1998

It began after a chance meeting with destiny in a park
Dana rescued her first dog, Printz, from illegal dog fights. He was a mix-German Shepherd who opened Dana’s eyes to the cruelty facing millions of dogs in Romania.
Nursing the wounded Printz back to health, Dana found a purpose for the rest of her life – and dared to dream of a time when animals in Romania would be appreciated and respected.
She did not shy away from the scale of the challenge in a country with a couple of million unsterilized strays breeding freely; murderous official dog pounds where dogs were electrocuted and skinned alive for profits; and authorities who looked the other way.

1999

Dana sought out like-minded people
Living near Galati, the country’s fifth largest city, Dana set up a group she named ROLDA, standing for Romanian League in Defence of Animals. The focus was on homeless dogs because there were around 30,000 trying to survive on wasteland and in the streets – where they were regularly hit by traffic that rarely stopped.
Dana taught herself English online to network so she could learn how to set up and fund a charity-run shelter.

2001

ROLDA secured their first celebrity endorsement, Beatrice Welles, the daughter of the famous actor Orson Welles and she generously financially sustained our rescue actions.

2002

Printz died because of liver problems. A few months later, Dana adopted Boss, a mix Saint Bernard with major behavioral problems, due to the conditions he was living in. Had Dana not adopted him, he otherwise would have been euthanised. Same year, ROLDA secured an agreement with a local vet to begin an intensive sterilisation campaign in Galati city.

2003

First shelter for dogs
Offering a safe physical shelter ROLDA worked tirelessly to raise the money to purchase land in the village of Smardan near Galati where ROLDA built a small shelter to be a dog sanctuary – and a real alternative to the officially supported Catch & Kill camps (public shelters). By contrast, ROLDA’s policy was ‘No Destruction’ of any dog that had the slightest hope of surviving. The small shelter welcomed 60 dogs in its first month.

2004

ROLDA welcomed the visit of Animal People Magazine’ journalists from the USA which nominated ROLDA the best shelter amongst 17 others from all over Eastern Europe. ROLDA also received the first invitation to attend and speak at CHAMP International conference held in Orlando, Florida. The dog Bela joined Dana in her journey across the ocean and she became the first ROLDA dog adopted in the United States.

2005

ROLDA team finished the shelter management training course organized by Dogs Trust UK. The same year, a group of vets visiting from the USA assisted our ROLDA vet to sterilise street dogs in Galati. In summer, Dana was invited to talk at the CHAMP International conference for the second time. The conference was held in San Diego, CA. Next, Dana attended training with the Helen Woodward Animal Center, facilitated by Mike Arms, a pioneer in the animal welfare industry. Later the same year, ROLDA launches a campaign against the dog cull organised by a local steel plant.

2006

Becoming an accredited charity – around the world
In February, we became an NGO by registering the ROLDA Foundation in Romania.
In March, Dana visited the UK to seek help with her mission in Romania. A mass sterilisation campaign is held in Galati and a US filming crew created a documentary about this event. Same year, Loretta Switt (”Hot Lips” from M.A.S.H. series) well known american activist for animals visited ROLDA shelter.
On the 4th of July, ROLDA became an incorporated charity in the United States as Romanian League in Defense of Animals, Inc.
In the same year, ROLDA was able to buy more land for a second, bigger shelter.

2007 – 2016

Finding original, effective solutions to terrible problems leads to being let down
In the mid 2000s there were tens of thousands of sick strays living in the shadow of a huge multinational steelworks nearby. The dogs were surviving by eating whatever was discarded by the workers, including plastic bags and shoes. After shocking pictures appeared in the local media of poisoned dogs’ bodies piled high on land owned by the company, ROLDA campaigned for an end to the killing and a humane solution.
To get rid of the dogs – and more negative publicity – the steel giant negotiated a contract for ROLDA to take on responsibility for reducing the canine population as humanely and naturally as possible. This company, worth billions, drove a really hard bargain, but we had to compromise to protect the remaining dogs and save them from slaughter.
The steelworks paid for a new larger shelter built hurriedly and not to our usual standards so we could start housing the most vulnerable strays almost immediately.
Our people put everything into caring for the site’s resident packs, night and day, in all weathers. No dog was trafficked or killed – one compromise we wouldn’t make – and we still managed to cut the stray population from 10,000 to under 1,000 – with many dogs being successfully rehomed across Europe. Despite that, the steel plant’s owners unilaterally tore up the contract in 2016. When ROLDA took them to court, we won.

2010

Dana was invited as a speaker to a public event organized in Switzerland for ROLDA, there she met Lolita Morena, a celebrity animal activist who had and continues to have a profound impact on ROLDA activity. Same year, ROLDA started the renovation work at the small sanctuary.

2012

ROLDA is registered in TRACES. After Romania and the United States, we opened a new branch in Norway, under the name ROLDA – Gatehunder fra Romania. A team from NRK TV (National TV from Norway) visits both ROLDA sanctuaries.

2013

Lolita Morena visits ROLDA sanctuaries for the first time. Same year, Lolita organizes a protest in Geneva against the new legislation that permits killing of strays in Romania, Swiss media is invited. Later this year, ROLDA purchased additional land in the vicinity of the 2nd shelter for dogs.

2014

ROLDA starts new branches in Switzerland (Association ROLDA Suisse), Sweden (Association ROLDA Sverige) and Australia (ROLDA Inc). New milestones completed: 250 dogs rehomed in Norway and 700 dogs rehomed in the Netherlands.

2015

ROLDA starts a new branch in UK (ROLDA UK). Because of the generosity of Swiss supporters, hundreds of acacia trees were planted to form a natural wind barrier around the 2nd shelter for dogs to protect it against the snow storms.

2016

ROLDA celebrates 10 years of existence. ROLDA initiated an education campaign in partnership with local schools.

2017

ROLDA starts the renovation at the small sanctuary (which is used as administration office, recovery area for dogs, isolation for the rescued puppies, bathing and grooming area for the dogs etc).

2018

ROLDA won the first trial against the steel plant but the giant corporation’s army of lawyers appeals the Court decision. ROLDA starts “Donate a doghouse” campaign for the dogs living in poor, rural areas in Romania.

2019

First trial against the steel plant is finally over. After over 3 years of battles in court, ROLDA defeats the steel plant. We can start the 2nd trial (suspended until the 1st trial finished) which is about Mittal Lakshmi, one of the richest men on Earth, owner of the steel plant who refuses to feed the dogs captured by ROLDA and housed in our sanctuary, as agreed in the signed contract. ROLDA created a petition where animal lovers from all over the World can remind the rich man to feed the poor dogs.

2021

Spreading the love – and the expertise
It was only right that we would pass on our expertise and support animal rescuers elsewhere in Romania – in the way we were helped by individuals and organisations when we started out. We connected rescuers in other Romanian cities, starting with Tulcea where we helped a small cat rescue organization. We also run sterilization campaigns there.

2022

Emergency support for #UkraineAnimals caught in crossfire in the war zone.
ROLDA coloring books are distributed in schools across Romania.
Exclusive partner of Purina, which enabled us to send cat food to different Romanian shelters.
ROLDA expands its support to Caracal town.
Four hectares located near the 2nd shelter for dogs have been fenced to secure the plot for PawzUp project.

2023

The construction of a sanctuary for disabled & senior cats welcomed its first guests.
Small shelters turned to green energy; solar panels have been added to reduce electric bills for years to come.
Hired a landscaping company to install the lawn and get rid of dangerous foxtails once and for all. The lawn package comes with an irrigation system as well as plants that will hopefully keep mosquitoes away from dogs and cats.
Ventilation and heating systems were installed in the building where dogs live at the small shelter to improve the air quality and living conditions.
New land has been purchased near the small shelter to prevent neighbors complaining about noise and also, to serve for expansion plans.
#FriendsForever program started to support seniors with pets in Romania
The local administration delays authorizing the PawzUp project.
Eventually, they announced us that they will not provide authorization and we must relocate the shelter with hundreds of dogs in it because they plan to build an express road and when approving their plan, they disregard “by mistake” that we have buildings there.

2024

We are extending our financial support abroad, helping 6 small NGOs in Romania and over 40 rescuers in Ukraine. Thanks to a gift in will from an Australian supporter, ROLDA purchased 8.9 ha of land. Here, PawzUp Center can be built and the dogs relocated from our shelter which receive evacuation order. PawzUp Center is a state-of-art complex, formed by 9 buildings and once authorized, will be completed in 4 different phases.

2025

New milestone: over 100,000 animals helped since ROLDA exists.

2026

ROLDA celebrates 20 years anniversary. The transformation of our 1st shelter for dogs into a cage-free facility is revolutionizing the concept of animal sheltering in Romania.
The change of name to “ROLDA – United for Vulnerable Animals Worldwide” reflects our current focus to help animals affected by natural and human made disasters, as well as animals in Romania.