Bush and Hitler 'back' stray dog campaign

George Bush, Adolf Hitler and Nicolae Ceausescu are being used to persuade people to adopt stray dogs in Romania.

Posters featuring them with the slogan: "A dog loves you just the way you are" are appearing on billboards across the country.

Hitler was a well-known animal lover who could not abide cruelty to any animals, while Ceausescu, who ran a police state that tortured and murdered thousands, was rarely seen without his two pet dogs, Corbu and Sarona.

George W. Bush is also a well-known dog lover and has two pet dogs - an English Springer Spaniel named Spot and a Scottish Terrier named Barney.

Ioana Casetti, the president of the Romanian National Committee for the Protection of Animals, said: "Our idea is to make people sensitive to what an animal can offer in terms of affection by showing them that even the most hated dictators on this planet received love from their dogs.

"I expect criticism but also some appreciation for our work and idea. But more than that, I expect that people will get the message that anyone who loves dogs can save them from a shelter."

Bucharest and other Romanian cities have huge problems with stray dogs and an estimated 200,000 roam the country at any one time.

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