Croatia Online - A Dog's Life in Croatia

Regular readers will know that Rosie, our 9 year old Springer Spaniel, is as Croatian as they come. She’s been with us on most of our travels and there’s not much of the coastline or the islands that she’s left untouched.

We finally decided that it would be a good idea for her to have a haircut – her first ever. Not only does she get very hot in the summer but the wide variety of grass seeds are a menace. Some of them can get under the skin and grow, and some are very spikey. We’re also on continuous watch for ticks and fleas though Frontline, which protects against them for about six weeks a capsule, is readily available.

You don’t see that many dogs kept as pets in Croatia; most of them are tied up outside. Nor do you see too much evidence of well groomed pooches, especially outside the big cities, so we weren’t optimistic about finding a doggy hairdressing salon. We were wrong – there’s an enormous pet shop just before you get into central Split, with its own salon, and Rosie received a very professional cut. It took twice as long as a human hair cut and, at 180 kunas (£18), cost nearly three times as much, but then Rosie has a lot more hair than the average human.

The pet shop is on Velebitska, Split, telephone 021 377 707. After you turn off the coast road onto the main road towards Split, turn left at the first traffic lights, left at the next ones and it’s about half a mile along on your left hand side. There’s another good, but smaller, pet shop in the old town but it’s easy to miss. Walk away from the riva, through the market, with the clothes stalls on your left and the fruit and veg market on your right. Almost at the end of this pedestrian road, and just after the stalls on the left finish, are a couple of shops – one of them is the pet shop. This one doesn't have a pooch parlour.

For those thinking of bringing their dog to Croatia, see our earlier posting for full details - Croatia Online - Dogs and Other Pets in Croatia. Croatia is in the pet passport scheme, there are plenty of vets around of a high standard, and there’s not much you can’t find for them if you know where to look.

If you’re more interested in getting a haircut for yourself in Croatia, go to Croatia Online Lifestyle - Getting a Haircut.