May the 11th, 2023 - The much loved and wildly popular Museum of Illusions, which attracts large numbers each year here in Zagreb, has been awarded the Franchise Brand Leader Award 2022.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, approximately 220 franchises are currently active across the Republic of Croatia in various industries, and in the last three and a half years, there has been a noticeable growth of domestic franchises. Among the names on that ever-expanding list is the Museum of Illusions, and it has been declared the winner of the Franchise of the Year 2022 Award.

The Franchise Brand Leader Award 2022 was launched last year by the Croatian Association for Franchise Business-FIP and Darko Bukovic, the director of the online radio Poslovni FM/Business FM.

The fact that there is a lot of room for the export of various kinds of Croatian franchises has been well and truly showcased by the examples of last year's awarded car rental companies Carwiz International and Surf 'n' Fries, as well as this year's main winner of the award - the Museum of Illusions.

In addition to the Franchise of the Year 2022 Award, the Museum of Illusions also received the award for the best Croatian export franchise and for the biggest export breakthrough. This particular unique museum franchise will represent the Republic of Croatia at the franchise fair in Frankfurt and will also compete for the "2023 European Franchise Award" at the end of September this year in the Belgian capital of Brussels.

Since its beginnings back in 2015, the Museum of Illusions has expanded from the City of Zagreb to more than 40 locations in 25 countries around the world. According to the plan, the office and museum will open this year in Atlanta, as well as in several other cities across the pond in the United States of America.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated news section.

May the 11th, 2023 - Croatian exports have increased by almost 14 percent, but less trade has been being done with the United States, China, and even with neighbouring Hungary.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Brnic writes, for the first time in two years, state statisticians have been recording faster growth in Croatian exports than imports. In the first three months of 2023, Croatian exports increased at a rate of 13.7 percent, more than double the growth of imports, which were higher by 6.1 percent.

In absolute terms, the value of Croatian exports reached 5.82 billion euros in the first quarter of this year, while imports exceeded 9.78 billion euros. As such, there is still a large deficit in trade.

Considering that this is only preliminary data, there are no official figures yet that would indicate what contributed the most to the stronger growth of Croatian exports back in March, which improved the picture at the level of the first quarter of 2023. However, from the preliminary data we currently have for imports, it is evident that the procurement of goods from third countries, meaning from countries which aren't EU menber states, has slowed down. In the past year, this segment of foreign trade recorded the strongest growth, mostly thanks to the import of LNG from the USA, and the rise in oil and gas prices.

In the first quarter of this year, the value of imported goods from markets outside the European Union practically remained at the same level as it was a year ago, more precisely at 2.3 billion euros.

21 percent less trade with neighbouring Hungary

Indications of the movement of goods exchange can be obtained to some extent from the data processed by the CBS for the first two months of 2023. It is true that Croatian exports actually slowed down during that period and the rate of its growth after a long time, practically three years, wasn't in the double-digits.

Goods worth a total of 3.45 billion euros were exported, which is 9.2 percent more than a year earlier, while imports were at the same time higher by 12.4 percent, or 6.14 billion euros in value. The drop in energy prices left the biggest mark of all, which is very much evident from the trade data we currently have with Hungary.

Last year, Hungary was the fastest growing foreign trade partner Croatia could boast of, rising to the third place among this country's main export markets, after Italy and Slovenia, overtaking Germany. The beginning of this year, on the other hand, was very much marked by a decline in the value of trade with Hungary, a significant 21 percent in terms of exports, while imports were weaker by 0.8 percent.

Germany is once again on the throne of buyers of Croatian products, and trade with Slovenia is also strengthening, in both directions. While Italy currently remains in the middle, the beginning of the year has been marked by an extremely strong jump in already high levels of imports, by as much as 37 percent, and out of 6 billion euros in total imported goods, 922 million of those euros arrived from Italy.

Changes and the weakening of imports, on the other hand, have been the most noticeable in terms of Croatia's relationship with the USA and Mozambique, as well as with China. Crucial in the case of the first two countries is LNG, the import of which for the Krk terminal well and truly exploded last year. This year, significantly weaker figures were recorded in Croatia's exchange with the USA, as imports fell by 39 percent, to slightly less than 250 million euros.

On the other hand, back in January this year, Mozambique entered the list of international markets with which Croatia is monitoring trade for the very first time, precisely thanks to LNG. In the first two months of 2023, the value of its imports reached as much as 145 million euros. Imports from China, on the other hand, fell by 9.3 percent, to 200.5 million euros. Compared to these figures, Croatian exports to China are rather symbolic (10 million euros) and also have a negative trend attached to them.

At the beginning of the year, a little more work was done across the pond in the USA (exported goods totalled 92 million euros), but also in Russia, where over 32 million euros worth of goods, which weren't covered by sanctions, were placed. Imports from Russia, on the other hand, were of course minimised, falling by 39 percent (to less than 14 million euros).

On the export list, there is still strong recorded growth in Croatian exports to neighbouring CEFTA countries, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia, with which for a short time last year a trade deficit was recorded for the first time, but this year, Croatian exports with growth of 36 percent once again exceed imports. Goods worth 218 million euros were exported, and 183 million were imported.

If you look at the data in terms of activities, the food industry, which sold 286 million euros of goods (25 percent more), as well as the clothing industry, electrical equipment, machines and devices stand out the most in terms of exports. Wood processors and metal production have had a far weaker start, while mining has recorded the biggest decline. The value of Croatian exports fell by almost a third compared to the first two months of 2022 (124 million euros), but at the same time imports were three times higher, growing at a rate of 41 percent and exceeding half a billion euros.

In their review, analysts from the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) pointed to a trend of calming the growth of producer prices on the international market. In the first quarter of 2023, they were at their lowest levels since the middle of 2021, meaning that now they have less influence on the nominal inflation of the value of Croatian exports.

They estimated that after the deflation of the total value of producer prices on the foreign market, the value of Croatian exports in the first quarter of 2023 grew by 7.4 percent in real terms. In March, if you look at their earlier estimates, Croatia recorded considerably strong export growth, because in the analysis of the data for January and February, they determined that the value of exports grew in real terms by only 2.3 percent.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated news section.

May 10, 2023 - NK Osijek will play in a brand new stadium next season, and the popular 'Pampas' finally received an official name - Opus Arena.

The sponsor of the new stadium is the largest Hungarian media empire, Opus Global Nyrt, and it is one-quarter owned by the NK Osijek owner Lorinc Meszaros.

The stadium is practically finished, and Osijek fans have finally welcomed a beautiful new pitch. 

"The stadium itself is part of the NK Osijek camp and the NK Osijek Football School, which has seven fields. The characteristics of the stadium are a UEFA category four stadium, and all Croatian League and European matches can be played there," said Valentina Koprivnjak, a member of the NK Osijek Board.

The best view is from the west stand or the Sky boxes. The away fans will sit in the north, the east is reserved for home fans, and the south for Osijek's ardent fan group Kohorta. 

In addition to beer, the restaurant will serve excellent cuisine. Visitors will also be delighted by a fan shop, cafes, and 13 four-star hotel rooms for footballers. The field boasts automatic watering and even underfloor heating.

The construction of Pampas cost around 65 million euros and was funded thanks to the Hungarian owners of the club, but also by the Hungarian government and sponsors.

"In the beginning, exotic, unusual things for stadiums were also imagined, such as constructing a jacuzzi to watch the games. However, that was withdrawn from our plans because the real idea was to build a sports gladiator arena, so the money for these exotic facilities overflowed into the stadium's expansion from 12,800 to 13,005 seats, as it is now," they explained. 

Stay tuned for the official Opus Arena opening!

To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

May 10, 2023 - Vice president of the Government and Minister of Spatial Planning, Construction, and State Property Branko Bacic stated on Wednesday, in the context of the dynamics of reconstruction after the earthquake and the use of EU funds, that another 140 million euros should be used in the next 50 days.

"The deadline for using the funds for the Zagreb and Petrinja earthquake reconstruction is practically the same, so by June 30, we have to use the funds in the total amount of one billion and three million euros. As of today, we have reached 863 million euros, so there are still 140 million euros left to use in the next 50 days," Bačić said on Croatian Radio's show A, sada Vlada.

Problems caused by inadequate laws

He assumes, as he said, that at this pace the EU funds could be used even before the deadline. "In the less than four months that I have been at the head of the Ministry, we have achieved a dynamic in which we realize projects on a daily level of around 4.5 million euros. Tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, we will use the full amount from the Reconstruction Fund for the Petrinja earthquake," he predicts.

Bačić also listed the problems his ministry is facing due to inadequate laws.

"What I have witnessed in the past four months is that in Zagreb, in the Ministry or the Government, we spend time deciding on managing small parcels worth around 1,000-2,000 euros, which are necessary to realize a project. There are many situations in which it is unnecessary that the center of Zagreb decides on parcels in the area of, for example, Dubrovnik-Neretva County," he points out.

"We inherited 50,000 pending cases"

In this sense, he says, he announced the draft of the new law on real estate management. "As a ministry, we are not sufficiently educated to manage the financial assets of the Republic of Croatia. We are primarily architects, engineers, and surveyors. Therefore, we have shared financial management with the Ministry of Finance," he continued.

He added that many unresolved cases are hindering the economic growth of the Republic of Croatia. "In the Ministry, we inherited 50,000 unresolved cases. That number is a terrible brake on the economic development of the Republic of Croatia. It is important that it works and permeates," he asserted.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.

May 10, 2023 - Azerbaijan, a country on the border of Europe and Asia, could become a gas exporter to Croatia in the coming years, as Croatia is considering connecting to the gas pipeline there.

The morning fog hangs over the Caspian Lake, which some consider a sea because of its size and brackish water. At a distance of 70 kilometers lies the Shah Deniz gas field, with an area as large as the two largest Croatian islands, Cres and Krk, combined, as Poslovni writes.

Six oil companies extract gas from a depth of 600 meters, then press it into pipes that stretch to neighboring Georgia. From there, they go through Turkey and Greece to Albania. One branch then enters Italy, while the construction of the other, which would go through Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina to Croatia, is being considered.

"Croatia supports this project. We believe it is important to have another additional supply route where the gas from Azerbaijan would reach Split, where our gas pipeline network goes," Croatian Economy Minister Davor Filipović recently said for Hina.

He and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković discussed this project in January with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at a forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"At that time, we talked with the representatives of Montenegro; we continued to talk with our friends in Bosnia and Herzegovina. There is a lot of interest in that direction, so I believe we will eventually do that project," adds Filipović.

The project, known as the Adriatic-Ionian pipeline, has been under consideration since 2012 when the Croatian natural gas transport company Plinacro and the Ministry of Economy began participating in meetings of interested countries. However, implementation was not started at that time because gas from Russia was cheaper, and the amount of gas from Azerbaijan was limited.

Everything changed five months after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The EU, which until then imported 40 percent of its gas from Russia, turned to liquefied gas from the USA, Norway, Algeria, and Azerbaijan.

Five hundred kilometers of gas pipeline to Split

The President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, signed a strategic partnership agreement with President Aliyev in July.

"More than 10 European countries are asking us to increase deliveries," Aliyev said at the political Global Baku Forum. The country of the former Soviet Union exported a total of 19 billion cubic meters of gas in 2019 and plans to deliver 24 billion this year.

"Half of that will be exported to Europe," said Alijev, who visited Sarajevo last month.

Azerbaijani Energy Minister Parviz Šabazov Ogtaj says their goal is not only to increase the volume of existing partners "but to add new partners, including those in the Western Balkans."

The Adriatic-Ionian gas pipeline from the Albanian town of Fieri to Split would be 511 kilometers long.

With it, Croatia would get half of the total five billion cubic meters of gas per year, what would be its capacity, Plinacro reported on its website. He announced the completion of the project in 2025.

"It is difficult to talk about the time dynamics now because talks are still being held, but there is interest in all countries," says Filipović.

Croatia would export the imported gas and part of that from the LNG terminal on Krk to EU countries because these quantities would exceed the domestic needs of Croatian households and industry.

Filipović notes that Croatia wants to position itself "as the energy hub of this part of Europe" and help other countries with supply.

Land of fire, oil, and gas

The Shah Deniz field in the Caspian Lake was discovered in 1999, and production began in 2006.

Toghrul Velijev, an analyst at the Baku Research Institute, believes that Azerbaijan can meet five to six percent of the EU's gas needs from there. The European Commission reported last summer that Azerbaijan will deliver 20 billion cubic meters to the EU by 2027.

"That statement is too optimistic for both parties," says Velijev, who believes that his country can export between 12 and 13 billion cubic meters to the EU.

At the same time, traffic jams are forming on roundabouts in Baku. The streets are full of cars because a liter of the cheapest gasoline costs 0.53 euros.

"Almost everything here was built with oil and gas money," says taxi driver Orkhan as he passes between the opposites, blocks of concrete apartment buildings built during socialism and modern glass shopping malls.

On the postcards of Baku, there are three glass hotels with 30 floors, built in the shape of a flame.

"Azerbaijan, the land of fire" is a tourist advertisement from the jerseys of the football club Atletico Madrid in 2014, which played twice in the final of the Champions League.

Baku was one of the stadiums where the 2021 European Football Championship was played, and since 2017, Formula 1 races have been held on its streets.

Companies should increase their investments to continue the oil expansion, but some are restrained.

"For companies to be interested in investing in infrastructure and increasing exports, they need contracts for 20 to 25 years, not five years," explains analyst Velijev.

He notes that the EU initiative on reducing the use of fossil fuels

of fuels, including natural gas, makes companies reluctant to invest in infrastructure.

Hydrogen - solution or promise?

Currently, the world is discussing the use of hydrogen, which would be produced from renewable energy sources and transported through adapted gas pipelines.

"Hydrogen can be a solution, but it is more of a promise," says Dimitar Lilkov, an analyst at the Belgium-based Wilfred Martens Center for European Studies.

Hydrogen usage is currently below one percent worldwide.

"In the short term, it is not a solution, so in the coming years, the EU will still have to think about how to import natural gas and connect to various gas pipelines," believes Lilkov, who spoke about it ten days ago at the economic forum in Delphi.

Hydrogen could also go to Croatia through the future pipes of the Adriatic-Ionian gas pipeline.

"Plinacro will ensure these pipes are ready for hydrogen when expanding our gas pipeline network. We also have to think about the future," notes Filipović. "Everything we do now, we think about how to use it in the best possible way," he adds.

Work on the depths of the vast Caspian Lake continues while passers-by stroll carelessly along its shores. The glass shopping center, in the shape of a blossoming flower, attracts the residents of Baku to shops like those found in Western Europe.

"There are more and more modern buildings like this," says driver Orkhan. "And it will grow sky high and become more and more luxurious if oil and gas continue to be exported."

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.

May 10, 2023 - Croatia's first Lady, Sanja Music Milanovic, is hosting a European leaders' spouses conference tomorrow. The topic is childhood obesity prevention, which should lay the foundations for coordinated action to stop the increase in childhood obesity, the Office of the President announced.

As Index writes, obesity in children is currently one of the most difficult public health challenges. According to data from the World Health Organization, every third child in Europe lives with excessive body weight or obesity, and most adults live with the condition.

Childhood obesity carries over into adulthood and puts people at risk of developing non-communicable diseases, one of the leading causes of premature death and disability. Since not enough has been done to solve the problem of childhood obesity, this problem requires urgent attention, according to the press release.

The conference is organized by President Milanovic and hosted by his wife

With this aim, a conference of European leaders' spouses on obesity prevention in children will be held in Zagreb. The conference is organized by the Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia and the European Office of the World Health Organization, and the hosts of the conference are the wife of the Croatian President, Sanja Music Milanovic, and the Executive Director of the European Office of the World Health Organization, Robb Butler.

The conference should, among other things, mark the prevention of obesity in children as a priority and stimulate the discussion of key stakeholders on the actions that need to be taken to prevent obesity in children, with a particular emphasis on promoting and creating a healthy environment in which children have access to quality nutrition and physical activity.

The conference is also expected to adopt the Zagreb Declaration, which calls for establishing a new World Health Organization European Center for Childhood Obesity Prevention.

In the opening part of the conference, the wife of the Croatian president Sanja Music Milanovic, executive director of the European Office of the World Health Organization, Robb Butler, Queen Letizia of Spain, Minister of Health Vili Beros, and Zagreb Mayor Tomislav Tomasevic will address the participants.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.

May the 10th, 2023 - What with Schengen, the EU and beyond, questions have once again arisen about the different Croatian tourist visas the country issues. ETIAS, which isn't a visa but a travel authorisation, is also due to come in next year. Let's delve a bit deeper.

ETIAS

First and foremost, as I mentioned above, an ETIAS isn't a Croatian tourist visa, it's merely a travel authorisation and the plan is for it to become operational in 2024. ETIAS approval is not the same as having a residence permit in an EU country, it is intended for short stays of 90 days or less in any 180 days only.

Nationals of the following non-EU countries (over 60 nations) who do not require visas to enter the EU will be required to obtain an ETIAS for short-term stays in the EU. This doesn't include legal residents of Croatia (who can evidence their rights with a residence permit). They will not require an ETIAS. An ETIAS will cost seven euros and be valid for multiple entries into the EU for a period of three years, or until the travel document registered to it expires, if that's sooner. In some cases, it will be free.

30 European countries will require visa-exempt nationals to have an ETIAS to enter. You can find out much more detailed information on ETIAS plans here.

Who doesn't need a visa?

Citizens of European Union or European Economic Area countries do not require a visa to enter or stay in Croatia for a period of ninety days in any 180 days. 

Legal residents of Croatia, regardless of their nationality, do not require a visa to enter or stay in Croatia. Those who hold temporary residence permits are free to stay in the country for as long as their residence permit remains valid. Those who hold permanent Croatian residence can enter and remain in Croatia indefinitely and without any conditions.

It's worth noting that there are some third-country nationals (people who do not hold the citizenship of an EU/EEA country) who can enter Croatia without a visa.

Who does need a visa?

The list of countries whose citizens do require Croatian tourist visas is extensive, so instead of listing them all individually here, I'll provide a link to a government source (from the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs). You can also do a quick check for yourself and your own citizenship/Croatian entry requirements using Wikipedia.

What types of Croatian tourist visas are issued?

Croatia issues multiple Croatian tourist visas, these are the A visa and the C visa (both of which are short-term stay Schengen visas), and the D visa, which is a Croatian national visa, issued for people on a long-term stay in the country. I'll break down the ins and outs below:

A visa 

The A visa (Croatian: Viza A/zrakoplovno tranzitna viza) is an air transit visa which facilitates either single or multiple passages through international transit areas of a Croatian airport. It remains valid from its date of issue for a period of no longer than six months (+ fifteen days).

C visa

The C visa (Croatian: Viza C/kratkotrajna viza) is a short-term stay Schengen visa issued to third-country nationals (individuals who do not hold the citizenship of an EEA member state and who require a visa) and facilitates their entry and stay in Croatia or in any other Schengen member state for a period not exceeding ninety days in any 180 day period.

What makes the C visa a little bit more interesting is the fact that it can be issued for either a single entry or for multiple entries into Croatia and for various purposes. Another interesting bit of information about the C visa is that despite the fact that it is classed as a short-term stay visa, it can remain valid for up to five years depending on your purpose of travel. These purposes are as follows:

Business

Personal stay

Transit

Tourist stay

Other types of stay

D visa

The D visa (Croatian: Viza D/dugotrajna viza), is a long-term national visa (nacionalna viza) which allows a third-country national to stay in Croatia for up to thirty days if they have already been granted temporary stay for the purposes referred to in the Croatian Law on Foreigners (zakon o strancima), or if they've already been issued with a stay and work permit, and if they are required to hold a short-stay visa in order to legally enter Croatia. Much more detailed information on the D visa can be found here.

How do I apply for a Croatian tourist visa?

Those who require visas to enter and stay in Croatia, or indeed to transit through it, must make their visa applications before entering the country.

In person

You can apply at a Croatian consulate or embassy in your country. A list of all Croatian embassies/consular posts abroad can be found here.

The rule of thumb is not to make your visa application any sooner than six months before your planned date of travel to Croatia, and no later than fifteen days before it. The general timeframe required for the authorities to give your visa application the green light (assuming all is as it should be) is fifteen days.

Online

You can apply for a Croatian tourist visa here, and find out all of the ins and outs pertaining to your particular nationality and reason for entering Croatia here. Both of these links are to official sources (the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Interior Ministry), they will also detail the documents you need to apply for a Croatian tourist visa, as well as any associated fees.

An extensive list of travel documents issued by the governments of third countries and which are accepted by Croatian border officers can be found here, and the Croatian tourist visa application forms themselves are offered in the following languages: 

Croatian

Ukrainian

Turkish

Arabic

English

Russian

Spanish

Portuguese

French

Chinese

German

Albanian

At the Croatian border in exceptional and justified circumstances

I want to preface this by saying please don't ever do this unless it is for absolutely justified reasons that you can easily prove. It just isn't worth the hassle and the border officer can simply refuse you entry if you don't have a decent reason (such as serious unforeseen, urgent circumstances) and all of the required documentation.

If you obtain a Croatian tourist visa this way, you are severely restricted in what it serves for. It will facilitate only transit or one single entry of up to fifteen days at most.

You can find a list of all of the required documentation here, as well as which Croatian borders offer this possibility as an entry option (it's very important to note that not all of them do).

How do I calculate my time spent in the Schengen zone?

If you require a Schengen visa in order to enter and spend ninety days in any 180 days in Croatia or the rest of the Schengen zone, you'll need to make sure you're accurately calculating your days. A handy calculator can be accessed by clicking here.

For more on moving to, living in and travelling to and from Croatia, make sure to keep up with our dedicated lifestyle section. An article tackling anything from a specific administrative issue to tips on renting a car or bringing your pet into the country is published every Wednesday as part of our How to Croatia series.

May 11, 2023 - KBC Split is the first hospital in Croatia that has its own therapy dog. Her name is Dora, she is the cutest, and she has been working for almost two weeks now.

As Dalmatinski Portal writes, the royal poodle, one year and six months old, became part of the Department of Psychology and Educational Rehabilitation of the Clinic for Children's Diseases of KBC Split. In addition to classic approaches, children will also have the option of innovative therapy methods that include a specially trained dog in therapeutic procedures or activities with children. It is a method that is available in many countries in Europe and the world, and KBC Split is the first in Croatia to provide this type of intervention.

Many employees of the Split hospital came to greet their new coworker. They also attended a lecture "Say yes to a therapy dog" to learn about the advantages of introducing a therapy dog as part of the intervention of an occupational therapist at the Clinic for Children's Diseases.

President Mira Katalenić spoke about the history of development and activities of the Croatian Guide Dog Training and Mobility Association, with whose cooperation and support this project was realized. She explained the importance of animal-assisted therapy, thanks to which the physical, social, emotional and/or cognitive functioning of the users improves. Assistance dog instructor Lana Glavan explained what their training process looks like, stressing that dogs become motivators and collaborators in the creation of occupational therapy interventions.

Occupational therapist and therapy dog manager for KBC Split, Matea Videk, revealed that Dora will be of help to the children patients of KBC Split. She pointed out that some of the planned activities with the therapy dog include individual occupational therapy procedures focused on therapeutic feeding, sensory integration, the floortime approach focused on the development of social skills and play, group cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy with school-age children with a wide range of difficulties within the Children's Day Clinic, as well as preparation through play for medical procedures and occasional dog visits to long-term hospitalized patients.

Director of KBC Split prof. Ph.D. Julije Meštrović expressed his joy that this project, which had been in the works for more than a year, has been successfully realized. "Medical care for children increasingly requires a multidisciplinary approach, especially in the context of the emergence of new children's diseases and disorders, to which KBC Split responded by employing children's psychologists, educational rehabilitators, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and even a therapy dog," he said and thanked everyone who have helped to make this big and beautiful step forward for tiny patients.

He also reminded that preparatory activities for the construction of the Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders of Children and Youth building are underway. Assoc. prim. Ph.D. Branka Polić, head of the Clinic for Children's Diseases of KBC Split, also expressed gratitude and confirmed that Dora has been enthusiastically accepted by the work team and the children who will spend every day with her.

Head of the Department of Psychology and Educational Rehabilitation, Ph.D. Irena Mišetić emphasized that the research results show that inclusion of therapy dogs in the therapeutic process brings numerous benefits for children, such as a reduction in stress and anxiety, a reduced feeling of loneliness, a feeling of increased physical and psychological well-being, improved quality of life and physiological functioning, a reduction of trauma symptoms, reduced withdrawal from therapy and increased level of participation in group therapies, while not interfering with processes relevant to effective psychotherapy. Also, there are indications that dogs can detect and respond to the emotional state of humans, making them useful in detecting emotional distress.

All the benefits were confirmed by 23-year-old Valentina Banić, who has been a patient of KBC Split for 22 years, and has had her own therapy dog for 11 years. It helped her improve the overall quality of life, her self-confidence increased, she was able to establish social interaction more easily and create a new circle of friends. Among the activities she enjoys with her dog, she especially emphasized hiking.

Hopefully the little patients of KBC Split will develop amazing friendships with Dora, improve their quality of life and build many beautiful memories.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Lifestyle section.