 64% of our 7.5 million households own one or more pets. Urban pet owners are high income households who pamper their furred, feathered & finned children with premium foods, upmarket toys, chic accessories, top grooming, training & other services.

Tripp believes there is an instant market for this free distribution concept. Urban Animal is totally advertising supported, budgeted at $40,000 an issue which will have 40,000 copies distributed October 15, January 15, April 15 and July 15 in its first year. "We're catering to citified singles and couples to whom their pets are as loved as children or to suburban families whose pets are family members rather than life forms in a backyard tossed scraps and fed canned dog food." Tripp concludes. "They are desperate for information on how best to enhance a pet's health, longevity and happiness. Pets are a major investment, a top lifestyle expense for those who own them. And they take their pets everywhere with them!"

Urban Animal's editorial policy is strict since its readers are too smart to fall for advertorial content. Professional writers combined with high quality imported stories from overseas publications form the content basis along with stunning imagery. Columns like 'Critter Cuisine' deal with healthy food options; 'Creature Comforts' covers cool new pet products; 'Come! Sit! Stay!' spotlights pet friendly travel and accommodation while advertising standards will not allow 'pet junk food', breeder ads or harmful products.

For more details-contact IMMEDIA! PR on (02) 9557 7766 or email pr@immedia.com.au. Go to the Urban Animal site at http://www.urbananimal.net