Niksic Public Utility Company has reduced working hours of the municipal shelter by more than 40% and has abolished weekend visits?
The Korina Association addressed the Public Utility Company in Niksic regarding the installation of a new sign at the shelter for abandoned animals in Brestice, in the village of Trubjela, which is managed by this company on behalf of the Municipality of Niksic. Namely, the new sign indicates new working hours from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., while visiting hours are now from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on weekdays.
On the old sign, which had stood for years at the shelter’s entrance gate, the working hours were listed as 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., or twelve hours per day, while visiting hours were on weekends from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. That is no longer the case, nor is it indicated on the new sign.
The new sign also warns that “unauthorized entry, filming, and photographing without permission are strictly prohibited”, followed by six exclamation marks. For the first time, a contact phone number has also been added.
From this, it can be concluded that the total working hours of the shelter have been reduced by 41.66%, from the previous 84 hours per week to the current 49 hours, while the time during which the dogs are left unsupervised has increased by 41.66%, from the previous 84 hours per week to 119 hours.
Due to all of the above, we contacted the director of DOO Komunalno Niksic (Limited Liability Company “Komunalno” Niksic), Nemanja Vukovic, and asked when the new sign was installed and what the reasons were for such a significant reduction in the shelter’s working hours, which has existed for almost ten years.
We were also interested to know whether the welfare of the dogs is endangered when they are left unsupervised for 119 hours per week, and whether there is a guard service that looks after the dogs outside working hours.
We are not sure that the current visiting hours optimize the arrival of visitors who wish to adopt or simply visit the dogs in the shelter, so we also asked why weekend visits are not allowed and whether there are plans to change this in the future.
The total working hours of the shelter have been reduced by 41.66%, from the previous 84 hours to the current 49 hours, while the time during which the dogs are unsupervised has increased by 41.66%, from the previous 84 hours per week to 119 hours
In addition, from our own observation, we confirmed that when the shelter workers in Brestice go out into the field to capture dogs, the shelter is left without staff, and they do not return to work later, meaning the dogs are left alone even longer than the minimum 119 hours. We asked director Vukovic whether he believes there is a staff shortage at the Brestice shelter and, if so, how he plans to address this problem.
The Korina Association will continue to monitor the issue of the working hours of the municipal shelter in Brestice, as well as the newly opened free zone for stray dogs in Studenacke Glavice, and will continue to inform the interested public about these matters.
Korina | 16/10/2025