In October 2018, Bruno Jelović was traveling from Switzerland back to his home country of Bosnia and Herzegovina to visit family. Along the way, he noticed something he could not forget: stray dogs everywhere. Many were thin, frightened and hurt, searching for food in the garbage.
He took two of them, Torvi and Mila, to his father’s home. He did not know it yet, but that small act of kindness would change his whole life.
Then he visited the city shelter in Bugojno. It was meant for about 250 dogs, but more than 1,100 were living there in mud and filth, with almost no dry place to lie down.
Bruno could not walk away. In October 2023, his organization took responsibility for the shelter. With help from supporters, they laid new gravel, built warm dog houses filled with straw, and now pay for the dogs’ food, medical care and staff.
Bruno and his partner, Sara, then gave up their lives in Switzerland and moved to Bosnia. A local man named Darko provided a large piece of land, and in July 2024 the building began. Today the ranches near the town of Jajce cover about 240,000 square meters, with ponds for summer, fire pits for winter and special areas for puppies.
As Bruno, who once told The Dodo he didn’t always love dogs, puts it on his charity’s website: “We fight for those who have no one to defend them.”
Do you know someone with a big heart for animals? Share this story with them today.