A cross-pet magazine in print and online with a 3 month life span FREE in over 400 Sydney region outlets and also by subscription. Urban Animal is cover-to-cover, full-colour, glossy, tabloid size with 40,000 copies distributed quarterly. You can see our current issue and previous issues fully online as downloadable pages or stories by going to Current Issue.

Phil Tripp & Lisa Treen

Publisher Phil Tripp and partner Lisa Treen (Editor), pioneered the concept in Australia of a free pet magazine with the publication of the first issue of Urban Animal in October 2004. They had seen similar magazines in the US and Canada and were particularly inspired by New Orleans' 'Urban Dog', but decided to make theirs cross-pet--incorporating dog, cat, bird, fish, reptiles, amphibians, crustaceans and other critters--celebrating a pet lifestyle with ethical editorial and no advertorial.

Coming from the music industry, where their company IMMEDIA! has published the AustralAsian Music Industry Directory for over 20 years, they knew that the market was too small to support a paid magazine of its type at newsagencies. So like the urban 'street press' of music magazines free at music outlets, Urban Animal started with over 200 pet shops, vets, groomers, boarding kennels, pet-friendly cafes, accommodation and also at pet events from Council Dog Days, Pet Expos and other pet businesses such as mobile dog washers.

The formula worked! We now have over 400 outlets in an arc over the Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong and Blue Mountains region detailed fully here. We grew from a combined newsprint and glossy paper format to full gloss colour cover-to-cover in our 7th edition. We're still growing, with the 17th edition ending the first four years with 60 pages and 70 ads. Our doubling of page count and fivefold increase in advertising assures our future as Australia's first and best free pet magazine.

Editorial Policy | Advertising Policy | Editorial Submissions | Calendar of Events-Furry Festivities | Press Release Submissions
Photo Submissions | Product Submissions for Review | Letters to The Editor & Feedback

We are a cross pet magazine which celebrates pet lifestyle of all species with their human companions and guardians. Our editorial is professionally produced internally and by established writers. We do not do 'advertorial'- placing stories or items in exchange for advertising. Editorial is not provided, promised or otherwise used as an inducement or reward for advertising. All of the editorial material within is either produced by the publishers and staff or syndicated from other sources, but not from advertisers.

We do not accept ads from pet junk food products-foods that are unhealthy or of dubious quality or questionable ingredients.

We do not accept ads for products or practices that can harm, cause pain or injury to animals-this would include shock collars, electronic containment fences and dangerous toys or other products-or negatively affect them.

We do not accept ads from breeders of animals for sale-the 95% of good breeders don't need to advertise as they have waiting lists while the 5% of backyard breeders or puppy mills would use us for their overstocks.

We will only accept ads from pet shops that sell live animals that we have personally visited and we believe on inspection conform to the highest standards of pet care, marketing, warranty and responsible pet ownership education.

We do not do 'advertorial'. We do not trade products for advertising, run competitions, feature products, services or otherwise exchange editorial coverage as either a reward or inducement for advertising.

Advertise in Urban Animal

We welcome editorial submissions and story proposals from established and credible writers so long as they are not associated with any commercial enterprise or other product/service. Please contact our Managing Editor Lisa Treen to propose articles if you are the writer at lisa@urbananimal.net. We assume no responsibility for unsolicited materials.

Please send local pet-friendly announcements to critters@urbanimal.net as far in advance as possible. We are unable to accept any submissions within three weeks of our publication dates (August 15, November 15, February 15 and May 15) and can only consider those that fall within the issue dates.

Send any press releases to Managing Editor Lisa Treen at lisa@urbananimal.net or by fax to (02) 9557 7788. We will consider them on their merits as they relate to our editorial ethics and content.

We prefer not to receive photos or images by email unless we are asked permission to receive them and are told in advance, their size (in Kb or Mb) format & content. We're happy to receive images on disc or transparency by mail.

We accept products for review two months or more out from our publication dates. Shipping and return is the responsibility of the product provider and should pickup not be arranged in a timely manner once notified, the product will be donated to an appropriate pet organisation or shelter.

It is our policy not to arrange competitions, giveaways, sampling, endorsement or other sponsorship of goods or services.

We don't publish letters to the editor as our policy but we welcome feedback, suggestions, criticism, bouquets and brickbats either by email at critters@urbanimal.net, by fax on (02) 9557 7788 or by mail to Urban Animal Letters, 20 Hordern St., Newtown NSW 2042