Personnel working within pounds, shelters, rescues and rehoming groups often face difficult decisions to maintain the welfare of the animals within their care and are vulnerable to burn out and compassion fatigue. Personnel should be competent, properly trained and adequately supported to deliver standardised care to animals across the country.

SPCA supports collaboration with pounds, shelters, rescue and rehoming groups to advocate for animal welfare improvements.

SPCA works with many different stakeholders to collaboratively advance shared goals including local and national legislation, emergency management, and public education.

SPCA advocates for all animal pounds, shelters, rescues and rehoming groups to provide the animals in their care with a Good Life where they experience positive welfare and their physical, health, and behavioural needs are met.

To ensure the welfare of animals under their care, animal pounds, shelters, rescues and rehoming groups must not routinely exceed their capacity for care and must ensure animals are provided with exercise, social contact, shelter, veterinary treatment, and food and water appropriate to their individual physical, health, and behavioural needs.

Length of stay is considered a critical measure of management of pounds, shelters and other rehoming facilities as it captures many other measures such as adoption rates and capacity for care. Extended length of stay in care is linked to animal welfare compromise but impacts can be mitigated through use of foster programmes. SPCA considers that euthanasia of physically healthy and behaviourally sound animals should not be routinely used to manage capacity or length of stay.

SPCA advocates for the regulation and independent inspection of all animal pounds, shelters, rescues and rehoming groups.

All pounds, shelters, rescues and rehoming groups must comply with relevant species-specific Codes of Welfare. Those with physical facilities must also comply with the Code of Welfare: Temporary Housing of Companion Animals. Animal pounds, shelters, rescues and rehoming groups are not currently subject to routine inspection.

SPCA advocates that pounds, shelters, rescues and other rehoming groups continually work to reduce length of stay.

SPCA advocates for the collection of accurate and comprehensive national data on the number of animals requiring and receiving support from shelters, rescues and rehoming groups on an annual basis.

This data is critical in understanding the numbers of at-risk animals in New Zealand communities. The establishment of a national database is required to facilitate standardised data collection amongst shelter, rescue and rehoming organisations in New Zealand, which can be used to measure the impact of animal welfare interventions and build community support.

SPCA supports community sheltering and rehoming initiatives that prioritise the provision of services that help keep people and animals together and keep animals within communities. This model frees up resources which can be redirected towards essential preventative work (such as desexing programmes).

SPCA supports rehoming events and initiatives which remove adoption barriers without compromising animal welfare.

Initiatives such as adoption days, fee-reduced and fee-waived adoptions, evening and weekend adoptions, adoption appointments have all been proven to increase adoptions while safeguarding animal welfare.