A rainy day in Monopoli. What are you up to today?
We just came back from a long walk along the Adricatic coast. I’m always amazed how tenacious Tita is for being so little! She can run for hours and never gets tired. Maybe that’s also because I take them out all together. Being part of a pack makes it more entertaining, I guess. To tell you the truth, Tita is everything one would never expect from a Chihuahua. Super sweet with everyone, not aggressive at all, a Chihuahua anti cliché. All my five dogs have learned to live in a hierarchy, that makes my life easier. And they’re all very affectionate and loving! So I guess that’s what we’ll do today: Lie on the sofa and cuddle. Wait for the thunderstorm to pass and for the the sun to come out again.

How do you communicate with your dogs?
We understand each other perfectly through looks, a whistle, some exclamation, never shouting because there’s no need.

Do you know their secret pleasures? What do you do to spoil them every once in a while?
Fresh meat is always a winner, that works no matter what. Then there is this treat they adore, from the animal shop: a piece of dry beef. They all go crazy for it! Especially my little rebel, Pupi, the Bali dog.

You brought a Bali dog home?
Yes I did, couldn’t help it. I found her on a street, very sick and super tiny. Because I didn’t want to leave her, she was sent on an incredible journey: All the way to Jakarta at first where she got a new passport, then on a plane via Istanbul and Rome to Puglia. Eight days on the road and in the air, looked after by living, helping hands. But Pupi is a hero, she made it.  And we love her unconditionally.

Getting back to your latest arrival, Tita: Who would she be if she was a person?
She would be a tribal warrior girl! You may not believe it but she once chased a big dog just by barking at him, her little mean kind of barking.

You travel a lot, sometimes stay away for weeks. Where do you leave your dogs in the meantime?
There is a young woman close to where we live: She is a dog trainer and very happy to keep them while we travel, which is at least twice a year for about a month and a half every time. The dogs adore her! And they are just as happy when we come back. It would be lovely to be able to take them with us every time we leave. Unfortunately not everyone welcomes them the way they should. I once went to Miami, where there are parks for small dogs only, where they can play we each other safely. Isn’t that phantastic? In Italy, especially in the South, they’ve got as whole different approach, a different mentality really.

What’s your favourite thing to do with your furry kids?
Long walks by the sea are our favourite. I try to do it every day! We’d spend at least two hours outside. During the winter, when we’ve got the beaches around Monopoli for ourselves, it’s even more exciting. They love to run together and I enjoy the moment of peace, every problem you may have gets lighter, any bad mood disappears while you’re walking, in nature, with your dogs.

Any advice you’d like to share?
Dogs make our lives richer and I would suggest everbody to get one. But I think not everyone is capable to understand how to really make a dog happy. Dogs need all our love, yes, but they also need to be treated like dogs. They need long walks even though they are small, they don’t need to be over clean, they need to eat dog food to stay healthy and they need rules in order to be happy.  They need to run free and they need a pack leader to run back to.  The most beautiful thing that happened to me with my five dogs is to understand that dogs love to live with other dogs, love to play together and to sleep cuddling each other. They have their own rules to live together peacefully.

Why a dog? Why a Dachshund?
We had thought about it for a long time, done some googling and finally found a breeder in Lecce. We contacted her and she sent us a couple of photos of their newborn puppies. Without hesitation we chose Poirot, the most beautiful boy of the whole bunch! In the eyes of others he may not be extraordinary at all, but he is ours, and we love him unconditionally. We call him our baby, can you imagine. And we hopefully are like Mom and Dad for him!

If Poirot were a person… who would he be?
A comedian, no doubt about that, some Mr. Bean or Benny Hill or, or…

Three reasons why you love him?
Because he is a good laugh even on rainy days, he is sweet and loving and we simply couldn’t live without him. If you think about it: He steals everything, destroys his toys and is often too lazy to even move from the sofa when he needs to do his business. BUT even this is adorable. We are completely lost!

What activities do you enjoy most?
Watching Netflix! The last series we saw was “Fauda”, which Poirot particularly loved. He seems to be into action movies!

Is Poirot part of the family?
150%!! He IS our family. He sleeps in our bed with us, much to the horror of non-dog parents… But this is who we are, this is the love that we share. I actually feel sorry for people who have never had a dog in their family. They are missing out on SO much.

They say Dachshunds are perfect travel companions. Is that true?
Well Poirot has already been around a lot for being just a baby… So far we’e taken him to France, Belgium and, over Christmas, to the UK which to be honest turned out to be an organizational masterpiece. Apparently you cannot fly into the UK with a dog. We managed via Eurotunnel in the end, but it was a mess. Back to Italy we were allowed to take him on the plane, but I don’t want to think about all the documents we needed to prove that he is healthy. Poirot certainly didn’t care about our backoffice work, he loved the adventure and enjoyed the view.

Any advice you’d like to give to people who are not quite decided yet?
Do not think any longer, taking a puppy – your puppy – is a decision you will never regret.  We do regret not having taken one earlier…

PS: Tamara lives in Puglia, working for the UK brand The Thinking Traveller (thethinkingtraveller.com) that rents exclusive holiday homes in Puglia and elsewhere.

Cat person, dog person? Who cares about all those labels when the heart is at the right place and the only thing you want to do is help those creatures who were abandoned, thrown in the garbage, hit by cars, chased or killed by other animals,  poisoned by people, drowned or got sick from bad food. The lucky ones are found by kind souls and brought to the attention of the Peniche shelter which unfortunately is overflowing with abandoned animals and short in supply. When they can’t take them, Elisabeth steps in. In 5 years as an animal “streetworker” she not only became experienced in animal care of all kinds but also more “exotic” healing pratices like Reiki to make their tortured little bodies strong and healthy again. She also created a network of animal lovers, The Kittenconnection, an organization that rescues kittens, sterilizes cats and supports people finding and fostering kittens that in 2022 only has taken in over 150 kittens, bought an incubator for the very little, fragile ones (the only one in the area), and started her own foster network, which helps to quarantine kittens. “We are working on creating a sanctuary with a coffeeshop, an affordable veterinarian, space for the animals to roam safely and to grow up in a healthy environment.”

You dedicated your life to the protection of animals, cats and dogs. Tell us about the “dogs only” activities!
I take in foster dogs and find them forever homes. I myself have adopted one dog from the streets and one from the Peniche shelter. Since the end of 2022 I foster 2 dogs at a time, and as soon as one is adopted I take a new one in. My aim is to get the dogs adopted to good families, especially outside of Portugal. Also will I create a walking group, to get the dogs weekly out of the shelter..” 

Anyone who you rescued lately?
Yes, I just found a lovely family for Kaelea, a gorgeous brown labrador lady, who was taken from a horrible family situation (with her 4 kids) and brought to the shelter in Peniche. I have no idea what happened but if police takes animals from people in Portugal the situation must be really, really bad. I had already two dogs in the house and a thrid one would have overwhelmed me. But I was convinced that I wanted to do everything I could to find a foster family for her. You must know: Kaelea means Joy in Hawaiian – and she brought joy and happiness in my life from the first day I saw her.
In January 2023 I walked her and my dogs at the beach, and a family came talking to me. They had fallen in love with Kaelea instantly! But the time wasn’t right. They had to sort things out at home in Belgium. 3 weeks later they wrote me again, asking if the dog was still available, they would be now ready for her. So Kaelea lives in Belgium now, her sweet soul bringing joy over a lovely caring family. She is the most awesome dog, kind, protective but not too much, intelligent and happy. I learned that this is my niche: Helping the animals to find foster families all over Europe. I’ve got the communication skills, I can do it!”

PS: Find Elisabeth on Instagram @magic_elisabeth or @thekittenconnection

Tell us about yourself!
“I was born in Uruguay, but when I was five years old my mother moved to Barcelona so I grew up  there. I graduated in English and Spanish studies with mention in German and I’m a teacher of Taekwondo and referee in Spanish Competitions. I love animals, dancing, singing, TV series, I do sports and love spending time with my friends and the people I like. The reason why I left Barcelona in the first place was that my mother died a few months ago. I was devastated but also realized that life is short and that you need to do what you want with who you love. That’s the only thing that matters at the end of the day. So last june I finished my degree, didn’t feel like studying any more and like working not yet. The only thing I could think of was to go travel. Maybe because I was looking for something? Mostly because I felt it would make me happy.” 

You’re travelling Europe all by yourself. Don’t you get lonely sometimes?
I don’t, well, very rarely, my dogs are my family, they’re the most important part of my life. I could never have left them to go travelling on my own. So, the car is perfect for travelling together. This is our time, just the three of us. We love to arrive on some beach, where the dogs instantly start to play. Or we climb mountains where they enjoy running wild and free. I can tell they’re happy, so I am happy too. As soon as I leave them in the room, e.g. to walk on my own, run errands or whatever, I feel alone. That may sound strange but that’s what it is.

Never scared of anything?
Well I was a bit worried regarding the car, that I had just gotten a couple of months ago, same for my driver’s licence. A whole new life for me! There were mountains to climb, snowy roads to go on, chains that needed to be attached on icy roads. Also the fact that I sleep in the car most of the time which I had never done before in my entire life…
Of course you think about what could happen. But it turned out to be fairly safe – if you check where to park the car and go to sleep.
Then I was afraid of missing my home. Which I do! Sitting on my sofa, watching TV. But it turns out that the ones I miss most are my friends and my family. Every not and then I have visitors over, others keep in touch via videocall. Those things help against the worst homesickness.

What did friends and family think about your plan?
They tried to talk me out of it, at least some of them. Until the very day of my departure I heard things like: Are you sure? Is that what you want to do? Don’t you think you’ll be homesick? Won’t it be dangerous? At the end I stopped listening. Gave a big f*** and left anyways.

Your dogs Azul and Bella: How did they take it?
Well, I was worried it could disturb them too much, that they would be uncomfortable in the end. That would have ruined everything. They knew the car, but had never tried it for more than a couple of hours. Their life used to be basically on the bed or on the sofa, sleeping, eating, doing nothing all day. I think they’re enjoying it though, you can never be sure but I feel they’re happy to be with me 24 hours a day. Due to our schedule they have to walk a lot but they get a lot to see in exchange. They eat different things every day but we eat in the most magnificent places, on the green in front of the Eiffel tower or on a Vaporetto in Venice. What else can they expect?

Who of the two do you like better?
Azul is MY dog. He comes every time I call, follows me everywhere, obeys in everything, he accepts a no without any problems. I think he’s really smart! Bella on the other hand is really independent which can be annoying. We cuddle or play only when SHE wants. She pretends not to hear when I call her, stuff like that. Azul on the other hand is so needy for attention that sometimes it gets too much even for me. So when I’m tired what I do is let my arm fall to the floor, so he can cuddle himself …

If they were humans: Who do you think would they be?
Bella would be my daughter. She is little Nazarena, behaves exactly like me. Azul would be my husband, because when we go to sleep he puts his face on the pillow next to mine, this way he looks at me and we fall asleep, every night. 

What are your plans for the future?
If money wasn’t a problem I’d continue to travel and live with my dogs “on the road” forever! It’s such an incredible period in my life. But unfortunately I feel that some day it’ll come to an end. I don’t want to think about it just yet. But actually money flies, especially when you’re travelling. Everything, literally everything costs money! And I’m not rich. But that’s something else I learned: You have to know how to use your money. In other circumstances I might not have been able to do what I’m doing now but I did it and it seems the right decision.

That’s your favourite aspect of life these days?
Meeting new people! Those who are hosting me, those who I meet on the road or on the streets, walking the dogs. Incredible who you run into! I won at least three or four real friends, new friends. Which to me seems a lot!

PS: If you’d like to follow their ways, follow @_bella_azul_ @tkd_nzrnn on Instagram