EDUCATION is the key to preventing cruelty, whether it is with one-to-one teaching, workshopping, training, on-site counselling or distribution of audio, video or printed materials.

It is the policy of the NSPCA to educate (where applicable) in preference to prosecuting. Unfortunately, there are some instances where cruelty is so deliberate or at such a level that prosecution has to take place immediately.

However, with the now clearly demonstrated link between unchecked animal cruelty at an early age to violence in adult criminals (research undertaken in the USA and the UK shows that all serial and school killers have at some stage in their youth been deliberately cruel to animals), sensitising people to animals and responsible ownership, will also lead people to being more sensitive to their fellow man.

The NSPCA Education Department provides material to all the operational units as well as to the 96 member SPCAs throughout South Africa for distribution to people in city and rural areas. A great deal of the material is pictorial as well as being textual so that readers, who may not have had the benefits of very high education, can understand it.

While we cannot quantify the number of animals that will have been helped by the distribution of materials, or even the number of people who read each pamphlet distributed, we can at least be sure of one thing - each animal that has its life and health improved as a result of the distribution, display and interactive use of educational material is another step in the right direction of achieving a sensitised, caring society.