The beautiful Garden Tea Room in the little paradise in Agri on Mols (Denmark) started with the first street dog, Lenchik, so many years ago that Kirsten and her ex-husband Bjarne no longer remember whether it was 8 or 10.
They just remember that Lenchik was small and that it was in the process of adopting him, that Kirsten started getting involved in the organization in Russia through which they adopted him.

Since then, they have hosted the Garden Tea Room every summer and despite no longer being romantically involved, they still share a love for the animals and their amazing place. Here, Kirsten lives in the main house with her husband Ergün, 4 street dogs and two cats, while Bjarne lives in a cozy annex on the other side of the courtyard – all surrounded by chickens, ducks, horses and the most beautiful garden.

It is this warm space that you are invited into when you stop by the Garden Tea Room, where all residents help to support some of the many destinies that deserve better than the odds they have been given.

The profits from the Garden Tea Room have always been used to help street dogs. Today, Kirsten and her husband Ergün have their own organization in Turkey, where Ergün was born and raised. Stray dogs are dear to both of them and it is also through this passion, that their love began to blossom.

At the moment, they make sure that 30-45 street dogs get food every day and are looked after, so that they can get medical help if needed. The female dogs are sterilized as far as possible, which the municipality fortunately pays for, as long as someone catches them and brings them in. Should puppies arrive anyway, then they will be vaccinated. 

They have also installed 4-5 water stations in the city of Dersim, where the organization is focused, but unfortunately struggles with vandalism at times. Fortunately, the people in town are really caring and set out bowls and buckets of water to help.

Kirsten and Ergün would love to be able to do more for the cats as well, but unfortunately don’t have the funds for it, as it is right now. Some of the cats get a bit of the dog food though and when there are kittens, they also like to buy a sack of kitten food, so that the little ones get a good start in life. Here, the locals are also helpful and often let a cat live on the balcony or close the gate so they have a safe place to be, as not all street dogs are cat-friendly.

Ergün also says that it is rumored that the people in his home town are nice to street animals, which is why some are occasionally unloaded from the other towns. It is a rather small town and yet there are probably 3-5000 homeless dogs and cats.

The organization consists of two parts; Ergün and Kirsten who collect money with which they buy and send food, and then they have people who lives in the city who receives the food and makes sure to feed the street dogs every day in 5-6 different places. At the moment, they have to collect about DKK 2,500 per month just for the food. They always make sure that the locals who are involved in the organization are close to both dogs and cats, so that they can observe and look after them if some needs extra help.

It can be difficult to get donations these days, as the need is great in many areas. That’s why sometimes a little creativity is needed and who doesn’t like to enjoy a piece of cake and a cup of coffee knowing that they are also supporting a good cause?

I love the concept and not least the wonderful atmosphere with the little paradise that sets the scene and some very delicious cake. I hope to have captured just a little of the magic in this video, so you can get a sense as to why this is definitely worth a visit.

The Garden Tea Room is held 5-6 times each summer to collect money for emergency cases and to help provide the monthly food for the street dogs.

If you are ever at Mols, I would definitely recommend that you check La Vie Boheme (Facebook or Instagram) to see if you should be lucky enough to have the chance of stopping by the lovely Garden Tea Room.

Keep an eye on the category Denmark if you are looking for some inspiration as what to do and see here or take a look at Instagram.