Snoopy, a dog in Khayelitsha, navigates its surroundings, highlighting the importance of the upcoming "67 Kennels of Hope"

This Mandela Day, Give More Than 67 Minutes

FOUR PAWS calls on South Africans to give shelter, food, and care to pets in need

18.6.2025

Cape Town, 18 June 2025 – Building on the success and heartfelt response of the 2024 Mandela Day initiative, global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS is proud to announce the launch of its 2025 Mandela Day campaign '67 Kennels of Hope'. A powerful tribute to Nelson Mandela’s legacy of service, compassion, and dignity. This year, we invite South Africans to go beyond symbolic gestures and make a lasting impact on the lives of animals in need.

In collaboration with Mdzananda Animal Clinic in Khayelitsha, this campaign aims to bring warmth, comfort, and care to 67 beloved pets by providing:

67 dog kennels to protect pets from the elements
Nutritious dog food supplies for well-being and vitality
Dog collars for their safety
Essential tick and flea treatments for continued health

Every recipient animal will be from a home vetted by Mdzananda to ensure they are under the care of responsible pet owners, with up-to-date vaccinations and majority of the pets have been spayed or neutered through the efforts of Mdzananda.

“Working in the heart of the Khayelitsha community, we know the need of animals, especially during winter. One of these is shelter and we are so grateful to FOUR PAWS for partnering with us to provide much-needed kennels to 67 community pets. This will ensure that pets from underprivileged families are kept dry and warm during winter. Even though many people have the opinion that pets aren’t loved in townships, we experience the opposite. People adore their pets; they often just lack education or resources. With this initiative we will be helping people and educating at the same time, ensuring for better pet lives into the future.”

Marcelle Du Plessis, Fundraising & Communications Executive at Mdzananda Animal Clinic

“In the spirit of Madiba, this campaign is about more than giving — it’s about restoring dignity and providing care to animals who mean the world to the families they belong to. By supporting 67 animals this Mandela Day, we honour the unbreakable bond between people and their pets — especially in communities where resources are limited but love is abundant.” Whether you’re an individual, corporate, school, or community group, your 67 minutes can become a gift of comfort, care, and dignity.

Fiona Miles, Director at FOUR PAWS in South Africa

Call to Action

This Mandela Day let’s reinforce the values of respect, empathy, and understanding through collective giving. Together, we can ensure that every pet supported by this campaign receives more than survival — they receive safety, nutrition, and love.

For more information please visit our website www.four-paws.org.za or donate here.

/ENDS

Deidre Daniels

Public Relations Officer

Deidre.Daniels@four-paws.org

+27 (0)21 702 4277

+27 (0)78 675 8220

9B Bell Crescent, Westlake Business Park,
Green Building, Cape Town, 7945

A Public Relations professional with over eight years’ experience in fostering positive relationships between organisations and media.

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FOUR PAWS is the global animal welfare organisation for animals under direct human influence, which reveals suffering, rescues animals in need and protects them. Founded in 1988 in Vienna by Heli Dungler and friends, the organisation advocates for a world where humans treat animals with respect, empathy and understanding. The sustainable campaigns and projects of FOUR PAWS focus on companion animals including stray dogs and cats, farm animals and wild animals – such as bears, big cats and orangutans – kept in inappropriate conditions as well as in disaster and conflict zones. With offices in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Kosovo, the Netherlands, Switzerland, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, the UK, the USA and Vietnam as well as sanctuaries for rescued animals in eleven countries, FOUR PAWS provides rapid help and long-term solutions. www.four-paws.org.za