Veterinary and social services to drive transformative social change
Cherished Pets Foundation, was founded in 2015 by veterinarian Dr Alicia Kennedy with a clear purpose to enable the benefits of healthy companion pets and a thriving human-animal bond to be accessible to all people.
Cherished Pets is a dual entity: Cherished Pets Veterinary Care, the world’s first certified B Corporation veterinary service, and Cherished Pets Foundation, a registered charity that supports the organisation's social mission. The team, comprising veterinary social workers, veterinary professionals, and volunteers, is dedicated to bridging the gap between human health and animal welfare.
By nurturing the human-animal bond, preserving the health and wellbeing of pets alongside their owners, we empower individuals facing vulnerability. This catalyses happier, healthier lives, fostering the creation of resilient and connected communities.
Vision
Our vision is a world where the human-animal bond creates and contributes to the development of connected and healthy communities.
Social Services
Cherished Pets' innovative veterinary social service brings together a compassionate team of veterinary social workers, dedicated veterinary professionals, and skilled volunteers dedicated to bridging the gap between human health and animal welfare to support pets and their people.
We offer crisis pet care, personalised home care assistance packages, and a volunteer program, all centered around preserving and strengthening the human-animal bond.
Through a person-centered approach, we provide immediate support to individuals whose already overwhelming challenges are further complicated by pet ownership. Our priority groups include:
Individuals experiencing homelessness
For someone experiencing homelessness, we often find that they delay seeking medical attention for themselves because they have no one to look after their beloved companion, who is often their closest friend and the only consistent presence in their life. Alternatively, they may delay seeking veterinary care for their cherished companions due to financial constraints meaning pet health declines. Our services for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness mean devoted animal companions can get the care they need and deserve and can continue to uplift their owner's mental and emotional wellbeing, alleviate isolation, and inspire a sense of purpose even during life's challenging moments.
Victims of family and domestic violence
It is estimated that companion animals are present in 70 per cent of cases where domestic and family violence occurs. Providing emergency accommodation for pets ensures that people and families can find refuge without delay, creating a haven of safety and support for all. Pets can then be reunited with their family preventing unnecessary rehoming, overwhelming pet shelters, and unnecessary euthanasia.
People Experiencing a Crisis, Mental Illness and Unexpected Hospitalisation
Through many years of supporting pets and their people experiencing tough times, we’ve learned that crises and unexpected challenges can happen to anyone. A sudden change in circumstances can drastically affect not just individuals and families, but their animal companions as well. Our cherished pets can sometimes complicate the process of accessing the right assistance when needed and it's often the people who need their pets the most who are forced to surrender them to shelters, where pets face an increased risk of euthanasia.
By providing services that include people and animals and removing barriers to accessing human care, we improve the overall health, safety and wellbeing of the community and prevent the unnecessary trauma caused by the surrender of pets.
Aged Care and the Elderly
For older individuals, particularly those without family or social support, our veterinary services help preserve the invaluable human-animal bond, nurturing emotional wellbeing by keeping their pets healthy to foster rich social engagement through the profound bond between humans and their pets.
By addressing the needs of both pets and their owners, Cherished Pets support people's health and wellbeing and prevents loss of companionship, increased isolation, exacerbation of mental health conditions, or even the risk of harm to people or their pets. We also prevent the need for costly downstream interventions such as emergency veterinary surgeries, prolonged medical treatments, or surrendering pets to shelters, which can have significant financial and emotional costs for both individuals and society.
Please support us and help create a fairer and hopeful future for all pets and people.
Our Impact
With 69% of Australians owning a pet, and more than 85% of Australian pet owners feeling having pets impacts their lives positively, the human-animal bond holds significant potential for positive social change.
Cherished Pets measures the social impact of its services to understand areas of strength, service delivery, and community impact. In 2023, Cherished Pets delivered over 2,800 veterinary social services, 1970 nights of pet accommodation respite care, supported 1200 elderly people’s pets, provided over 5000 volunteer hours and 250 Community Vet Nurse at-home care visits, and returned a remarkable social and economic value of $3.85 for every $1 invested.
All our surveyed pet owners reported experiencing health and wellbeing benefits from their pets, reaffirming the profound value of supporting the human-animal bond.
Cherished Pets Foundation is a registered charity governed by a Board of Directors. Current members of the Board are:
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Alicia Kennedy (Chairperson)
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Kevin Bartlett (Treasurer)
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Mel Twomey
- Simon Fieldhouse
- Provide pet health, wellness and behaviour assessments and plans
- Peace of mind consultations
- Case management
- Pet feeding
- Dog walking
- Brushing & washing pets
- Cleaning up pet waste
- Transport
- Administering flea and worm treatment
- In home pet respite care
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Emergency pet care planning to ensure pets are cared for if their owner is hospitalised, moves into an aged or disability care facility or passes away.
- Respite pet care for pets in the event of an emergency or during times of change.