11/28/23 All Pets Need a "Forever Home"
On International Pet Day Animal Friends Croatia screen a moving documentary
- 30th November, 6pm, Zagreb: Movie screening to be attended by authors and participants
Although the weather is turning colder, the number of abandoned cats and dogs in animal shelters and animal group care is not going down! Thus, on International Pet Day, the 30th of November at 6 pm, Animal Friends Croatia is organizing a free screening of a touching movie, „Home Forever,” at their headquarters on 25 Juri¹iæeva Street.
The documentary, directed by Mirta Mataija and Goran Zaborac, follows three volunteers, Aleksandra Ple¹a, Diana Primo¾iæ and Nina Rosiæ who have devoted their lives to sheltering and home placement of abandoned dogs. Aleksandra works with a dog shelter in Utinja from which she has taken over and found a new home for “hundreds and hundreds of dogs.” Diana’s devotion to animals is best described by a simple question about when she finds time to sleep. Nina volunteers at an abandoned animal shelter in Crikvenica, having led a major animal rescue project in Banovina in the aftermath of the earthquake. Authors and participants in the movie will also attend the screening of this heart-warming documentary. The screening is open to the public with free entry.
International Pet Day is celebrated around the world as a reminder of the need to care responsibly for cats, dogs, rabbits, and other animals with which humans choose to cohabitate. However, Animal Friends Croatia warns, the majority are not lucky enough to be cherished family members as they end up abandoned or left in the care of overcrowded shelters or animal protection groups.
“Pets are not toys or short-lived fun – they are living sentient beings that need to be cared for for 15 to 20 years. Unfortunately, there is still extremely low awareness of this in Croatia. Our group advocates responsible adoption instead of buying a pet. This means no chained dogs, cats and dogs neutered and vaccinated for infectious diseases, and dogs chipped and vaccinated against rabies. Those who have no time, conditions, or financial means to care for an animal should not have one in the first place,” state Animal Friends Croatia.
They point out that Croatian shelters alone care for over 10,000 abandoned animals a year, which shows how easily pets are “distributed” and “gifted” like consumer goods, instead of being thoughtfully adopted. On the occasion of International Pet Day, the group invites the public to consider if they meet the conditions for adopting a cat or a dog, and if they have already adopted one, to share social network posts on animals looking to be rehomed. Furthermore, they can be of assistance by walking sheltered dogs, sponsoring them, or taking them into foster care temporarily.
“We hope that volunteers’ devotion depicted in Forever Home will inspire others to make the world a better place for animals. Amazing animals of all ages, sizes, colors, and personalities, neutered and vet-checked, are currently awaiting their forever home while in the care of shelters and animal protection groups. As Nina Rosiæ said in the documentary - be the one whose meaning of life is to help animals,” concludes Animal Friends Croatia.
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