Adopt A Stray Program

Monday, 20 March 2017
Stray Dogs in Santorini Stray Dogs in Santorini Photo by Jiashiang

Like most cases of innovative thinking, it all started with a guest of ours, Catherine, a few years back!

Catherine visited Santorini with her husband in September. As many who have visited the island know, this may be the best month to fully appreciate the small volcanic island. The had chosen a caldera villa, enjoying the splendor and feeling the tranquility this breathtaking cliff offers. Catherine was well acquainted with the Cats of Greece, she had seen the tacky calendars, the photos on Instagram and heard the stories of her friends. Arriving at the island she saw a great number of peaceful and friendly cats, strays, that the islanders seem to live in a symbiotic relation with them.

However, every morning when they set off for their day, Catherine and her husband would meet a playful dog right outside their villa. Yes, a dog, not a cat. It didn’t look starving, in bad condition or wounded; on the contrary, it was always frisky, social and loving. Catherine had lost her dog a few months ago and was easy to like any pawed friend, as it brought her memories of her previous dog.

After a few days, Catherine started caring for the dog, asked around to discover it was a stray! Her husband suggested -almost jokingly- if she wanted to bring the dog back home, when Catherine, without hesitation said yes. But they couldn’t figure out how to do that? Just take it with them? Go to a vet? Call the City Hall? So they asked Amanda, the BlueVillas Collection Concierge on Santorini.

Amanda made this her top priority, she found out there are a few steps to be taken before one gets onboard with a stray from the island. She helped to get a pet passport for the dog and Catherine was thrilled to truly bring home a living part of her best memories.

Ever since, we, as BlueVillas, have encouraged all our guests who wish to adopt and take home a stray, as well as guide them to help the stray organization of Santorini,SAWA, through direct donations. Ever since Catherine first adopted her dog, which is still with her, living a happy life in a warm home, more than 10 other adoptions have taken place. Our Adopt a Stray program is for now available only on Santorini, helping to arrange the pet passports and adoption procedures for all those who fall in love with a four-legged stray resident of the island. 

See how you can help here: http://sawasantorini.org/ 

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