A group of children after taking part in a SAACA colour run, learning about pet health, cancer awareness and responsible animal care through play.

In South Africa, conversations around pet cancer awareness rarely include the animals quietly sharing our homes and our lives. Yet cancer remains one of the leading health concerns affecting pets globally and according to the South African Animal Cancer Association (SAACA), many pet owners are unaware of the signs linked to early cancer detection in pets.

That’s the gap SAACA hopes to close. Founded by CEO Munnik Marais, the non-profit organisation was created after his own dogs were diagnosed with cancer. “There is so little information available about the prevention and symptoms of cancer in animals,” says Marais. “I want more people in South Africa to be educated to become better pet owners.”
Today, SAACA exists to change that through pet health education, veterinary awareness, and a growing national school outreach programme designed to teach children about pet cancer awareness from an early age.

SAACA takes pet cancer awareness into communities through events, education and outreach programmes across South Africa.

Supporting pet cancer awareness 

SAACA is currently one of only a handful of organisations globally dedicated specifically to animal cancer awareness and education. Its aim is to educate South Africans about cancer in animals before preventable suffering occurs. According to Marais, one of the biggest challenges is perception. “People often believe cancer only happens to someone else’s pet,” he explains. 

The organisation aims to educate pet owners on early cancer detection in pets, including recognising changes in appetite, unusual lumps, sores that do not heal, unexplained weight loss, lethargy, or sudden behavioural changes. But SAACA’s work extends far beyond awareness campaigns aimed at adults.

Why children are at the heart of the programme

At the centre of SAACA’s community education programme is a belief that empathy can be taught and that teaching children to care for animals helps build kinder communities overall.

Beginning in 2026, SAACA rolled out a 22-week youth education initiative across 22 schools and early childhood development centres nationwide. Each school visit combines classroom learning with interactive activities designed specifically for young children aged two to six. The sessions focus on:

• Basic pet hygiene
• Shade and sun protection to prevent skin cancer
• Clean water and food bowls
• Grooming and brushing
• Sterilisation awareness
• Understanding pet cancer symptoms
• Respectful animal interaction

Children also participate in colour runs and receive take-home colouring books filled with animal health and care tips. For Marais, the goal is bigger than education alone. “If we can teach children to treat animals with respect, we can help raise people who treat each other with more respect too,” he says.

SAACA co-owner and manager, Willem J. Bronkhorst (left) and SAACA founder and executive director, Munnik Marais (right) at a fundraising event helping to expand pet cancer awareness and education.

Community support making a difference

Already committed to creating Soft Landings for pets and the people who love them, dotsure.co.za stepped in early to help power SAACA’s education drive, contributing R10,000 toward the rollout of the programme and its ongoing outreach effort. 

The long-term vision for SAACA includes the launching of a mobile veterinary unit capable of reaching rural communities with access to qualified veterinary support and pet health education. Fighting cancer in animals isn’t only about treatment. It’s about education, prevention, empathy, and creating a generation of youth who understand that caring for animals is part of caring for each other.

Dotsure Limited (Registration number 2006/000723/06) is a licensed non-life insurer and authorised financial services provider (FSP39925). Voted South Africa’s Best Pet Insurance 2023-2025 by readers of The Star, Die Burger, Beeld, and City Press.