You came to Sabah for the islands, wildlife and food. But perhaps you have an afternoon — or a few weeks — to spare.
Your Sabah trip can leave behind more than footprints. Spend a morning walking rescue dogs, help clean a shelter, donate a bag of food or simply lend an extra pair of hands.
Sabah is famous for its wildlife. We fly here hoping to see orangutans, pygmy elephants, hornbills and perhaps a sun bear.
But away from the forests and wildlife reserves, there is another group of animals that depends heavily on people who care: Sabah’s abandoned dogs and cats.
Across the state, independent rescuers, shelters and animal welfare organisations spend their days feeding strays, treating injured animals, running neutering programmes and finding homes for animals that would otherwise remain on the streets.
For travellers looking for a different way to experience Sabah, consider setting aside a few hours of your holiday to help.
It isn’t glamorous. You may be washing bowls, cleaning kennels or getting covered in dog hair.
But it might become one of the days you remember most.
Important: Most of these organisations are run by small teams or volunteers. They are not tourist attractions and may not accept walk-in visitors every day. Always contact the organisation beforehand and ask what help they currently need.
1. ALIR Shelter
Area: Greater Kota Kinabalu / Sabah
Best for: Hands-on animal lovers, donations and helping a large independent shelter
ALIR — Animal Lovers Independent Rescuer — is one of Sabah’s long-running independent animal rescue efforts.
Operating since 2009, the no-kill shelter takes in animals that have been abandoned, injured, neglected or abused. In March 2026, ALIR reported that it was caring for more than 300 rescued animals, which gives some idea of the daily amount of food, cleaning and care involved.
This is the kind of place where practical help matters.
Travellers can contact ALIR and ask whether they currently need help at the shelter. If volunteering isn’t possible during your visit, buying rice, dog food or cat food for the shelter is another very direct way to contribute.
How you can help
Ask about:
- Shelter cleaning and general assistance
- Feeding and caring for rescued animals
- Donating dog or cat food
- Buying rice through their nominated supplier
- Contributing towards veterinary care
- Sharing animals that need adoption
Get in touch
WhatsApp: +60 16-842 0421
Email: alir.sabah@gmail.com
Online: ALIR Shelter blog and its linked Facebook/Instagram pages
BAH tip: Don’t assume you need to make a large donation. ALIR has specifically highlighted how even small contributions add up when hundreds of animals need feeding every day.
2. Shelter of Hope
Location: Kampung Tuavon, Penampang
Best for: Travellers staying around Kota Kinabalu who want to support an independent shelter
Hidden away in Penampang is Shelter of Hope, a home-grown rescue effort run by animal rescuer Adrienne Godfrey Johniu.
For more than a decade, the shelter has taken in stray, injured and abandoned dogs and cats, providing treatment and somewhere safe for them to recover. The shelter has previously appealed for volunteers and public assistance with food and supplies.
This is very much grassroots animal welfare. That also means visitors shouldn’t simply arrive expecting a scheduled volunteering programme.
Contact Adrienne first, introduce yourself and ask what would genuinely be useful that week.
How you can help
Depending on the shelter’s current needs:
- Help with cleaning and general shelter work
- Spend time with rescued animals
- Donate dry dog or cat food
- Donate rice and other supplies
- Help raise funds
- Share adoption appeals
Get in touch
Phone/WhatsApp: +60 16-842 9598
Address: Kampung Tuavon, Penampang, Sabah
The contact number and location continue to be listed for the shelter.
BAH tip: Penampang is close enough to Kota Kinabalu to make this a meaningful half-day addition to your itinerary rather than a major detour.
3. SPCA Kota Kinabalu
Location: Papar
Best for: Travellers looking for a more established volunteering programme
SPCA KK Rehabilitation And Adoption Centre is one of the easiest places on this list for travellers to understand exactly how they might help because SPCA KK publishes an actual volunteer wish list.
And it isn’t limited to animal handling.
Volunteers are needed for housekeeping, kennel cleaning, gardening, maintenance, animal grooming and dog walking. People with other skills can also contribute through photography, writing, graphic design, events and educational work.
That makes this particularly interesting for long-term travellers and digital nomads. Your useful contribution might be taking good adoption photographs rather than cleaning kennels.
How you can help
- Walk dogs
- Groom animals
- Clean kennels and equipment
- Help with gardening and maintenance
- Photograph animals awaiting adoption
- Help write stories and publicity material
- Support fundraising events
- Assist with animal transportation or rescues, where appropriate
Get in touch
Phone/WhatsApp: +60 19-880 9660
Email: info@spcakk.org
SPCA KK volunteering information
SPCA KK specifically asks prospective volunteers to call or email and explain how they would like to help.
4. SPCA Sandakan
Location: Sandakan
Best for: Travellers heading to Sepilok or the Kinabatangan region
If your Sabah itinerary takes you east to Sandakan, consider making room for SPCA Sandakan.
The shelter has been dealing with serious infrastructure and overcrowding challenges. International animal welfare organisation IAPWA has been working with SPCA Sandakan on a multi-phase programme covering clean-up, neutering, vaccination and improvements to its facilities.
For visitors, that makes this a place where it is especially important to ask what is needed rather than assume.
Sometimes money for veterinary treatment may be more useful than another pair of hands.
How you can help
Contact the shelter about:
- Current volunteer needs
- Cleaning or shelter maintenance
- Animal food and supplies
- Fundraising
- Veterinary and vaccination support
- Sharing adoption and fundraising appeals
Get in touch
Phone: +60 10-227 8911
Email: spcasdk@gmail.com
These details are also listed in SPCA KK’s Sabah animal welfare directory.
BAH tip: If you’re already travelling through Sandakan for Sepilok or Kinabatangan, ask whether there is something useful you can deliver or contribute while you’re in town.
5. SPCA Tawau
Location: Tawau
Best for: Travellers beginning or ending a Semporna trip in Tawau
Many visitors treat Tawau simply as the airport gateway to Semporna.
But if you have a spare day before or after the islands, you could use part of it to connect with SPCA Tawau.
The organisation is one of Sabah’s registered animal welfare societies and works with animals in the Tawau area.
Rather than arriving unannounced, contact the group and ask whether volunteers are currently required and what supplies are most useful.
How you can help
Ask about:
- Shelter or animal-care volunteering
- Food donations
- Veterinary expenses
- Adoption and fostering campaigns
- Fundraising
- Transport assistance
Get in touch
Phone: +60 16-826 6465
Alternative contacts: +60 11-1543 2993 / +60 16-830 6742
Email: spcatawau@yahoo.com.my
BAH tip: Heading from Tawau to Semporna? Contact them before your trip. Something as simple as buying requested supplies locally can be useful if hands-on volunteering isn’t available.
6. SPCA Lahad Datu
Location: Lahad Datu
Best for: Travellers passing through Sabah’s east coast
Lahad Datu is better known to travellers as a jumping-off point for places such as Danum Valley.
But the district has its own animal welfare community too.
SPCA Lahad Datu is another registered Sabah animal welfare society working to assist animals in need.
Short-term visitors should contact the organisation before arriving and ask whether they need physical help, food, transport assistance or financial contributions towards veterinary treatment.
How you can help
- Ask about current volunteer work
- Donate food or supplies
- Support veterinary treatment
- Assist fundraising and awareness work
- Share adoption appeals
Get in touch
Phone: +60 16-802 3877
Email: spca_lahaddatu@hotmail.com
BAH tip: Even when a shelter cannot accommodate a one-day volunteer, buying exactly what it needs locally is still giving back.
7. IAPWA Sabah
Location: Kota Kinabalu / projects across Sabah
Best for: Travellers interested in the bigger issue of Sabah’s stray population
IAPWA – Independent Aid for Protection & Welfare of Animals (Sabah） takes a slightly different approach.
Rather than simply sheltering animals, much of its work tackles the wider causes behind Sabah’s stray dog and cat population.
IAPWA has worked in Sabah since shortly after the international charity was established in 2009. Its work in Borneo has included neutering, vaccinations and veterinary care for more than 12,000 dogs and cats, community outreach, rescue support and animal welfare education.
It is also developing a new Borneo Animal Welfare Centre and supporting major improvements at SPCA Sandakan.
How you can help
Ask about:
- Current Sabah volunteering opportunities
- TNR and community programmes
- Fundraising
- Animal welfare campaigns
- Donations towards veterinary work
- Supporting the Borneo Animal Welfare Centre project
Get in touch
Email: iapwasabah@gmail.com
Sabah contact listed by the state animal welfare guide: +60 11-2669 5493
8. Borneo Animal Welfare Society Sabah — BAWSS
Location: Sabah
Best for: Travellers interested in rescue, fostering, TNR and community animal welfare
Borneo Animal Welfare Society Sabah, or BAWSS, works on animal welfare beyond simply providing shelter.
Its activities have included rescue, improving animal welfare, education and efforts to reduce stray populations. The organisation has also stepped in during emergencies — including helping Shelter of Hope evacuate dogs during serious flooding in Penampang.
Volunteers may be able to contribute through animal care, rescue support, education or special initiatives, depending on what the organisation is working on at the time.
How you can help
- Ask about volunteer opportunities
- Support animal rescue work
- Foster or adopt if you’re a Sabah resident
- Donate towards medical treatment
- Help with education and awareness
- Share rescue and adoption posts
Get in touch
Email: animalwelfareunit@gmail.com
Look for Borneo Animal Welfare Society Sabah / BAWSS on Facebook and Instagram for current activities.
9. Sabah TNR
Location: Sabah
Best for: Travellers who want to understand humane stray-population management
Not every animal welfare organisation needs to operate a huge shelter.
Sabah TNR focuses on something less visible but enormously important: Trap, Neuter and Release.
The organisation supports TNR for stray dogs and cats while providing vaccinations, veterinary treatment, food and shelter, and finding homes for animals suitable for adoption. It also works on education and responsible pet ownership.
For travellers interested in animal welfare, learning about TNR offers a useful perspective on why simply rescuing individual animals cannot solve the stray problem by itself.
How you can help
Sabah TNR welcomes volunteers, although its website notes that opportunities for international volunteers should be discussed directly with the organisation.
You could potentially help through:
- Volunteer activities when available
- Fundraising
- Sponsoring neutering
- Supporting veterinary treatment
- Awareness and education
- Donations
Get in touch
Use the volunteer contact form and mention that you’re visiting Sabah, where you’ll be staying and how much time you can offer.
10. FAIR — Funding for Animals & Independent Rescues
Location: Kota Kinabalu area
Best for: Travellers wanting to support independent rescuers and animal welfare advocacy
FAIR — Funding for Animals & Independent Rescues — is part of Sabah’s wider network of people advocating for animals that don’t have anyone else looking out for them.
The organisation has been involved in animal welfare and cruelty cases in Sabah for years and remains active: FAIR President Shirley Khong was publicly speaking out against animal cruelty in Sabah in 2026.
FAIR is better thought of as an animal welfare and rescue group rather than a conventional tourist-accessible shelter, so contact them first to find out where help is needed.
How you can help
Ask about:
- Current rescue cases
- Volunteer needs
- Veterinary fundraising
- Food or supply requirements
- Helping independent rescuers
- Animal welfare awareness
Get in touch
Phone/WhatsApp: +60 16-842 9595
You Don’t Need a Whole Day to Make a Difference
Volunteering while travelling doesn’t have to mean sacrificing an entire day of your Sabah holiday.
Sometimes a shelter needs two hours of cleaning. Sometimes it needs someone to photograph five dogs waiting for adoption. Sometimes what it really needs is RM50 worth of dog food.
And sometimes the most useful thing you can do is simply share an adoption appeal with people who might never otherwise see it.
Before visiting any shelter, send them a message:
“Hi, I’m visiting Sabah and would love to spend a few hours helping while I’m here. Do you currently accept short-term volunteers, and what would be most useful for me to help with?”
Then listen to what they actually need.
A Few Things to Remember Before You Volunteer
Animal shelters are working spaces, not petting zoos. Wear old clothes and covered shoes, expect mud, fur and smells, and don’t handle animals without permission.
Most importantly, never arrive unannounced. Small rescue groups may have limited manpower and hosting a visitor can actually create more work if they aren’t prepared.
If they say they don’t need volunteers that day, ask a better question:
“What can I bring?”
A bag of rice. Dog food. Cat litter. Cleaning supplies. A contribution towards one vaccination.
It doesn’t have to be complicated.
Travel Sabah. Leave Something Good Behind.
We often talk about responsible travel in terms of what we shouldn’t do — don’t litter, don’t disturb wildlife, don’t damage coral, don’t disrespect local communities.
But responsible travel can also be about what we choose to add.
An afternoon of our time. A bag of food. A little money towards a vet bill.
Or simply some kindness for an animal that has had very little of it.
So somewhere between the mountain, the islands, the wildlife and the sunsets, perhaps leave a few hours free.
Sabah’s four-legged residents wouldn’t mind having you around.
Contact details and volunteer arrangements can change. BAH Discover recommends contacting each organisation directly before visiting and confirming its latest volunteering requirements, location and operating arrangements.
