Queuing out the doors: Astonishing picture prompts Poles to save dogs from outdoor shelter before -20C winter snap
7 January 2024, 18:41 | Updated: 7 January 2024, 22:31
An animal shelter which put out a desperate call for families to adopt its dogs during a cold snap has been overwhelmed with members of the public looking to help - finding homes for 120 pooches.
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The so-called "Operation Frost" was put in place by the dog shelter in Krakow, Poland, as temperatures were set to plummet to below -20C this weekend.
After a call was put out for help, well-meaning Poles arrived in droves, waited in line for hours and ended up taking home 120 pups, the shelter's deputy manager Malgorzata Paletko said on the TVN24 broadcaster.
The KTOZ Shelter for Homeless Animals sent out its appeal on Friday - saying it had about 300 dogs, but not all could fit indoors and some were in outdoor pens.
It appealed for temporary help so that all of the dogs under its care could find space inside.
On Sunday the shelter announced that it was suspending the operation because it was able to fit all its dogs safely in the warmth, and asked the public to help other shelters that needed similar assistance.
"We are extremely grateful and moved," it said.
City police showed up on Saturday to manage the traffic outside the shelter, according to TVN24.
In the end the officers took an adorable brown pup named Mombaj back to their headquarters, posting on social media on Saturday that it had been a "beautiful and emotional day".
Ms Paletko said the shelter did its best to find good matches between the animals and the people.
"We are keeping our fingers crossed that at least some of them will stay with people permanently," she said.
