We've started a conversation ...
"The Future of Social & Veterinary Services"
On Friday 24th November something magical happened.
45+ people gathered together to progress a conversation that has been bubbling along across all corners of our world for a very long time and it is now gathering momentum. A vital conversation that will have a ripple effect across our society.
The question: “How do we move towards a shared vision of a society where the human animal bond is valued for the vital role it plays in healthy, thriving and connected individuals and communities”.
The intention: to bring together key hearts and minds from across the animal and human health industries to explore the questions and spark change.
The response: amazing. There was so much interest in this event. We hosted. We invited. The people said yes. And those who couldn’t make, said yes to next time.
The inspiration: came from a memorable chat over morning tea at the AVA’s National Conference, May 2023. Susan Hazel, Robyn Whitaker, Pip Molnar and me. I remember this moment so clearly: when we realised we each shared a strong interest and fascination in the social issues that are impacting animal welfare, the vet industry and the community and health service sectors. “Let’s get people together from across the community to explore the issues”, we said. And so it happened.
Six months later we pulled it off. Thanks to an almighty effort by my champions and advisors: Jane Boag (What's The Plan), Sarah Waddle (Align Agency), Mai Avery (Mai Lan Consulting), Robyn Whitaker (Vets & Community Care) and Judy Wookey (Cherished Pets Social Services), and ably supported by our CP Crew (Jen Walsh (Volunteer Coordinator), Georgi Anderson (Social Hearted Vet Nurse), Alyce Evans (Vet Social Workers) and all the team holding the fort back in Ocean Grove!
The Future of Social Veterinary Services Roundtable #1 was an event committed to igniting positive transformation within our system, aiming for a more inclusive future for pets, individuals, and veterinarians. We started to explore the complex challenges that impact the veterinary industry and the wider pet community.
At Cherished Pets, we see the day-to-day challenges and the broader community impact of the systemic gap between the care environments of people and their pets and the pressure this brings to veterinary teams. We want to see change.
Our vision is a future where multidisciplinary social and veterinary services are integral components of our society. By tackling critical issues impacting both pets and people, we aim to create healthier, more inclusive communities.
This event marked the beginning of a community-led endeavour to revolutionise the veterinary industry by uniting voices from across the sector, forging partnerships, and working collaboratively toward our shared goals.
We gathered to drive meaningful progress to shift our system towards a better, supportive and more inclusive future”.
The invitation: was only circulated a month ago, the response exciting. For every person who could attend this inaugural face to face event, we have received an equal number plus some of people wishing to participate in this conversation.
Our venue host: Huge thanks to Liz Walker, Bek Cook, and the team at RSPCA Victoria for lending us the Education Centre as our ideal venue for this gathering. The ambience was amazing and perfect for the day, and the hospitality and attention provided by Lynne and the team gratefully received.
Our facilitator: The formidable Jane Boag brought her energy and insights in to this conversation with creativity, passion, play and a deep commitment. Jane has been supporting me and Cherished Pets in a pro bono advisory capacity since 2015 and is the chief enabler of so much of what we do. Her perspective is shaped from an impressive career across the community, health, aged care, disability and arts sectors and an innate gift of being able to distil a whole load of information in to something tangible and applicable. Huge gratitude to Jane for taking on this role :)
Our speakers: Susan Hazel (University of Adelaide), Liz Walker (RSPCA Vic), Monika Cole (AVA Thrive) and Megan Lui (Zoetis). Thank you for helping us set the context for this momentous day. Each contribution shared with heart and passion for this opportunity to gather and explore.
Our sponsors. We needed help to pull this off and cover some of our costs. You took the plunge and believed in us. Everything comes from relationships and I want to give a massive shout out and thanks to Megan Lui (Zoetis), Paul Blanc (AVet) and Brett Hodgkin (Vet Partners) for recognising early the opportunity to support this movement. You are forever my heroes in the land of sponsors as it’s never easy getting started.
Our conversations: powered by a series of three exploratory questions, and some cheeky play by our Facilitator, Jane, everyone worked hard through this day to explore and deepen our understanding of the complexity at play in the human animal bond space, at a society level. We’ve left with more questions, and invite you to be part of this movement moving forward, to seek collaborative, multi-disciplinary solutions.
Our table hosts: Judy Wookey, Jen Walsh, Robyn Whitaker, Bek Cook and Mai Avery: thank you for holding the space for the roundtable conversations, being agile with the content and timeframes, and capturing the content.
Our event organiser: Sarah Waddle - thank you for organising logistics, community relations, event management and strategic direction for our systems change initiative.
We are building a movement here. Together we can be stronger.
Love what we do? Get in touch to help us build this movement through a financial contribution. We need funding to help this reach its potential.
To register your interest in this conversation: please email sarah@cherishedpetcare.com.au or alicia@cherishedpetcare.com.au or get in touch directly via Alicia’s LinkedIn or Sarah’s LinkedIn
Please subscribe for updates, follow us on the socials (Social Hearted Vet Insta and FB) and see you back here soon!
And last but not least, shout out and thanks to my mate, Phil Hines, for his efforts and time (pro bono) to capture our day with photos and video.
More photos, insights and reflections to come soon…
Be part of the biggest conversation happening right now in our pet-loving community.
To continue to build on this momentum, we are seeking further support. Please get in touch for opportunities in 2024. Email sarah@cherishedpetcare.com.au.
Gratitude to our sponsors:
Our Foundation Sponsor: Zoetis.
Our Inaugural Supporting Sponsors:
AVet, Vet Partners and RSPCA Victoria
Our gifts: with thanks to Global Leadership Foundation, Dr Bronner’s and Edenhills for providing gifts to our attendees.
The organisations represented: Impressive. Thank you.
Get in touch to be on our invitation list for future events.
