Latest news with #Shellharbour
ABC News
4 days ago
- Health
- ABC News
Pet owners turn to veterinary telemedicine services for non-emergencies
When Meggy the Lhasa Apso puppy seemed unwell her owners were filled with dread. New pet owners Elise Sinclair and Katana Murphy did not know if it was an emergency and did not want to waste a vet's time. "We didn't know what was wrong with her," Ms Sinclair said. Being more than an hour away from the nearest overnight animal hospital did not make it any easier. So the Shellharbour couple turned to veterinary telemedicine, where they were able to talk with a registered vet remotely. "It's just like breathing a sigh of relief, [having] access to a resource who knows what they're talking about and can help you with your decision-making," Ms Sinclair said. The couple was eventually able to make an in-person visit with a vet, where Meggy was successfully treated for a parasitic infection. The calls can also be cheaper, with an average cost between $50 and $120 compared to after-hours call-outs, which can cost up to $500. Veterinarian Nina Coulthard helped the NSW couple treat Meggy from Adelaide. While telephone or web vets cannot provide prescription medication, Dr Coulthard is able to offer first aid advice and monitor non-emergency situations. After years working in clinics, Dr Coulthard said she had more time for online callers. "The pace is a bit more laid back than it can be in a clinic, which is wonderful because we have the time to talk to people for as long as they need," she said. The company she worked for, Greencross, said the service had grown steadily since the COVID pandemic. "It's a game changer. I can't see it going away in a hurry," Dr Coulthard said. The service can also make life easier for vets, who work in an industry known for overwork and impacts on mental health. In rural and remote areas, vets are often booked out weeks in advance. Katelyn Thompson, the only after-hours veterinarian at her outback clinic in Mount Isa, said her workload was huge. "It takes you away from your family," Dr Thompson said. The mother of a one-year-old baby, with another on the way, said she started using a telehealth triage system run by VetCheck 24/7 last March which eased the burden of after-hours calls. Phone calls are directed to a triage nurse, employed through a third-party subscription service, rather than going directly to her phone. "It's filtering calls that you need to see [so] you know that if they're calling you it's for something important," Dr Thompson said. She said it had resulted in a 70 per cent drop in after-hours phone calls, which used to range from five to 20 a week. Dr Thompson said people who called after-hours services often needed reassurance and general first aid advice. In some instances, she said people called looking to buy pet food. "The biggest selling point for us is trying to ease the burden on vets," Dr Thompson said. She said the mental health benefits were worth the cost the business paid for a subscription, allowing vets to come into the surgery better rested each morning. Dr Thompson hoped innovations like this would help attract more vets to the outback. "Especially for rural and remote areas when trying to entice them to come out because they know they're not going to be on call-out after call-out," she said.
Daily Telegraph
5 days ago
- General
- Daily Telegraph
Humpbacks swim into tiny Shellharbour bay
Don't miss out on the headlines from Animals. Followed categories will be added to My News. Eight humpback whales on a heat hunt in a small bay along the NSW coastline have been captured in rare footage by a marine mammal rescue volunteer. Ty Peters spends four days a week during June monitoring whales off the Illawarra coast for Organisation for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans in Australia (ORRCA), an Australian not-for-profit dedicated to saving marine mammals. He headed down to Bass Point Reserve in Shellharbour, south of Sydney, about 10am on Monday and witnessed seven males chasing a juvenile female into Bush Rangers Bay. Mr Peters said when female humpbacks are on heat the males chase them and while that is relatively common, what was not common was the bay they swam into. ORRCA volunteer Ty Peters captured rare footage of humpback whales on a heat hunt in Bush Ranger Bay near Shellharbour, about 115kms south of Sydney. Picture: Ty Peters 'We occasionally get one solitary whale going in there and investigating but to my knowledge that's the first time we've ever had a heat run go into the bay,' he said. 'Getting eight whales in that confined bay is pretty wild.' Mr Peters said what the drones did not capture was the incredible noise that came from the whales as they hunted down the female. 'The whales have got a really deep sound and it vibrates through your chest,' he said. 'They exert a lot of energy, which makes them get out of breath quite quick so their sound is deep. 'Then you've got the slapping of the tails and the pectoral fins, imagine dropping your front door just flat onto ground, you get that sound almost like a cannon launch.' ORRCA volunteer Ty Peters said it was rare to see eight humpbacks in Bush Rangers Bay, which is about 75m across at its widest and 200m long. Picture: Ty Peters Mr Peters said about 40,000 humpback whales swim past Australia's east coast each year, along with southern right whales, minkes, false killers and others. He said they sighted about 150 whales a day if the conditions were right for the huge mammals to migrate north to Queensland. 'If the currents are pushing north then they don't have to do a lot of work, which means they don't exert a lot of energy and don't have to breathe as heavy, they just cruise,' he said. 'If the ocean is flat then you don't get water splashing into the blowhole so they're very hard to spot then, whereas, if they're having to exert themselves a little bit more than they're taking deeper breaths. 'If it's a little bit choppy, then they're doing bigger blows to clear the air.' About 40,000 humpback whales swim past Australia's east coast each year, along with southern rights, minkes, false killers and others. Picture: Ty Peters Mr Peters said one of the best vantage points to see the whales was along the Illawarra coastline and people could help ORRCA monitor the mammals swim past on their 2025 Whales Census Day on June 29 by registering at 'Whales are a protected species so there is 100m exclusion zone around whales for all watercraft and drones,' he said. 'We have quite a lot of problems with people coming in and flying 10ft above them. Originally published as ORRCA volunteer captures rare footage of six humpbacks on a heat hunt in a tiny bay along Shellharbour's coastline
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
Visitors spot incredible sight in tiny Aussie bay: 'Very special'
It's a tiny bay off the coast of Shellharbour, popular with swimmers and snorkellers for its protected, clear waters. But on Monday, visitors at Bushrangers Bay, south of Sydney, were treated to the arrival of some special guests — a pod of humpback whales who could even be heard singing from the shore to the delight of onlookers. Alex Ross, a former local, was back in town visiting his children and grandchildren when he and his wife, Jenny, decided to stop by Bass Point to see if they could see any whales. 'We probably saw 10 or 15 pods down there this morning, but quite a few of them were off shore and then this pod came around just as we got there and went right into Bushrangers Bay,' he told Yahoo News. The couple watched on in awe as the pod of at least three whales swam close to shore, in and out of the bay twice. 'Bushrangers Bay is a tiny, little marine reserve. It's about the size of maybe three Olympic swimming pools,' Alex said. 'It's quite narrow… but it's deep in there. 'They just came in and hardly had enough room to turn around in there really. So that's why I was quite surprised they went in there twice!' Incredibly, there were several people swimming in the bay when the whales arrived, with one man saying he could hear them singing. 'It was the most amazing thing to hear their sounds underwater,' he wrote to Alex on Facebook. The animals were so close to shore even those on land could hear the faint songs. The rare sighting combined with their grandson's birthday on the same day made it a 'very special' experience for Alex and Jenny before they head home to New Zealand next month. Whale season kicked off just a few weeks ago, with the peak time for whale spotting usually around the end of June and throughout July. As part of their annual migration from Antarctica to the South Pacific to breed, the whales travel right along the Australian coastline — though you'd have to be lucky to see them this close. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
ABC News
24-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
Dapto Dogs to stop running after nearly 90 years as showground owners end lease
It is the end of an era for the iconic Dapto Dogs as the local show society prepares to wrap up racing at the venue by the end of June next year. Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW) chief executive officer Steve Griffin said it was an unfortunate decision. "Very sad for the industry and for us. We are a little bit shocked and surprised. We had hoped that we were going to get a 20-year extension but the society has decided to go in another direction." GRNSW had been in negotiations Dapto Agricultural and Horticultural Society for some time over rent and facility upgrades, including relocating the kennel block to the western part of the precinct. Mr Griffin had visited the site just last week to inspect the proposed areas. The news was shared with GRNSW on Friday night. Racing started at the track on February 25, 1937. Mr Griffin said people will be "grieving for the loss of the icon from the sport". "Obviously there will be some people who will be hurting because this has been their home track for their lifetime and probably their forbearers before them. Close to 100 trainers trial their dogs at the track each week. Two full time and four part time staff will be offered opportunities at the Bulli and Nowra tracks. GRNSW has a parcel of land at nearby Bong Bong Road and will continue to explore opportunities — but it would involve significant work to determine if it would be suitable for a straight track. Shellharbour state MP Anna Watson said the decision was sad but she is glad it was not acrimonious. "It is a big parcel of land. It is community. It presents a great opportunity to see what comes from the Dapto Agricultural and Horticultural Society in the future," she said. Ms Watson said she looked forward to seeing how GRNSW progressed the Bong Bong Road site. The Dapto Agricultural and Horticultural Society has been contacted for comment.
ABC News
17-05-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Doctor questions new Shellharbour hospital's helipad snub
A senior Illawarra doctor and aerial retrieval specialist says the Minns government's decision not to include a helipad in the initial construction of the new $780 million Shellharbour Hospital ignores common sense and "doesn't pass the pub test". Trevor Gardner is an anaesthetist and expert in airborne infection control for the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District. He also works as a medical transport specialist with CareFlight in the Northern Territory and has flown military medical retrieval missions since 1993. Dr Gardner spoke out after this week's heated parliamentary debate on the Health Services Amendment (Hospital Helipads) Bill 2025, introduced by independent Kiama MP Gareth Ward. The bill would require any new public hospital with an emergency department — or any hospital undergoing major redevelopment — to include a helipad if classified Level 3 or above under NSW Health guidelines. "The new $780 million Shellharbour Hospital project will include an expanded emergency department but not a helipad," Mr Ward told parliament when he introduced the bill last year. "The design includes the provision for one, but on day one there will not be one open." The bill was supported this week by Shadow Minister for Health Kelly Sloane, who called helipads "lifesaving infrastructure". "In an emergency, seconds and minutes matter and sometimes helicopter transport can be the best way to ensure that a patient receives the care that they need," she said. Greens MP Kobi Shetty said the issue pointed to a broader problem. Parliamentary Secretary for Health Michael Holland said Shellharbour was not a trauma hospital and that "for the cost of a helipad that may not even be used, we could fund 10 full-time ICU nurses for a year". Labor MP for Shellharbour Anna Watson said the bill was about "scaring people" and that the hospital was designed to allow a future helipad "if and when clinical needs justify it". She said helicopters could land nearby in emergencies. But Dr Gardner said the situation could not be left to chance. "What you don't want to do is to have to wheel incredibly sick people out of the emergency department into an ambulance, drive them 500 meters or 5 kilometres down the road to a park or a local airport and then have to transfer them back again into the helicopter," he said. He also rejected the idea that Shellharbour did not need a helipad because it was not a trauma centre. "Whether it's trauma or medical … of course people who are seriously injured will turn up," he said. "They'll exceed the hospital's capacity and they'll need to be transferred." He said while the government "could argue the toss" on the cost saving, it did not "float" with him. "Speaking personally as somebody with skin in the game — having worked as the director of trauma, still flying retrieval, having flown patients out and received them — you must build a helipad if you build a new hospital," he said. NSW Health and Health Minister Ryan Park have been contacted for comment.
