When a dog is abandoned in or near human settlements, there is no guarantee of what its ultimate fate will be. Will it survive and find a new, better life? That is our aim when we engage in dog rescue operations. There are procedures for helping stray and unwanted dogs, but the information is not widely publicized, except through organisations like ours.
Wandering around Jelsa, a sorry sight.
A pitiful little waif was left to roam in Jelsa in April 2024, but few people who saw her knew what to do. The dog was in a very bad way. Skin and bones, with stunted, deformed hind legs, very nervous and very lost. She had obviously been badly neglected, most probably cruelly mistreated.
Saved by kindness
After a few days, a kindhearted lady took pity on her and moved the dog to a safe place. Zlatka had no real experience of dogs and indeed has a certain fear of them, but the state of this dog was not a sight she could bear. She asked for help via social media, before finding the details of Eco Hvar and contacting us on Thursday 18th April. We advised her that the first priority was to check whether the dog was microchipped, for which the Town Warden (Komunalni redar) has a chip reader. When it turned out that the dog had no chip, the official asked Zlatka if she could keep her overnight and she would be transferred to the dog shelter the following day.
What the law says
Later on Thursday we checked with the Bestie Animalis Centrum Shelter to see if the necessary arrangements had been made. This rescue shelter in Kaštel Sućurac operates to the highest standards and is the only registered shelter in the Split-Dalmatian County. Jelsa Municipality, like Stari Grad and Hvar Town, has an annual contract with the Bestie Foundation, in accordance with the Animal Protection Law, which states that every regional authority is bound by law to establish an animal rescue shelter housing at least 50 animals on its territory, and to participate in the shelter's running costs, with the participation of all the local authorities (Article 62, items 2 and 3 of the Animal Protection Law - Zakon o zaštiti životinja, NN 102/17, 32/19).
Unexpected hitches
Having discovered that no arrangements had been made, we contacted the Jelsa Town Warden on the Friday morning, to be told that the local vet had just read the dog's chip and found its owner. A quick call to Zlatka revealed that 'her' rescue dog had been with her all the time and had not been seen by the vet. Clearly a second dog had confused the issue! This second dog's story was rather strange: it had run off, and someone had tied it to a tree in a field, where it was found, after which the vet was able to restore it to its owner in a happy outcome.
Now it was time to organise the transfer of Zlatka's waif to the rescue shelter. We obtained a commitment from the Jelsa Municipality Administrator Ivica Keršić that the Council would pay for placing the dog in the shelter, subject to the Mayor's approval. To defray part of the cost, we agreed to take care of the travel costs and to transfer the dog personally. This is our normal procedure. The placement currently costs 550€ per dog. If that sounds expensive, just spare a moment to consider what that fee has to cover: you can get an idea from item 9 in our explanation Twelve good reasons for helping the Bestie Foundation. For orientation, sterilizations are mandatory: on Hvar prices start from 200€ - 250€ depending on the size of the dog, so the placement fee does not go far in a No-Kill shelter where dogs might stay for months or even years! As fewer than half the local authorities in the Split-Dalmatian County fulfil their legal obligation o support the Bestie Foundation financially, it is not surprising that covering costs for the shelter is a constant struggle.
Weekend delay, a further complication
By the time all the necessary steps were completed, the earliest date for transferring the waif was the following Monday. As Zlatka was due to go away for the weekend, an alternative safe place had to be found for the waif. A temporary shelter in Stari Grad was only available until Sunday morning, so on Sunday afternoon, April 21st, she was transferred to Pitve. There, the next day, she met several new friends, Sara, Toma, Susanne and Hans, who all helped to take her to the car for the start of her journey to Split. Toma decided that her name should be Lassie and was delighted to learn that in Scottish parlance that means 'young girl', so it was a perfect fit.
Benefit from delay
It was overall a good thing that Lassie spent a few days on Hvar before embarking on the next stage of her journey. She made visible progress physically through receiving regular, good quality meals. From being fearful of humans at first, she quickly learned that the people around her now wished her well and were intent on helping her. She responded to each new contact with evident trust and warmth. At the same time, changing places and meeting different people meant that she did not become too attached to a single person, which would probably have caused her grief when she had to leave.
Journey to Split
As expected, Lassie was a perfect passenger on the back seat of the car, and good as gold on the ferry ride to Split, sleeping peacefully almost all the way.
In Split harbour we were met by Zvonimir Filipović from the Bestie Foundation, who gave Lassie a typically warm Bestie welcome of cuddles and kisses!
Although she was able to walk, Zvonimir carried her gently to his car, as she was scared of being led on a leash. Then they went on their way to the Bestie Foundation, where Lassie's initial days were spent in medical checks to ascertain her state of health. Our suspicion that she had leishmaniasis was quickly confirmed through testing. It is a fairly common problem on Hvar, with one factor being the widespread use of pesticides, especially herbicides, which impair the immune system in dogs as in humans. Fortunately, the disease can be controlled with appropriate treatment. The Bestie Foundation is working on a detailed instruction sheet for people who are prepared to home dogs which are positive for leishmaniasis.
Heartfelt thanks owed to many people
On Monday 22nd April, Jelsa's Mayor Nikša Peronja kindly confirmed that the Jelsa Municipality would pay for the placement in the shelter. We at Eco Hvar are extremely grateful to all the good people who helped to save Lassie from uncertainty and probable further suffering. We are quietly confident that she will improve physically and find the good loving home she deserves. There is no doubt that her transfer to the Bestie Foundation has given her the best possible chance. Kindness and caring are the hallmarks of the shelter's work with the animals they take in.
Moving on
The point was quickly proven: Lassie attracted widespread sympathy when she was introduced to the animal lovers who follow the Bestie Foundation information outlets on the internet. Very quickly, she was lucky enough to be offered a good, stable home in Zagreb, so entering a new phase in her life's journey. Her future is looking good!
Lassie in Zagreb
Lassie arrived in Zagreb on May 1st, where she was introduced to her new home and her new companion Poppy. Her blood sample meanwhile was sent to the Veterinary Faculty in Zagreb who will provide Lassie with the best possible treatment protocol based on the titre testing results. Judging by the photographs taken on the day of her arrival, she immediately settled in well.
Zagreb report, May 5th 2024.
Wonderful news: Lassie, now known as Lele for short, has definitely fallen (lightly) on her feet! Her new human carers are clearly doing everything right. "She isn't house trained, but we're making a little progress here as well. It doesn't seem any different to how things were with Poppy when we first got her. She's still having the occassional accident, but I'm taking her outside to the park nice and regularly and congratulating her when she pees or poops there. So far, this morning, she's doing well on that front... Walking on the lead has also been nice. On the first day it was difficult, she just didn't really understand it. Taking her out at the same time with Poppy has been useful because Lele follows Poppy.
Importantly, her legs seem to be improving. In the mornings she is a little stiff, but after a good stretch she can walk around perfectly well. In fact we've walked quite a long way and she is fine, so, without pushing her too much, I think it's just a case of building up her muscles. I have some lovely videos of them walking around together outside. Quite a few people have already stoppd us while we are out to ask about her and say how pretty she is. We've been to the dog park here and Lele had a great time - running around, playing, jumping up on other dogs, chasing them!
On May 13th there was a further report confirming Lele's happiness: "just a little update so that you can see that Lele is getting on really well. She's very sociable and loving, enjoying people's company and playing with other dogs. In the last few days she's been to the vets, gone for her first picnic, had some really long walks (now walking very well on the lead), visited friends' houses (usually falling asleep on the sofa).... right now I think she couldn't be happier."
Bestie help: essential for successful dog rescues
Lassie - Lele is the fifth dog we have placed in the Animalis Centrum Shelter this year. The other four were unwanted dogs for which Eco Hvar funded the placements, due to their special circumstances. The Local Authority is only responsible for strays. We are glad to be able to help in these situations, which otherwise might have unhappy outcomes for the dogs. We are eternally grateful to the dedicated people responsible for the Bestie Foundation, without which our dog rescue work would be impossible!
© Vivian Grisogono, April-May 2024.
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