Kitty Cat School came to Busselton for all cat owners wanting to give their cat a healthy, happy and enriched life. Similar to puppy school, Kitty Cat School connects cat owners with expert cat behaviourists and local vets to provide the best available cat care advice.

Cat owners were encouraged to attend this free half day event for advice on cat health and nutrition, behavioural issues, microchipping and de-sexing laws, containment solutions and tips on how to make your cat live longer.

“There are a lot of cats that die young from preventable problems,” said local vet, Richard Lucas from Busselton Vet Hospital.

“Responsible cat owners can potentially double the life expectancy of their cat.”

We ran the inaugural event to promote responsible pet ownership.

Native plants were in full bloom this September as community members rambled through three local gardens during our Bay OK Garden Trail Day.

The Trail showcased the beauty of native plants in their flowering season and provided attendees with expert tips for growing natives successfully.

Margaret Moore opened up her Kalgaritch garden to share the Bay OK message with the community. Her garden demonstrates how large gardens don’t have to be dominated by lawns.

“I enjoy gardening every inch of my property and I find solutions to challenges such as shade and shallow soil with my plant selections; be they native, exotic or edible,” she said.

Nature verges are being celebrated through our Bay OK program with the launch of the Nature Verge Competition.

Nature verges are an attractive and sustainable alternative to lawn. While lawn has been the standard verge treatment in the past, its high maintenance and water usage makes it a costly solution. Nature verges, planted with low growing native plants are water efficient, low-nutrient and attract local biodiversity.

To enter your nature verge for the chance to win a $200 prize pack, simply join the Bay OK Garden Club Facebook group and post a photo or video using #BayOKNatureVerge. Alternatively, entries can be emailed to geocatch@dwer.wa.gov.au.

The competition is open to nature verges at all stages of establishment and to residents living in the Geographe Bay Catchment. The competition closes 15 December 2020.

The community was invited to 'explore' our Ramsar-listed Vasse Wonnerup wetlands recently in a series of webinars focussing on the latest science and research.

Since 2017, seasonal ecological monitoring has been undertaken in the wetlands to help scientists and managers understand the potential longer-term impacts on the ecology that may occur through changes to the water regime over summer. 

The webinars are available on the GeoCatch YouTube channel or directly through the links below:

We launched our brand new website this week!

The new site is designed with the user in mind. It features an advanced user interface that makes it easier and quicker to find the information you need.

We've also reviewed all of the content so it is now 100% up to date and modernised.

Some of the new features include: an interactive catchment map; easy sign ups to our networks; targeted news, events and resource information for different users and a scrolling tally of our achievements on the homepage.

Thanks to Jack in the Box and Euso Digital for helping get this up and running!

Check it out today!

Local farmers signed up in droves to learn more about dung beetles over a lunch time webinar recently.

Kathy Dawson, South West coordinator of the Dung Beetle Ecosystem Engineers project and Manjimup farmer Doug Pow, spoke about the importance of dung beetles and their roles in nutrient cycling, pest control, soil fertility and the benefits for water quality.

The most common species in the South West is the Bubas bison, which is active autumn to winter. This species was introduced to Australia from Europe in 1983 and lays its eggs, along with dung, up to 60cm deep in the soil. Attracting more species that do this important work year-round will improve soil structure through better aeration and water infiltration, as a result of the tunneling activity of the beetles.

Yoongarillup dairy farmer, Elaine Haddon, is keen to encourage more of these ecosystem engineers to her property. Elaine set up a dung beetle trap near her dairy to help collect information about dung beetle species present in her area.