Gulden already – “Do you want to be my family?” by Milliyet Those who want to participate in the project can draw their courage from the story of Başak Lola. Başak Lola, 32, entered a completely different world after seeing a dog when she was just a puppy in the Hekimbaşı Stray Animal Care Home in Ümraniye Municipality. Lola adopted the dog and named him “Buddy”. Lola, who has two cats, now also has a dog. While describing the life integration process of Büdü, whom he adopted four months ago, he says he learned a lot from her:
“I worked in the film industry. I study psychology now. I have two cats. And all my life I wanted to have a dog. After quarantine, when I said school, I had free time. When my lifestyle suited living with a dog, I adopted Büdü. I never wanted to buy a dog. I was looking at dog posts on social media pages. I wrote it in all the ads I saw. There was a dog I wanted to adopt, and someone else adopted him. Then officials from Ümraniye Municipality contacted me and asked if I wanted to adopt Büdü. I went to buy it that day. Because I have already decided. He has been with me for four months.
another love
It was winter when I got it. He was constantly coughing. He stayed at the clinic for a week. It came later. He had to take antibiotics for a long time. We bottle-fed. We waited until her vaccinations were finished so she could go out. We both spent a lot of time at home. Now we can socialize. He loves playing with other dogs and meeting people. Owning a dog teaches you a lot. They should definitely own it. It teaches patience first and foremost. It’s so fun to watch him grow. It really is a very different kind of love. It’s always in your mind. You meet people. You start to socialize with other dog owners. I have had many friends since I was adopted. It’s not easy to make friends after 30, but apart from that, people in apartments are more welcoming than before. There are too many dogs in the building where I live. And people are very understanding. All dog neighbors gather in the apartment. The dogs play together.”
‘Help them’
Başak Lola said, “I am a person who walks and greets all stray dogs. A very active dog. My advice to first-time dog owners is that adopting an adult dog seems like a better idea. Because their characters are settled. They think that the process of adapting to adult dogs will be more difficult, but this is not the case at all. I have helped other friends adopt adult dogs. They all live happily as if they were there from the day they were born. There are too many dogs in shelters. Those who want to adopt should definitely have a home for them from here,” he says.
Başak Lola, owner of two cats, has been living with Büdü for 4 months, whom she adopted when she was little.
Ownership education
While most people who want to adopt a pet fear disturbing their neighbors, they also fear that the dog will not be able to adapt to the family environment and that their social life will be restricted. For these and other similar reasons, they put aside their dreams of owning animals. However, with proper training, you can make it easier for your dog to adapt to both the home environment and the environment. The municipality of Ümraniye innovated in Turkey and opened the “Little Dostlar Park”. There are trainers in the park built only for dogs in Tatlısu district. Dog owners and dogs are trained in the park, which opened in Milliyet for the first time. In the project, where applications are made online, priority is given to dogs adopted from the shelter.
Socialization training
Ümraniye Municipality’s Director of Veterinary Affairs, Muhammet Nuri Coşkun, said that they implemented the project to facilitate the process of adopting dogs from the streets and home life. Here we employ a trainer and train the dogs with their owners. Dogs receive socialization training. Our goal is to make people have a good time when they go to cafe with their dog. This will relax both the owner and the dog will have a more comfortable time. He will not have arrived in the inconvenience that this risks giving him around,” he said.
takes 10 weeks
Coşkun said priority is given to animals that have been adopted from shelters in applications made for training. Apart from this, other dogs are also trained. 10 training sessions. It takes 45 minutes. It takes ten weeks. So far, 51 people have been trained.
‘She calls him ‘Brother’
Aynur Kılıçbikova recounts that her 8-year-old daughter, who beat cancer, could not leave home due to bans during the pandemic period and they decided to adopt a dog during this process:
“Before my daughter and I adopted, we were very afraid of dogs. After my daughter overcame cancer, she was left alone due to pandemic bans. Our doctor allowed us to adopt a dog fully vaccinated. The training helps a lot. We had a hard time at first because he is a dominant and stubborn dog. But now, thanks to the trainings, our life has become easier for us and our dog. Before the trainings, my daughter never couldn’t walk down the street with his dog. Now he can walk down the street. It’s good for kids to have a dog. My daughter calls her dog brother. When he wakes up in the morning, he immediately asks where is Max It’s been very good for him.
“We can travel comfortably”
Deniz Acar, who has lived with her dog Cinnamon for three years, said she was able to walk down the street more comfortably after practice and said:
“I adopted Cinnamon in 2019. When an acquaintance of ours told us he couldn’t watch it, we adopted him. Cinnamon is my second dog. The dog owner is not difficult at all. Like a baby, I miss him so much when I go out. I want to go home and see him right away. When I didn’t call my friends’ dogs by name before I got a dog, “That’s my baby. Can you tell me your name?” That felt like overkill. Now it’s not overdone Thanks to him, where we travel has also changed. We’re getting to places where my dog can be more comfortable. I’ve also seen the training on social media. I’ve applied. I I had a lot of trouble walking on the road. After coming here, my job became much easier. I practiced first. I also trained my dog. Now it’s easier to walk when you go out .
A 10-week training course is also provided to dog owners in the “Minik Dostlar Park”, a first in Turkey, organized by the municipality of Ümraniye.
Our dear friends are looking for a house
Dogs awaiting adoption at Ümraniye Hekimbaşı Stray Animal Retirement Home:
Gold: German Shepherd
Sociable: Cocker hybrid. 10 month old male.
Cinnamon: 1 year old, female.
TOMORROW: President of the Chamber of Veterinarians of Istanbul Prof. Dr. Murat Arslan, with his statement on veterinary fees and animal lover Gülnur Özçetin and his dog Rozzy