text: Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (S.P.C.A.) – Rhodesian Study Circle
  The first Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (S.P.C.A.) Centre to be officially registered as a Welfare Organisation in Zimbabwe was Bulawayo in 1967, followed by Kwekwe, Harare and Masvingo in the same year, Mutarein 1968 and Gweru in 1969. The smaller centres followed suit in the early 1970s.
  The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was established in 1969 by Messrs Barrow, Hearsh, Morris, Brierley, Bott, Sobey and Howell, who represented the eight SPCA Centres providing services to animals in Zimbabwe at that time. Over 30 years later, founder member Mr G B Howell, who retired as Chairman of the Mutare SPCA in 2002, is still an active and most respected member of the Society. There are currently 15 active SPCA centers or divisions of ZNSPCA throughout Zimbabwe, with the recent important addition of Beitbridge.
  In 2000, the National Executive Council, which represents all SPCA centers, appointed a National Co-ordinator, Chief Inspector Meryl Harrison to provide liaison between the centers, advise members on correct policy and procedure and most importantly, to provide training to Inspectors for appointment by the Minister of Tourism and the Environment, empowered to enforce the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, the primary objective of the Society. With only 10 Inspectors currently employed throughout Zimbabwe, the training of Inspectors remains the Chief Inspector's priority.
  As the only organisation authorised to rescue the thousands of animals abandoned or affected by ongoing land reforms, the brave and determined Inspectors of ZNSPCA have been a credit to the Society and have received international commendations and awards for their bravery.
  Apart from the rescue work which currently takes up most of the National team's time, Chief Inspector Harrison still manages to find time to deal with the myriad other animal welfare concerns of the Society, such as live animal transportation, intensive farming, wildlife in captivity, improving the conditions of laboratory animals, the introduction of codes of practice for livestock producers, export and translocation of wild animals and ensuring the humane treatment of regulated problem animals. She routinely consults with all the stake-holders connected with these activities and has established the Animal Welfare Forum, a tri-partite group comprising the Chief Inspector of the ZNSPCA, Chief Government Veterinarian and Chairman of the Veterinary Council of Zimbabwe.
  Through the work of the Inspectorate, the Society in Zimbabwe is no longer perceived as an organisation merely concerned with the welfare of 'cats and dogs', but an organisation committed to the prevention of cruelty to animals in all of its manifestations.