Build a Shelter REST API

This guided project builds a JSON API for an animal shelter. The API exposes cats, dogs, bunnies, and birds, supports filtering, validates writes, returns consistent errors, and keeps the implementation outside CorianderCore.

What you will build

• GET /api/shelter/animals lists animals with filters for species, shelter, status, age, and search text.
• GET /api/shelter/animals/{id} returns one animal.
• POST /api/shelter/animals creates an animal.
• PATCH /api/shelter/animals/{id} updates an animal.
• DELETE /api/shelter/animals/{id} marks an animal as archived.
• GET /api/shelter/species lists cats, dogs, bunnies, and birds.
• GET /api/shelter/shelters lists shelter locations.

Project shape

The project is intentionally split by responsibility:

• Routes only describe HTTP paths and methods.
• Controllers translate requests into service calls and JSON responses.
• Modules contain reusable application logic.
• Database migrations own schema creation and seed data.
• Validation is centralized so create and update routes do not duplicate field rules.

Why this is a good API example

A REST API touches the CorianderPHP pieces developers usually need after the first website: route files, request parsing, JSON responses, database access, service modules, validation, and error formatting. The forum project explains a web app with views and permissions. This project explains an API-first feature.

Database choice

The guide uses SQLite because it is easy to run locally and useful for learning the framework. Repositories use SQLManager::sqlScript() for joins and filtered queries, so the final chapters only need to explain the SQL dialect changes when you move the same schema to MySQL.

Recommended path

Read the steps in order the first time. After that, use the search box for concrete tasks such as "route file", "filter species", "validation", "SQLite", or "JSON error".

When you are unsure where a piece belongs, place it in this API lifecycle:

• Routes define the HTTP contract.
• API controllers read request data and choose the response shape.
• Services own validation, workflow, and business decisions.
• Repositories own SQL.
• ApiJson keeps every response shape consistent.