Street Dogs and Alley Cats of Istanbul

Meet Raki.

Before he was adopted off the streets of Istanbul, he had a life very similar to the story I am about to tell you.

Raki's human took "a loving" to him and invited him to jump into the boot of her car when she drove passed him on the street. He eagerly obliged and that was the start of his new life in heaven where he could find warmth, foooooood and big love. Here at Fidos Playground he is our lovable clown, adored by each of us.

Picture this .....
It is estimated that there are 2 million stray cats in Istanbul and around 150,000 stray dogs. Your eye can't help but notice the animals.
 
Street animals have been a part of Turkish culture for generations, and many Istanbul residents believe they have as much right to inhabit the streets as people. Dogs and cats are allowed to roam the streets while the Municipality, residents and local shop owners look after them in a collective effort.

"These are the neighborhood's dogs," says Hamit Yilmaz Ozcan, as he sits with Chico, an elderly Alsatian, and Hercule, his younger, rust-colored companion, two strays that reside near his clothing shop in the neighborhood of Cukurcuma.

​Some animals even become local celebraties like Fatso the cat. When he died the neighborhood collected money to build him a statue. ​

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How are they fed?

The local residents and businesses feed them, leaving bowls of water and food out for the animals to drink and eat.
Sometimes the dogs get so big from eating all the food given to them, that they become obese, reaching weights of up to 60Kgs.

This particular dog is so fat that there is a sign posted on the kennel asking the residents to "not give the fat one food as it is under treatment".
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Health care?
The local municipality picks the dogs off the street to vaccinate, spay or castrate them. Once they have been treated they are tagged with small eartags (as seen in the photo) and set loose to roam the street again.
​The cats are not treated and are allowed to breed.

Shelter?
The municipality also organizes dog kennels and cat homes and puts them out in the street for the animals's protection from cold weather, heat and rain. 
​You can see these kennels  are well cared for and have blankets.
 
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Resident initiatives and Adoption?

Any of the dogs can be adopted.  The cats are generally not adopted.  They have a more free spirited life and are more likely to be treated like Gods than the dogs. 

In some areas residents have also collaborated with the Municipality to arrange for the care and protection of the strays.  In these photos the residents paid for and built a hospital with an animal ambulance.
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The Municipality pays for the staff.
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​Does this happen everywhere in Turkey?
The municipalities are all charged with the care of the animals but the quality of life for the animals varies greatly, depending on how much spare money the municipality has, to allocate to their care.  Istanbul has more money available and so the animals have housing and veterinary treatment. Care and interest of the animals can also vary within certain areas of Istanbul.
 
NOTE!!
If you get caught killing an animal in Turkey there is the possibility of a 10.5 year prison sentence

To end the story of Raki and the stray dogs and alley cats of Istanbul, we finish with this cat celebrity called Gli. He is a devout cat living at the 1,475 year old museum of the Hagia Sophia. He is squint eyed, with one eye on God and the other on the Devil. He greets all the tourists and supervises the employees. He was even visited by Barack Obama.