Partially update a shelter profile

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This operation updates specific fields of an existing shelter record without affecting other data. Use this operation to change shelter operating hours or contact details, pet availability numbers, or edit administrative information without resubmitting the entire shelter profile.

PUT vs PATCH

PUT replaces an entire profile and PATCH only updates the fields provided in the request body. In a PUT request, missing fields set to null or default values. In a PATCH request, fields not present in the request remain unchanged.

Endpoint structure

PATCH /shelters/{id}

Request headers

Header	Value	Required
`Content-Type`	`application/json`	Yes

Authentication

Required - include an API token in the Authorization header:

Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN

Request body

Only include fields that need updating. Omitted fields remain unchanged.

Property	Type	Description	Value Format
`name`	string	Shelter’s name	Any text
`address`	string	Shelter’s location information	Any text
`phone`	string	Shelter’s phone number	E.164 format: “+1-XXX-XXX-XXXX”
`email`	string	Shelter’s email address	Any text
`hours`	string	Shelter’s hours of operation	Any text
`available_pet_count`	integer	Shelter’s available pets	Numeric value
`adoption_fee_range`	string	Shelter’s fee range	United States Dollars
`id`	integer	Shelter’s unique identifier	Auto-generated, read-only

cURL request

# Update values in the shelter profile with `id`= 1
# Recommended base_url = http://localhost:3000
curl -X PATCH {base_url}/shelters/1 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pawfinder-secret-2025" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ 
          "available_pet_count": 20 
      } 

Success response `200`

Returns the entire shelter profile object:

{
  "name": "Dallas Animal Services",
  "address": "1818 N Westmoreland Rd, Dallas, TX 75212",
  "phone": "+1-214-671-0249",
  "email": "info@dallasanimalservices.org",
  "hours": "Mon-Sat 11:00-18:00",
  "available_pet_count": 20,
  "adoption_fee_range": "75-200",
  "id": 1
}

Error responses

Code	Scenario	Response
`400`	Invalid field values	`{ "error": "Bad Request", "message": "Invalid value for 'adoption_fee_range'. Must be in USD.", ... }`
`401`	Missing API token	`{ "error": "Unauthorized", "message": "Authentication token is required for this operation.", ... }`
`403`	Invalid API token	`{ "error": "Forbidden", "message": "Invalid or expired authentication token.", ...}`
`404`	No matching `id`	`{ "error": "Not Found", "message": "Shelter with 'id' 1 not found.", ...}`

PawFinder Service API