ry Night To Stray Dogs
HOTT SPOTT: THE KINDNESS CAFE
Greece has a large stray dog population where stray dogs roam the city looking for a meal, a home, and some warmth. On the Greek island of Lesbos in the north Aegean Sea there is a small coffee shop along the waterfront in the town of Mytilene where all the stray dogs come to hang out. It goes by the kitschy name Hott Spott and offers a warm spot for the dogs to spend a bit of evening and catch up on some sleep for the night. It is kind of a hostel for strays.
Once all customers are gone, Hott Spott welcomes the city’s homeless dogs to come in and enjoy a safe, warm spot to sleep for the night. Most of them can be seen on the couches of the café, getting that sacred good night sleep that strays on the street are never able to find.
a safe pLace for HOMELESS dogs to sleep
While it may not be possible to open your home to every stray pet in need, an open heart can be just as accommodating.
“When the bar closes each night, the dogs come and sleep here,” says one of the café’s waiters. “We don’t have a problem. From July, every night there is a dog on the couch.”
The Greek Isles are home to over 1 million stray dogs, says Greek charities, according to White Wolf Pack. So this one café, the Hott Spott, located on the island of Lesbos, is stepping up and doing its part in an act of sheer humanity. Many dogs in Greece without a permanent home receive a collar and are cared for by the community, instead of placing them in overcrowded shelters.
Such random acts of generosity toward animals isn’t uncommon in Greece, which has a large number of stray dogs. Despite being without a permanent home or family, these animals are often collared and cared for by the community — an alternative to putting them into crowded shelters.
“Here in Greece our homes are not large enough for all of us to house animals,” said an Athens resident. “The island of Lesbos has also been the epicenter of the refugee crisis,” said Eustratios Papanis, a 46-year-old assistant professor of sociology at the University of the Aegean on Lesbos island, who posted the pictures and story of the dogs sleeping peacefully on social media. “The locals have increased levels of solidarity towards environmental and humanistic issues. The new generation is more sensitive and well informed.”
It only took this one simple kind act to change the lives of the sweet dogs who come to the café at night, where they now matter to someone.
To learn more about Greece’s stray pet population, and to find out how you can help, visit Greek Animal Rescue and The Friends Of The Strays Of Greece.
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