About and Goals

What is Have-a-Heart?

Have-a-Heart is a registered non-profit organisation (21/2014/0378), working across Namibia, with the ethos of ‘saving lives through sterilisation’.

Our main aim is to provide free dog and cat spay and neuter services to pet owners with low or no income. Our goal is the ultimate, sustainable aim of reducing the number of stray animals thus eliminating the need for mass-euthanasia, whilst improving the health and welfare status of township dogs and cats.

Every dog and cat sterilised by Have-a-Heart also receives full vaccination and internal and external parasite control treatment, bringing direct health benefits to dogs and cats themselves as well as the human communities and local wildlife populations.

How are we currently funded? Have-a-Heart Namibia is a non-profit organisation, meaning we are to 100 % reliant on donations to carry out our work.

How does Have-a-Heart operate? Have-a-Heart Namibia has partnered up with several veterinary clinics as well as the one and only mobile clinic in Namibia. We work together with the vets available and organise spay and neuter for dogs and cats, depending on availability of the vets and funds. 

Why is Have-a-Heart the best placed organisation to carry out this work and what experience do we have? Have-a-Heart is the only registered organisation in Namibia carrying out mass sterilisation in townships, and is already well known and established in the country with a proven track record of success.

How much experience do you have? Our teams have been working with low and no income families since 2013, and know well the challenges of working in townships and rural settlements in Namibia. The teams are well experienced and practiced in communicating the benefits of our work to pet owners and answering any questions they may have regarding sterilisation and vaccination. 

There are currently no other registered organisations providing large scale spay and neuter services in Namibia. However, we have good relationships with local SPCAs, for example in Swakopmund the SPCA recognise that spay and neuter is the only long-term solution to reduce the number of animals in SPCA’s and is working closely with Have a Heart. Additionally we have a number of support letters from local conservation groups who recognise the benefits of sterilisation and vaccination to Namibia’s wildlife populations.