BarkingMad South Africa Launches Groundbreaking National Initiative to Establish Minimum Standards for South African Animal Shelters

BarkingMad South Africa is proud to announce a landmark national initiative to develop South Africa’s first sector-led minimum standards for companion animal shelters. The project responds to a long-standing gap in the animal shelters sector: the absence of formal, nationally recognised standards to guide shelter governance, operations, and animal care.

BarkingMad, in partnership with the One Revolution Foundation (One-R), has, over the past 12 months, visited more than 200 animal shelters and shelter organisations in 9 provinces across South Africa. Engaging directly with those working on the frontlines of animal welfare. Having practical discussions about daily realities, systemic challenges, gaps in support, and the urgent need for clear, achievable, and relevant minimum standards.

These visits have generated invaluable, data-driven insight into the true state of animal shelters nationwide, highlighting where shelters are under pressure, where innovation is emerging, and where targeted support is most urgently required.

A sector without guidelines, but ready for change

Currently, South Africa has no formal, nationally recognised minimum standards or guidelines governing practice in companion animal shelters. This absence has left the sector fragmented, under-supported, and vulnerable, despite the extraordinary dedication of those working within it.

The site visits confirmed widespread support for introducing standards as a foundation for transformative change. There is a strong appetite across the sector for accountability, and a shared understanding of what best practice means. From governance and leadership to animal care and people management, shelters want guidance that reflects the full scope of competencies required to run effective, ethical organisations.

Learning from global models, but building something truly South African

In shaping the initiative, BarkingMad and One-R have examined international examples, including the work of the Association of Dogs and Cats Homes (ADCH) in the United Kingdom, which successfully united hundreds of organisations under a shared framework of minimum standards.

However, South Africa’s shelter landscape is fundamentally different. The sector operates across multiple shelter models and faces uniquely South African challenges, including limited funding, vast geographic distances, extreme animal overpopulation, socio-economic pressures, and inconsistent municipal support.

As a result, the standards being developed must reflect South Africa’s realities. This initiative is not about importing a foreign model. It is about co-creating a framework that represents South African shelters, challenges, and solutions.

Funding and scale

The project is supported by UK animal charity Battersea, which has been helping dogs and cats for over 160 years and is committed to increasing its impact for animals, not just at its rescue centres but across the UK and around the world. To achieve this, Battersea works with other animal welfare organisations, delivering training through the Battersea Academy and providing funding through a Grants programme to help millions of dogs and cats.

“Battersea is proud that our commitment to animal welfare extends far beyond the work at our centres in the UK. By supporting BarkingMad in its groundbreaking initiative, Battersea hopes to drive positive, locally led change in the companion animal welfare rescue sector in South Africa, ensuring a lasting impact on the lives of dogs and cats, year after year,”  Beatriz Dal Poz, Grants & Programmes Manager: South Africa.

What comes next: National workshops and sector collaboration

The next phase of the project will include a series of in-person workshops held across the country, bringing animal shelters and rescue organisations together to actively help shape the Minimum Standards.

Shelter teams will have the opportunity to build standards: for the sector, by the sector, ensuring that the resulting framework is practical, credible, and widely supported.

A collaborative step toward a stronger future

One-R says, “It is time for one of the most under-resourced sectors in the country to have its moment. A chance to gear up and reach for more. Animal shelters have courage and heart, but professional standards are essential to elevating the impact of our collective efforts.”

“This project is about uplifting the entire animal shelter sector,” says BarkingMad. Our goal has always been to hear every voice, understand the challenges shelters face, and ensure real engagement so that we can co-create collective, achievable minimum standards that truly reflect the sector.