June 6, 2025, 12:37 pm | Read time: 8 minutes
After visiting his homeland of Bosnia, Bruno Jelovic ended his career as a fitness model and bodybuilder to dedicate himself to animal welfare. The plight of the street dogs there had profoundly affected him.
During a visit to his hometown of Travnik, fitness model Bruno Jelovic was confronted with the plight of local street dogs: emaciated, sick animals searching for food in the trash and often mistreated. This experience motivated him to leave his previous life behind and provide sustainable help. In 2018, he founded the organization “Save the Dogs BiH” and has since lived on a sprawling ranch where over 400 rescued dogs reside.
Jelovic documents his work on social media and in his book “The Dog Protector,” where he shares his transformation from fitness model to animal advocate. On TikTok alone, he has more than a million followers who accompany him in his daily life on the dog ranch. PETBOOK spoke with Bruno Jelovic about his commitment to animal welfare, why he believes not all dogs need a home with humans, and the role FC Bayern Munich played in his journey to animal protection.
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“I had no connection to animal protection and no trust in organizations”
PETBOOK: What was the decisive moment for you that led you to radically change your life and dedicate yourself to animal protection?
Bruno Jelovic: “That was my dog Mia. She was my first dog, and I did everything to give her a dream life. At the same time, I saw the street dogs in my home country Bosnia—many didn’t even have food. It was only through Mia that I truly understood what dogs need. I used this knowledge to help locally.”
Was Mia from animal protection?
“No, I bought Mia at the time. I had no connection to animal protection and no trust in organizations. I always wondered: There are so many aid organizations, but why does nothing improve? For me, it was like in Africa: So much is donated, but children still don’t have clean water. I wanted to do something myself.”
And you just started?
“Yes, completely spontaneously, without preparation. I only knew what a dog needs and just tried to help. Many fail because they think too long. Meanwhile, animals die. Sometimes you just have to act.”
Bruno Jelovic: “Animal protection is about pure survival”
Many know you as a model. What does the spotlight not give you that you now find in animal protection?
“The fitness and modeling world is extremely superficial. As long as you’re in shape, you’re appreciated—after that, no one cares. It was all about luxury: good food, clothing, supplements. In animal protection, it’s about pure survival. I was on a good path in the fitness industry, but for me, it was clear: The dogs are my priority.”
In your book, you write about corruption in Bosnia. Do you have an example that particularly impacted you?
“Not impacted, rather left me speechless. Municipalities pay high compensation to people bitten by street dogs while simultaneously allocating funds for animal protection that then disappear. The money doesn’t reach where it’s needed. That’s the biggest problem. Help is provided, but in the end, the money ends up in the pockets of corrupt politicians.”
“I often cry—not just once a month, but weekly”
How do you cope with the psychological pressure of seeing so much suffering daily?
“It’s very difficult. I often cry—not just once a month, but weekly. It’s hard for me to eat in peace or sit in warmth when I know dogs are freezing and starving outside. I try to focus on my vision: that no dog has to wait for help anymore. I want to build 30 to 50 ranches in Bosnia, neuter dogs, and transfer the model to other countries. That helps me not to break under the suffering.
What particularly affects me: How little understanding many people have for animals. I often thought Bosnia was a country deeply rooted in faith in God—but when it comes to animals, this faith doesn’t seem to apply. No religion says you can treat animals poorly. I will never understand that.”
Was there an experience or a dog that particularly touched you?
“Yes, that was Kangoo, a huge Caucasian Shepherd. I discovered him on May 1 last year on the street, in terrible condition—barely any fur, inflamed skin, injured, probably hit by a car. He was very scared, so I approached him with treats and a lot of patience. The next day he was there again, and although people said he would die soon anyway, it was clear to me: I will save him. Today he is the boss on our ranch.”
“I don’t want to be part of a system that overwhelms other countries”
Do you even place dogs, or do they all stay with you on the ranch?
“We only place dogs selectively and not en masse to Germany or other countries. Because I don’t want to be part of a system that overwhelms other countries. Germany is overcrowded with rescue dogs, and yet many think that’s the only solution. I see it differently. Many people who want to adopt hardly consider the responsibility beforehand. This romantic notion that every dog needs a home with humans is not always right.
Our ranch offers pack housing on 120,000 square meters with everything a dog needs: shelter, food, medical care, attention. That’s enough for many dogs. If you want to solve this long-term, you need a clear system: neuter, secure, get off the street—and above all, solutions in the country of origin itself. The idea of simply exporting the problems leads to other countries being overwhelmed. That’s not sustainable. Our goal is a functioning system that can also be transferred to other countries.”
On social media, you see many supposed animal rescues. Some of them are staged. How do you deal with that?
“It makes me angry. Some creators deliberately let animals starve or put them in danger just to make touching videos—for clicks, reach, and money. The animal only suffers. I also get comments from people asking if our rescues are real. I say: Look at the details. Real help is often recognizable by the fact that it’s not perfectly staged. It’s not about sympathy clicks, but about real, long-term change. If suddenly the camera is perfectly positioned and everything is dramatically set up, you should be skeptical.”
“People come up with the most absurd ideas to profit from animals”
But you are also sometimes a target of such fraudsters…
“Yes, and it makes me speechless how some steal our content to profile themselves. This is becoming a bigger problem—people come up with the most absurd ideas to profit from animals. Many of the ‘rescue videos’ online are, as mentioned, just staged: Animals are deliberately put in distress just to generate clicks.
I prefer to continuously show our everyday life—real rescues, life on the ranch, progress in the asylum. Authenticity and transparency over months—only then can you recognize real commitment. Those who cheat will eventually be caught. As an internet user, you should also be suspicious when you see emotional rescues, but the rescued animal never appears again in the person’s videos.”
What does it do to your view of humanity when you live almost exclusively among dogs?
“Fortunately, I still have a few people around me here. Luckily, there are also many people with good hearts. But honestly: People who treat animals poorly, who are not fair to them or abuse them, I just feel sorry for. I can’t take such people seriously. The trust in dogs is often greater than in humans.”
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Bruno Jelovic: “It was the worst time of our lives”
Were there moments when it was particularly difficult for you?
“Yes, many. I started all this without preparation, without money, without sponsors. And yet: I never thought about quitting—not for a second. Not even when my wife’s first dog was run over on August 1. It was the worst time of our lives. But we had to keep fighting for all the other animals that depend on us.”
Were there targeted attacks against you?
“Yes, people poisoned our dogs, even tampered with the car. I still don’t know who it was—but it was clear they wanted to harm us. It was a terrible, frightening time.”
May I ask: When did your dog die, what breed was she—and what was the cause?
“She died in Vienna, after a terrible chain of medical failures. We tried everything, went with her to Zurich, then overnight to a specialist in Vienna. Still, we lost her. Her death completely changed my life. Her name came from the Bayern motto ‘Mia san mia.’ I was a big fan and was inspired by it.”