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kilo, a Saint Bernard, sat calmly in the yard of a South Jakarta guest house. The tail of the large dog wagged frantically and it barked enthusiastically when it saw Diah Sulasmo’s approach.

Akilo used to live in poverty in a house in the capital city before Diah came to the rescue. The canine is now heavy, healthy and happy.

People who work in the oil and gas industry in the country may be familiar with Diah. The founder of Jakarta-based oil and gas service company Geoprolog Intiwijaya decided to call it a day in the business world and retired in 2006.

She is now determined to focus on her long-time passion: animals. As the head of Himpunan Penyayang Binatang (Animal Lovers Association), her main activity now is managing Pondok Pengayom Satwa Jakarta (animal shelter) in Ragunan, South Jakarta. She is a very low profile personality – and certainly fits the bill of an animal lover rather than a former top business woman.

When she was still a teenager, she often spent her time visiting pets at an animal shelter in Gunung Sahari, Central Jakarta. She was still visiting the animals when Soeprapti Soeprapto, the wife of former Jakarta governor Soeprapto, moved the shelter to a bigger location in Ragunan.

Around 100 dogs and 100 cats now stay in the 6,000 square-meter compound.

“I love animals. It has been in my blood since I was a kid,” she says, adding that pets are a regular feature in her family because of her father’s love for birds.

Diah said she could not stand seeing abandoned strays on the street and often came home with stray cats or dogs. She even built a special house with a wide yard in an isolated area in Ciputat in South Tangerang to accommodate 60 dogs, 20 cats, 20 birds, 40 chickens and 10 swans.

She paused for a moment when she came to mention the numerous people who tortured animals and the small number of people who cared for them. She finally continued, saying she did not have the heart to talk about the improper ways that people treated animals.

“Our association is now striving to push for a legal framework to protect animals,” she said.

In mid June, around 20 animal lover communities and lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis organized an event at a hotel to voice their concerns about the lack of animal protection laws in the country.

Diah said she had a number of friends who, like her, tried to save stray animals by taking care of them in their private places. She said some people, however, often discouraged such a move by making fun of the adopters.

Fund raising is another obstacle.

Cahyaning Wulan Sari, an administrative staff member at the animal shelter in Ragunan, said many people promised donations but did not come good on their word.

“To date, we have had only one regular donator – Ibu Diah,” she said.

Diah said unlike people in many advanced countries abroad, Indonesians still had little concern for taking care of abandoned animals. She said she hoped Pondok Pengayom Satwa Jakarta could inspire love for animals.

“Even a little bit of care means a lot to pets,” she said.

— JP/Indah Setiawati