This Sunday, April 2nd, the people of Greece can make my lifelong dream come true and bring their dogs at the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens for a World Stray Animal Day event. To rub salt in my wounds, the museum said visitors would be greeted by a “puddle of puppies” from the Socrates Shelter who are currently looking for forever families.
The museum works with the animal shelter, opened and funded by the Athens Municipal Department of Urban Fauna since 2021, to encourage the adoption of needy stray dogs and shed light on the dangerous conditions stray animals face on a daily basis. The shelter is run by professionals and volunteers to help lost pets, their families and stray animals find new homes, and to ensure that every animal that walks through their doors is treated with love and kindness. The shelter is responsible for the medical care, food and collection of all stray dogs within the community.
The National Museum of Contemporary Art boasts of being the only museum in the Attica region to welcome dogs and states that its current Artistic Director, Katerina Gregos, made this goal her priority when she took office in July 2021 Museum is pet friendly all year round, not just on the day of the event. Visitors and their pets are encouraged to view the museum’s current exhibition Modern Love (or Love in the Age of Cold Intimacy) to “spread another message of love”.
The World Stray Animal Day event will be held on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The museum lists some simple ground rules for furry friends: owners should be prepared in the event of an accident with their dog’s vaccination cards and waste bags, and all dogs must be kept on a tight leash at all times, no flex leashes allowed. Bitches in heat are not admitted.
Those of us with pets in the US aren’t lucky when it comes to visiting famous art museums with our best friends who aren’t registered service animals, but there are a few institutions distributed all over the country who have opened their doors to four-legged patrons.
