December is a busy time for animal shelters and welfare organizations—and not just because the need for help increases in winter or because people are more inclined to give. Right after the holidays, shelters also face a wave of “mistaken gifts”—cats and dogs that have been returned to shelters.
That’s why, for this month’s #SidnetDonations, we’re supporting the Kundellos Volunteer Association. The choice was made by Gabriela Walczyk—an experienced developer with expertise in both frontend and backend technologies. Every day, she ensures high code quality using the open‑source tool PHPStan, which is the second project to receive our December donation, following her decision.
PHPStan
PHPStan is a powerful tool that helps developers catch errors in their code before the application even runs. It works by combining smart rules with type analysis, making it easy to spot issues that might otherwise go unnoticed during testing. PHPStan supports gradual adoption—from basic code checks all the way to a high level of strictness. Tools like PHPStan have become standard in the modern PHP ecosystem and are essential for ensuring code stability, clarity, and, most importantly, safety.
In 2024, PHPStan released version 2.0, which adds a new, even higher level of code verification called Level 10, along with improved support for analyzing mixed types. The update also significantly boosts performance, reducing memory usage by up to 70%.
PHPStan is particularly effective in large‑scale projects built on highly dynamic CMSs such as Drupal, where it can be used to analyze entities and data types. But Drupal is just the beginning—PHPStan also offers plugins and extensions for popular frameworks like Symfony, Laravel, and Doctrine, making integration into a wide range of PHP projects seamless.
“In our daily work on code, we often rely on tools that help us maintain the quality, security, and consistency of our projects. One of them is PHPStan—an open‑source project that analyzes code and can catch errors before they reach production. PHPStan was created by Ondřej Mirtes and is supported by an active open‑source community that contributes through testing, fixes, and documentation. Thanks to this tool, we can build more stable and predictable applications, which directly improves the quality of the software we deliver,” explains Gabriela.
Kundellos Volunteer Association
The association unites volunteers in a non‑profit initiative with a primary goal: helping homeless dogs and cats. Their work spans a wide range of activities—from daily tasks like cleaning, grooming, and socializing animals, to participating in social and educational campaigns on adoption, animal rights, and overall animal welfare. The name Kundellos combines the Polish words “kundel” (mutt, a mixed‑breed dog) and “los” (fate or destiny), reflecting the association’s mission of giving homeless and abandoned animals a better fate. Working with animals, while deeply rewarding, can also be demanding and sometimes risky, as volunteers often encounter sick or aggressive animals. The fact that all this is done entirely on a voluntary basis makes it even more admirable.
“The Kundellos Association helps homeless and abused animals—providing treatment, facilitating adoptions, and educating about responsible care. It’s an organization that truly changes the lives of those who cannot ask for help themselves. For me, supporting them is also very personal—five months ago, thanks to Kundellos, a wonderful dog named Perełka (“Little Pearl”) came into my home, and I can’t imagine life without her. I know how much effort the volunteers at Kundellos put in to give other animals the same chance,” says Gabriela.
You can also support the Kundellos Association—whether financially, by giving your time and attention to the animals, offering foster homes, or donating needed supplies.