Europe’s largest animal shelter in Berlin
After Germany’s reunification, Berlin grew a lot, from any perspective. Once the excitement about the fall of the Berlin Wall died down, it became clear that abandoned, abused and lost animals needed some room and help too. The Animal Welfare Organization in the German capital looked for a good spot. It needed to be a really big one for a shelter. They found it in Berlin’s north-east.
The facility run by the animal rights protection association, Tierschutzverein Berlin, has a long tradition and many years of history. The idea sprouted from Prussian government official, C.J. Gerlach, in 1841 after witnessing maltreatment of a carriage horse and making up his mind to fight against animal rights abuse.
The first animal shelter in Berlin opened in Lankwitz in 1901 and ran for almost a century. However, what was once an unparalleled facility slowly turned to be too small and not efficient enough after many years, nudging into search for new spaces.
For 6 million Deutschmarks, a 16-hectare plot in the Falkenberg borough was purchased. Now all they needed was buildings for hundreds of very different animals, including cute puppies, colorful parrots, cats, rabbits, snakes and many other species. Sixty-five million Deutschmarks later, in 2001, they had what they needed.
Architect Dietrich Bangert took the mission. Fascinatingly, he himself happened to be a vegetarian, and it may have been inescapable for this “vegetarian-architect” to be in charge of designing this kind of facility.
The complex opened in the summer of 2001 under controversy, considered too expensive (building costs grew to nearly €48 million) and extravagant by some. Others praised its aspiration to provide light and space through modern design elements like skylights, exposed concrete, a water fountain and square ponds.
The Animal Shelter Berlin is as big as 22 soccer fields. It has as many as six buildings for dogs, four cat houses and one building for all kinds of small animals. How about a big enclosure for cats? They have that too. They even added what they call “animal protection farm” for livestock and an extra place for exotic animals, including reptiles. And they have their own veterinary practice. Of course there is plenty of space for dogs to run around at too. It’s the whole package.
A Sunday afternoon (before Covid) here feels like a day out at the zoo: dozens of people stroll around the 16-hectare grounds, many pushing prams or walking a dog alongside the artificial pond that runs next to the cat house, where you can watch felines napping or playing behind the windows. Children tunnel through the corridor-like rabbit-and-rodent house where guinea pigs and bunnies are cuddled up. A footpath leads visitors around the big, circular concrete building that houses the dogs, runaway pets, an elderly cats’ home and a rehabilitation and training facility. Beyond that are enclosed pastures where small visitors can gawk at the Nutztiere: lambs, pigs, geese, chickens and even a pony.
A more exceptional attraction, but kept away from visitors’ eager eyes, are the boarders of the Reptilienhaus, including a giant royal python snake that was transferred here last year from another shelter and a water monitor lizard that grew too large for its owners. Also hidden from the public are the shelter’s 16 primates – rescued from GDR laboratories, the circus or private homes and definitely not up for adoption.
(<- “In Memory of all laboratory animals”)
Long-term residents need not worry about getting put down. Like all animal shelters in Germany, this one is “no-kill” – animals aren’t euthanised unless it’s for a medical reason, or if they’re a danger to themselves, and even then the decision must first be carefully weighed by an ethics committee.
Accommodating 1,300 animals costs money, and a lot of work has to be invested. The Animal Shelter Berlin needs support. At this stage, Berlin’s Animal Welfare Association, an NGO, has 15,000 members, 10,000 donors and 800 volunteers. More support is appreciated, also because 180 employees need to be paid. Running the shelter costs 11 million Euro (13.3 million U.S. Dollars or 9.9 million Pounds Sterling) per year.
The organization’s website (German only) can be found here. Many animals are listed with detailed descriptions. Are you interested in adopting a dog, a cat or a snake? The staff will gladly answer your questions.
For further reading:
http://mdesign.designhouse.co.kr/article/article_view/109/78266?per_page=1&sch_txt=
https://www.exberliner.com/features/zeitgeist/an-afternoon-at-the-animal-park/
https://eu.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/news/world/2018/12/27/animal-animal-shelter-berlin-europes-largesthelter-berlin-europes-largest/2420551002/
https://berlinspectator.com/2020/12/09/berlin-fifty-and-his-1299-friends-live-at-largest-animal-shelter-in-europe/
https://worldcrunch.com/culture-society/welcome-to-the-world039s-biggest-and-best-run-animal-shelter
