A Romanian dog shelter renowned for its progressive approach to animal welfare has welcomed a recent announcement that all dogs entering the UK must undergo mandatory testing for a rare disease.
The new regulation, announced by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra), requires testing for Brucella canis on every dog coming into the country from abroad. It has been warmly welcomed by the Speranța Shelter in Bucharest, which provides a home to around 500 rescued dogs.
With the latest statistics showing more than 30,000* Romanian dogs have been given new homes in the UK, the team at Speranța said the announcement highlighted a critical issue for imported dogs.
It also reinforces the shelter’s own unique mission: to tackle the stray dog crisis at its source within Romania – a country which, according to estimates from animal welfare groups, has a stray population of between 500,000 to one million dogs.
Anca Tomescu, the internationally renowned veterinary surgeon who leads Speranța, said:
“While international adoption can be a wonderful path for some dogs, our philosophy is different and when rehoming we encourage responsible ownership within Romania.
Many of our dogs have endured significant trauma or are large breeds which thrive best in the secure, sanctuary environment we have meticulously created here. Our mission is to rescue, rehabilitate and educate until every dog in Romania has a loving, safe place to call home.
While we have very occasionally rehomed dogs abroad, where appropriate, our main connection to the UK is via our innovative ‘remote adoption’ programme, in which people can sponsor a specific dog, covering its food, care and medical costs, while the dog remains in its familiar sanctuary home until it gets adopted.
Our remote adopters get a real sense of purpose and love from the bonds they are able to form with their chosen dog here at Speranța and, in turn, we do not impact on any health issues which dogs entering the UK may carry.
With this in mind, we wholeheartedly welcome this recent announcement by Defra regarding Brucella canis testing, which is something we can carry out in minutes on-site here at Speranța.
It is imperative that when dogs are introduced to a new country such as the UK, robust health checks are carried out and owners do in-depth research. We support this new regulation and hope it will go some way to controlling and preventing the spread of serious illnesses.
Reputable organisations will always work with their vets to ensure they conduct thorough health checks, including for Brucella canis, however, if anyone is in any doubt we would recommend looking for shelters or organisations which are members of the Association of Dogs and Cats Homes (ADCH).”
Founded in 1996 by Anca’s mother, Speranța – which translates to hope – is far more than a refuge.
Its dedicated veterinary team performs on-site procedures, diagnostic tests, physiotherapy, and behavioural rehabilitation for many of its residents, all of whom have been rescued from either so-called ‘kill shelters’ elsewhere in Romania or from life on the streets as uncared-for stray or homeless dogs.
One such case was Domnița (translated to ‘Lady’ in English), a dog who was almost blind, and her six puppies (pictured above, and with their mother in the video above). They were found earlier this year at a refuse site near Bucharest, living among piles of waste.
Anca said:
“The Speranța team intervened just in time for Domnița and her puppies. We were able to save their lives and preserve Domnița’s remaining eyesight. After providing medical care, both Domnița and her puppies were put up for adoption.
“As often happens, the puppies quickly found families, while Domnița also captured the heart of a Romanian family. She was adopted and now happily runs in the yard with the other dog in the family. Their story inspires us here at Speranța to continue our national sterilisation campaigns, aimed at preventing such heartbreaking situations.”
Speranța Shelter’s work represents a sustainable, humane model for animal welfare in a country with a profound stray companion animal problem. Over the course of 20 years, the shelter has found permanent homes with loving, responsible families for hundreds of dogs.
In a bid to tackle the problem at its root, the team conducts regular large-scale sterilisation campaigns – with more than 100,000 sterilisations of stray dogs and cats carried out across the country to date.
Anca added:
“We know that to really impact the stray dog population in Romania it is not an overnight solution but a long-term project, which is why we engage with organisations and communities to offer these sterilisation campaigns.
“By focusing on high-quality sanctuary care, veterinary excellence, preventative education and treatment until we find permanent homes for them, we at Speranța feel as though we are truly doing things differently to become a home of hope for Romania’s dogs.”