If there’s one stereotype about Romania that just won’t go away, it’s the stray dog problem. People expect packs of dogs haunting the streets, ready to chase unlucky tourists and locals.
Growing up here, I can admit that it wasn’t uncommon to see dog packs on the streets, and hear about (or even see) people attacked by these dogs. I was attacked by a pack in my hometown, and my mother was once attacked by a dog while in Bucharest… so the danger was real.
But is it the same today? Or has Romania moved past its infamous stray dog problem? The answer is a bit nuanced, so let’s jump right in!
Yes, We Still Have Strays in Romania
While stray dogs are still present throughout the country, the difference is visible compared to a few decades ago. Most central areas of the big cities are free of strays. Some other areas have more of them – usually the outskirts of the cities, but also smaller towns and villages.
In other words, the more touristy parts are the safest in the country, and chances of running into a stray are minimal, especially when it comes to dog packs.
This doesn’t mean that you won’t see any. Romania still has a stray dog problem, despite the work done by the authorities, both in terms of collecting the strays and keeping them in shelters, but also neutering them (more on this below).
The classic “pack attack” is incredibly rare now, though. Most strays are either old-timers used to people or street-wise pups looking for food and affection. In the last decade, I haven’t had a single aggressive encounter, and all of my friends and expat acquaintances say the same.
Some of them can still get violent. They seem to love barking at cyclists (adding an extra problem to Romania’s bike-friendliness), with the ones by the roads, in and around forests, and in less urban areas being the most dangerous.
There is still news (fortunately, far and few in between) about people being attacked – some fatally – by strays.
Most are friendly and extremely hungry, though. Still, if you run into strays, it’s probably best to avoid the area entirely, just to be safe. If you’re walking your pet through their area, expect a lot of barking too. So better avoid it.
What to Do If You Encounter a Stray Dog?
First of all, keep calm. Don’t run or make sudden movements. Most dogs are just curious or hoping for a snack – that is, if they will even consider you.
Despite that, don’t feed them. While tempting, this can encourage strays to linger in tourist areas and can sometimes trigger scuffles among the dogs. Plus, they might end up following you wherever you go, hoping they’ll get another bite to eat.
Don’t approach or pet them, especially if they seem nervous or are with puppies. If they start barking, stand still, or slowly and calmly walk away if the dog allows it.
My Personal Observations in Different Cities (and On the Road)
I remember that in my hometown, back when I was a teenager (so eons ago), there were some areas that everybody knew and avoided, because the dogs took over.
It was so bad that even now, so many years later, I am still afraid of jogging in the largest park in the city because dogs used to hang out there, too. I haven’t seen any in years, but the trauma remains.
Many people still don’t afford to have their dogs taken to the vet – or they don’t want to or know that they should – and end up with too many puppies to handle and eventually release them on the streets.
I found some abandoned near our village house. We had just moved in, and heard these puppies crying in the rain, all bunched up behind an electricity pole. The one you can see up front (we called him “The Bear” before realizing it was a her) was the bravest and even barked at me when I went to take them in. It broke my heart:
After bathing them and caring for them, we learned from our neighbor that it was her who threw them out. She couldn’t afford to feed them and she already had three dogs. There was nothing else she could do, she said:
The puppies were extremely sick too and malnourished. Although we took them to the vet and tried to care for them the best we could, most of them didn’t make it. Actually, just one survived and we managed to find him a home (even though it did break our heart to give him away):
So, yes, strays are still a thing in Romania. The family that moved to Brasov from the US told me in an interview that one of the things that bothered them the most there was stray dogs. So they exist in large cities, too.
It’s also worth noting that, for example, a Brazilian who spent a few months in Romania noted that he saw no stray dogs in Bucharest during his stay.
During a quick visit to a nearby small town called Vanju Mare (exploring the area around our village house in Oltenia), I saw the largest group of dogs I have seen in many years.
Probably 6-7 dogs were just chilling in front of an apartment building, completely ignoring all passers by. You can check out my video below if you want to see a bit of the city (as well as the strays):
Actually, one of them was so happy to see us that she came over, wiggling her tail and begging for attention.
I believe that these were dogs that people in the area fed, so they were friendly… but still without a home. They weren’t tagged, and one of them seemed to have puppies, which was even sadder.
But on the other hand, Vanju Mare is far from being considered a place tourists would visit. I hadn’t been there before and would have never gone if we didn’t have our village house nearby.
Finally, we have Constanta, where we lived for two years. I have to say that I was surprised to see more strays here than in other cities I have visited.
I don’t see them very often, but on two occasions, in two different areas – once around the beach and once close to the city center – I actually saw packs of maybe 7-8 dogs roaming around.
While they were not violent… It’s still scary to see that. So the problem still exists and, based on my personal experience, some cities still have more of a problem than others. But overall, things are much better than 10 or 20 years ago.
Conclusion
It’s true: Romania’s reputation for stray dogs is rooted in real history, but it’s no longer reality for most visitors or locals.
While a few dogs still wander certain neighborhoods, the days of roaming packs and widespread danger are long gone. Romania today is much safer than it was 10 years ago in terms of strays.
There are big chances that you will see no stray dogs during a shorter stay in the country, especially if you stick to the central or the more touristic areas of the city you visit.
If you want to support stray dog welfare in Romania, consider donating to local shelters or international animal rescue groups active in the country.
Now, over to you. Have you been to Romania? Saw any strays or, most importantly, had any problems with them? Share your experiences below.
Having lived in Romania for over 4 decades, I am here to tell you everything about this beautiful country. I hold a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, I love traveling and I’ve been writing about Romania since 2013. Currently living in Constanta.
I have dogs but l am really afraid of stray dogs, especially when l am walking my dogs. Thank god you don’t see them often. Neither do we. In Nigeria, it’s as you describe, one here or there who belong to people but just go out all day to return in the evening. I’m glad they are tackling the problem, it can be scary, especially if you have kids. I would definitely cross the street :-).
Yes, the problem is indeed that the stray dogs who exist are not very friendly towards other people’s pets, especially if they’re not from the area… but this is happily less and less of a problem now.
I’m in Bucharest right now and saw one dog that could have been a stray. None here to speak of. I’ll check for any in Timisoara and Brasov next week but haven’t ever noticed them before.
Thanks for sharing this, Tim! Hopefully you will not meet any during your trips in Romania.
Having been to Bucharest in 2013 and currently living here I can safely say stray dogs are not an issue in most neighborhoods especially compared to 2013 when they started taking measures to diminish the stray dog populations. On the outskirts of Bucharest you can still find a few and some of the poorer blocks seem to have owners that let their dogs roam around a majority of the time.
Exactly, this seems to be the thing: outskirts and some areas still have them, but it seems that the situation is under control. Thanks for sharing this with us, Patrick!
I had a few unpleasant run-ins with stray dogs in parks in Bucharest back in the early 2000s (last time I went was in 2003). It got so that I was reluctant to go into parks. For instance, it was quite frightening to see this big dog run towards me from afar while barking. They tell you not to run but it was very difficult to resist. Fortunately, he stopped at about 10 yards and just barked at me. I slowly walked sideways to him, never letting him out of my sight. A German I was with in the small town where we often stayed was roaming around some meadow trying to get reception for his cell phone when a shepherd’s dog sneaked up behind him and bit him in the calf, drawing blood. He came to me and told me, as their translator, to do something about it. I asked him what he wanted me to do, suck the rabies out of his leg, go to the police, demand compensation? I finally did get the shepherd to stop by and apologize. I would strongly recommend people be careful if they are walking in the countryside. I once announced to the Romanian family I was staying with that I wanted to walk to a nearby town. They wouldn’t let me go unless I took a big stick they gave me. They said just seeing a stick would make the dogs leave me alone. It’s good to hear times have changed and the dog problem is now under control. It annoyed me to no end how Brigitte Bardot was harassing Romania about it’s early efforts to round up the stray dogs.
That is true, in villages you do feel safer if you have sticks with you because dogs do roam free. When I get out in our village, I make sure to do the same even though I had no problems so far.
And yes, I remember the parks that provided a home for stray dogs. I hated that, and for a long time, I completely avoided getting into any kind of park. But yes, things have changed, fortunately, and I am able to enjoy them now. 🙂
The facts stated in this article are not my experience at all. I’ve spend 2 weeks in Iasi, Tecuci, and Arad and in all thee of these cities I saw countless, countless stray dogs and cats. My heart keeps breaking for them – I wish I could do something to help them. Interestingly, when I bought dog and cat food for them, or even meat from the store they reused to eat it.
They look horrible because there’s nobody to groom them, but they are in most cases very well fed 🙂 You’re not the only one who feels bad for them and tries to feed them…
I don’t know about Tecuci and Iasi, but I’ve been in Arad 4 times in the past two years and I haven’t seen a single stray dog during the time. I’ll get there again by the end of July and I’ll pay a closer look. Maybe some areas of the city have them and some don’t.
I live in a small city in western Romania and stray dogs are still a big problem, not in the sense of attacking humans or forming packs though, most of them are no threat to humans, instead they are chased around by the very humans who should be protecting and feeding them!! People don’t spay their animals and unwanted puppies/dogs are abandoned all the time. It’s really a sad situation, my heart breaks every day seeing these hungry and very friendly poor dogs trying to approach people to beg for some food and often all they get are yells and are being chased away 🙁 People need to be educated and be responsible, if you can’t afford to keep a dog, spay them and offer them the care they deserve (yes including taking them to the vet and paying for their medical problems) then do not have a dog!!!
Actually this very morning fed an abandoned hungry maybe 2-3 months old puppy. The saddest part is that you have no humane shelter to call or to take to these abandoned doggies 🙁
I have just done some hiking in various mountains and natural parks of Romania, and at several occasions I actually feared for my life. Packs of 10 dogs or so often come running in the middle of nowhere, barking, surrounding you, growling furiously, looking for an opening to attack. Unlike brown bears and wolves, these dogs are a real threat to hikers, especially if you are alone, several other hikers and guides had the same opinion. Of course dogs can attack people, they do all over the world, often with fatal outcome. In addition these dog packs could cause changes to the ecosystem by hunting other prays. Why shoot a brown bear just for trespassing into a populated area, but sympathize and tolerate dogs showing such extreme aggression and domination behavior against humans? Makes no sense.
During my last visit to Romania in August of 2018, I definitely noticed a lot less dogs. In my visits in 2005, 2008, 2010, and 2011, there were definitely dogs everywhere. And it didn’t matter what city. Brasov, Sibiu, Bucharest (not as much in Cluj-Napoca though), stray dogs were there. They pretty much left me and my friends (or family) alone, except in 2011. While coming back from paddle boating at night at Herastrau Park, a dog decided to follow me and my friend. This dog would not leave. No matter how long we walked, or what corner we took. He kept following. It didn’t bark or get aggressive, but no matter where we walked, it followed. He looked rather haggard too. The only way we got away from it was by getting on a public bus. We were relieved once the doors shut, and the bus pulled away. I don’t even remember if we took the next stop to get off or not. All I remember was getting on and breathing a sigh of relief to be away from the dog! I’m glad he wasn’t aggressive, or things could have gone badly. I started noticing the decrease in stray dogs around 2014. It has definitely improved since then.
Brian
I am here for a couple of years and we see stray dogs. They’re mostly harmless. I’m also here w my dog and have been approached a few times but nothing bad happens. That said, my co-worker and I recently rescued a stray dog who is very sick and bringing to a animal hospital. He plans to to adopt and take the animal back to his country if she survives. She’s a very sweet dog. We believe that given her temperament she was owned by someone. So sad to see her neglected and we hope to give her a better life or at least some comfort in the event she’s too sick to fight on.
What really concerns me and many people is that these dogs are living sad, hungry, painful and frightened lives. Many I’ve seen look starving, unhappy and with injuries or painful health issues. Nobody takes responsibility for their health or general living needs. The attitude towards these neglected dogs needs to change, people need to develop compassion towards them.
Hi there,
I am going on my first trip to Romania in May and I am slightly scared of dogs, although I am fond of them. I am planning to visit only Bucharest and Iasi. Do you know how is the situation in Iasi nowadays regarding stray dogs? Do you recommend bringing something like a whistle to make them stay away from you?
If you’re going to stick to the touristy areas (central areas) and not go on the outskirts of the cities, you should be completely safe and not see a single stray during your trip.
If it gives you extra peace of mind though, there’s nothing wrong in bringing a whistle, if you already have one – but the situation is really nowhere near that bad and you only run the risk of seeing stray dogs on the outskirts.
Thank you so much for your help. I have been reading your blog to get to know Romania better and I find it very helpful and insightful 🙂
Today I walked from Dubramveni to Biertan and encountered two packs of dogs. The smaller pack, around 4 was the more dangerous one as it consisted of three huge and quite aggressive dogs and a smaller one.
I encountered that pack just around 200 meters outside Dumbraveni train station. The second pack, the more numerous one, consisted of 6 dogs, most of them smaller ones. I encountered that pack in the middle of nowhere between Biertan and Dumbraveni.
Quite scary, those two encounters! I don’t want to imagine what would have happened if the first pack had encountered a child or a woman out in the woods between Biertan and Dubramveni
And yes, these packs still exist in Romania.
Yes, unfortunately, it seems that the packs of dogs are starting to make a comeback in the country. Probably time to update the article again…
Either way, happy to hear that you’re safe. Did the dogs also bark/attack you or ignored you?
hello. thank you for this info. one question, we have a friendly good boy following us. we are bike packing through forests and fields and it has been 6km so far!!! we haven’t fed him either. what to do when we reach the busy main road???
It’s been 10 days so the dog is probably gone now but if a friendly dog follows you for this long he probably is hungry/thirsty so you should give him water/food just don’t give him chocolate/grapes(raisins)or sugar
I was in Romania in 2024, done there +-600km’s on bicycle (from Hungarian Szeged to Bulgarian Oryahovo) It was nightmare. Attacked by dogs +20 times and one times bitten.
The dogs absolutely hate cyclists there and they will hunt you if they are not alone much more likely, not just bark. The dogs arent always small too.
I am sorry to hear about this, L. But thanks for sharing! Indeed, I saw that for some reason dogs become aggressive with cyclists…
I lived in Pantelimon outside of Bucharest in 2018 to 2020 and the stray dogs were a pest. I’m from Norway and we don’t have stray dogs at all.
I also got bit by a stray dog. Not severely, but I had to go to hospital to get the wound cleaned. Romanian hospitals were also quite different from Norwegian hospitals.
I hated the stray dogs. I would never go anywhere and always drive just a few meters down the street just to go to the store.
And I lived for 6 months in Bucharest from 2022 to 2023 and this time around the stray dog problem was, let’s say, “taken care of”.
I think I saw 2 stray dogs during my entire duration 2nd time around. And they were alone both times and not very intimidating at all. Seemed very used to people and didn’t really care about us.
Back in 2019 or maybe it was 2018 I saw a phenomenon that I’ve only heard about in Russia. I once saw a dog take the subway and knowing where go off. And another time I was waiting for a green traffic light in Bucharest a stray dog came up to me and waited for a green light next to me.
I had only read about but now I’ve seen it with my own eyes
Thanks for sharing this, Bob. It’s good to hear that things have been mostly taken care of. As for the smart dogs taking the metro and crossing the street at the green light – yup, that’s something you will eventually see in Romania 🙂