Eco Hvar

Dog Rescues: How It All Began

Published in Animals

The story of how I became involved in animal rescue on the island, and why ECO HVAR for Animals came into being.

Eco Hvar for Animals Eco Hvar for Animals Vivian Grisogono

It all started in September 2004 with Babe, the dog who should have been a rose. My Croatian isn't that good, despite my being a member of Dalmatia's oldest surviving noble family. But it wasn't due to linguistic failings that I set out to buy a rose and came back with a black labrador called Babe. The scorn that was heaped on me for my poor grasp of the language after this incident was unjust. No, I wasn't looking for a dog-rose. And rescuing Babe wasn't all my fault either. 

It happened like this: my distant relative Igor Skelin runs Jelsa's garden centre, a place where one could buy plants, including roses, but not dogs. Babe belonged to Branko, one of Igor’s staff, and was generally to be found in the hot-house sitting quietly under the table or wandering around, causing no trouble to anyone. She was a beautiful, nicely mannered and contented dog, as labradors tend to be.

babe-may-05

On this particular Saturday morning she was sitting under the table looking unusually morose. No sign of Branko, so I asked after him. Igor told me that he was very ill in hospital, and had asked Igor to find Babe a good home or have her put down. Babe had been in the care of one of Branko’s relatives, but had run off and gone missing for several days. Today she had reappeared at the garden centre, totally unexpectedly.

The news was a shock. I digested it for a few moments. I had a sense of some inescapable destiny. I looked at my brother, another Branko. He looked at me. Dog-lovers both, the pulling on heart-strings was almost audible. We had a short silent consultation, and he willed me forward. Easy enough for him, he would be leaving shortly for the UK, leaving me holding the Babe. “Well,” I said slowly, “If you really can’t find her a home, let me know, perhaps I…” Igor was on the case like a shot. Announcing that there was no chance of anyone else taking her on, he opened the car door and Babe hopped inside.

Roses were forgotten and we headed off home. I was musing, rather late in the day, on whether Babe would fit in. I had brought with me two dogs from the UK when I had relocated to Dalmatia earlier in 2004. They were both females, and used to having their territory to themselves. How would they take to the new arrival? Would they fight? And what’s more, one was called Beba, there could be a confusion of identities. The chain of command would be difficult to maintain. Oh dear. My low spirits sank another notch when Bella and Beba greeted our arrival with resounding hostile barking.

To my surprise, all went well. The barking subsided when the two realized Babe was coming in. Babe entered, there were introductions all round, tails wagged, and she settled in without a hitch. Perhaps Bella and Beba recognized a kindred spirit, as their mother Connie was a labrador, albeit golden rather than black. Babe lived on happily for several years in Pitve, and eventually died naturally and peacefully in her sleep. Happily her former owner Branko recovered from his illness and returned to the island, although he was unable to take Babe back.

So began the influx of canine intruders into our peaceful home in Pitve. And, yes, my Croatian has improved in the interim. No, I have not set out to buy a rose since. But every year there are homeless or unwanted dogs wandering around the island, and I have taken in as many of them as I could manage at any given time. Sadly, I have been forced to leave even more to their fate.

 

There are just too many unwanted dogs being born on the island, or in some cases being brought here. There is no organization on the island responsible for caring for these poor animals. It seems this is a problem throughout Dalmatia. The obvious thing to do was to establish a framework in order to carry out projects which would address the problems. This is how ECO HVAR for Animals, now a registered charity, was born.

© Vivian Grisogono 2013

UPDATE 2024. Over the intervening years, the situation has improved. Tthere is still no Animal Shelter for unwanted dogs or cats on the island, so we are very limited in what we can do. However, the revised Law on Animal Protection (Zakon o zaštiti životinja NN 102 /2017) which came into force in October 2017 has made a difference: local authorities are now obliged to take greater action for animal welfare. This has helped the work of Charities like ours. In particular, we have benefited from the excellent services provided by the Bestie Foundation which is responsible for the Animalis Centrum Animal Shelter in Kaštel Sućurac. Much remains to be done, so please support us, in whatever way you can!

HELP IS ALWAYS NEEDED!

The Bestie Foundation for the Protection of Animals has proved essential for our work of helping animals in need on Hvar, and of course they serve a very wide area across the Split-Dalmatia County. This is a special appeal in aid of the Foundation:

Twelve good reasons to help the Bestie Animal Protection Foundation

HELP THE BESTIE ANIMAL PROTECTION FOUNDATION

PLEASE DONATE!

Details for donations:

Via the bank:
Zaklada Bestie
Kukuljevićeva 1, 21000 Split
Otp banka
IBAN: HR9324070001100371229
SWIFT: OTPVHR2X

Paypal donate button: https://www.paypal.me/ZakladaBestie

 

 

Related items

back to top
You are here: Home about animals Animals Dog Rescues: How It All Began

Eco Environment News feeds

  • Reaching net zero by 2050 ‘cheaper for UK than one fossil fuel crisis’

    Climate change committee finds move to renewable energy would also bring health, economic and security benefits

    Achieving the UK’s net zero target by 2050 will cost less than a single oil shock and bring health and economic benefits while insulating the country against future costs, the government’s climate advisers have forecast.

    Eliminating the UK’s reliance on fossil fuels by adopting renewable energy and green technologies, such as electric vehicles and heat pumps, would be the best and most cost-effective option for the future economy, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) found.

    Continue reading...

  • ‘The last frontier’: how red globules of nickel ore are suffocating an island’s precious wilderness

    In the race to meet the demands of the energy transition, biodiversity hotspots such as Palawan in the Philippines are being increasingly mined for critical elements

    Moharen Tahil Tambiling lowers himself from the fishing boat into the water and gingerly picks his way over the reef circling the bay. At low tide here in Brooke’s Point on Palawan, a long, rugged island in the south-west of the Philippines archipelago, the coral is just under the surface, and it looms suddenly under the waves, scraping at the boat’s wooden hull.

    Beneath his feet are brain-like mounds and curling fingers of coral. Leaning over the side of the fishing boat, the men point out different kinds: some which were once vibrant orange and others that should be delicate pink. Now, almost everything is the same dull khaki, covered by a thick film of silt. Another man jumps overboard, stirring the sediment. A cloud rises like thick smoke over the reef.

    Continue reading...

  • ‘Severe water stress’: why desalination plants are the Gulf’s greatest weakness

    Recent attack on plants led to fears of escalating strikes, but Iran knows drought has left it equally vulnerable

    In 1983, the CIA determined that the most crucial commodity in the Gulf was its desalinated potable water.

    Although the loss of a single plant could be handled, “successful attacks on several plants in the most dependent countries could generate a national crisis that could lead to panic flights from the country and civil unrest”. And the greatest threat to the region’s water supply? “Iran.”

    Continue reading...

  • Country diary: Primroses turn a churchyard buttery yellow, heralding spring | Sarah Lambert

    Bainton, Cambridgeshire: Villagers gather each year on Palm Sunday to celebrate these scented flowers

    Beside the lichen-encrusted churchyard wall, a robin sings from the dark heart of a yew, its clear notes rising above the gruff calls of nesting rooks. Along the path, a bank of buttery primroses glows beside the bright stars of lesser celandine, offering early forage to the first pollen-dusted solitary bee. Across the gravestones, small points of colour are beginning to appear. St Mary’s churchyard stirs in readiness for the annual Bainton primrose festival, when villagers gather on Palm Sunday to celebrate this quiet herald of spring.

    The primrose has long symbolised renewal. In earlier times, landowners would open their woods on Good Friday so that parishioners could gather the scented flowers for Easter decorations. Here in Bainton, their abundance owes much to a thoughtful former churchwarden who delayed mowing until early June, allowing the plants to set and shed seed. Since then, primroses have spread beyond the churchyard and on to the verges of this Fen‑edge village.

    Continue reading...

  • This is the story of Weda Bay – and how nature is being sacrificed for mining

    Analysis has found more than 3,000 mining operations within the most naturally precious areas of the planet, a much bigger footprint than previously thought

    Weda Bay is just one example of a global trend that could see the mining industry expand into some of Earth’s last areas of wilderness in search of minerals and materials to feed the global economy.

    Analysis produced for the Guardian by a group of academic researchers found more than 3,267 mining operations within key biodiversity areas (KBAs), accounting for nearly 5% of the mining sector’s global footprint. China, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico top the rankings for total surface mining area within key biodiversity areas, the most naturally precious areas of the planet.

    Continue reading...

  • ‘When I leave, part of me stays’: why Scarborough’s youth won’t turn their backs on the seaside town they love

    Hemmed in by the sea and poor transport links, many young people from the Yorkshire town feel trapped, but there is also a pride in the area

    It’s the morning after a wet and stormy day in the Yorkshire seaside town of Scarborough. The waves, which the previous day had been crashing dramatically on the harbour walls, have calmed and a few brave souls have entered the water with surfboards. There is a man throwing a ball for his dog on the beach and a kayaker bobbing on the waves.

    Just up from the seafront in the centre of town, Jack and Charlie, both 17, are leaning forward listening to a story from 19-year-old Keane about his recent visit to a drama school in London, where he is hoping to apply for a place on an actor training course once he has saved enough money.

    Scarborough, on the North Yorkshire coast, was one of England’s first seaside resorts

    Continue reading...

  • Ultrasound repellers could keep hedgehogs off roads, scientists hope

    Study shows animals hear very high frequencies, making it possible to design a deterrent to cut deaths

    Hedgehogs have been discovered to hear high-frequency ultrasound, raising hopes that they could be deterred from dangerous roads with ultrasound repellers.

    Vehicles are estimated to kill up to one in three hedgehogs, a big factor in the much-loved mammal’s drastic decline across Europe over recent decades.

    Continue reading...

  • March for Romans was a time to sow conflict as well as crops

    Rome did not only organise its agriculture in tune with the rhythm of the seasons, it also fought its wars that way

    March is named for the Roman god Mars. He was among other things the god of agriculture, and the month was marked by ceremonies to protect new crops from bad weather.

    Mars was the god of war too, and better weather also meant the start of the campaigning season. The roles sometimes merged. In one of the oldest Roman ceremonies, the “leaping priests” of Mars, 12 young men from noble families would dress as ancient warriors and parade around the city singing in an archaic form of Latin for a good beginning to the planting season.

    Continue reading...

  • Harold ‘the Kangaroo’ Thornton: the extraordinary, forgotten life of the ‘greatest genius who ever lived’

    The Australian artist was a relentless self-promoter, prolific painter and pro wrestler. He loved a tall tale – but his true story was remarkable

    If you checked out the Archibald prize finalists back in 1983, one painting in particular might have caught your eye. Taking up seven feet of wall space, Dr Brown and Green Old Time Waltz is a psychedelic portrait of Bob Brown, rendered in rich colours and filled with hidden details: from faces smuggled into the trees to little green men walking around Brown’s feet.

    But just as noteworthy as the painting was the man standing next to it. Clad in hand-painted clothes, with painted false teeth in his mouth and a walking stick he didn’t really need in his hand, stood Harold “the Kangaroo” Thornton, the artist and self-described “greatest genius that ever lived”.

    Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning

    Continue reading...

  • Peak interest: Toronto’s snow mountains that refuse to melt are a toxic hazard

    Reaching up to 100ft, these massive piles contain tonnes of salt that keep roads clear – but pose environmental risks

    Most mountains take tens of millions of years to form. Toronto’s newest mountain took just days.

    Towering atop the crowns of evergreens, it has no skeleton of limestone or granite. There are no spires, cornices or headwalls. It is simply piles upon piles of snow, mixed with a toxic cocktail of road salt, antifreeze, oil, coffee cups and lost keys. It is the final resting place for the forces of nature that have battered the city in recent weeks – and a daunting environmental hazard.

    Continue reading...

Eco Health News feeds

Eco Nature News feeds

Copyright © 2026 Eco Hvar. All Rights Reserved. Developed by Orion Informatika.