Original subtitles

My name’s Gump and I used to be a stray dog.

Every dog is a stray dog until the moment he finds his happiness.

And happiness can only be found with a human being.

My story is about looking for this kind of canine happiness,

about the journey to the right person.

It’s about the strength and steadfastness

that can be found in every single dog.

I also want this story to open your eyes,

because what man can break in a dog’s heart,

only man can mend again.

I felt something evil the night they took us from our mum.

Because before a dog opens his eyes,

he opens his muzzle.

The thing all around us was full of darkness.

I had to get out of it to be able to breathe.

My brother below me was completely rigid.

He suffocated.

We choked him to death.

His fur was like a rug, cold and dead.

My sister next to me was shaking and then just whined faintly.

Why were we in that bag in the dustbin in the first place?

Why?

I realized that “why“ was a human word

that only people know the answer to.

Back then I had no idea that this person would change my whole life.

That he’ll become “my life“.

That first look, that first smell

is never forgotten in any dog’s life.

People talk to humans with their eyes.

And this person saw in my eyes

that we couldn’t leave our brother there like that.

That man had a good heart, but didn’t know much about puppies.

Because these brown sticks that you call sausages

didn’t stay inside me very long.

PUPPIES FOR SALE FOR ANYTHING

Then a woman came along and with her a very strong scent.

-Good morning. -Good morning.

It was like a bucket of limp flowers with murky water.

Oh dear, he stinks.

Isn’t he ill?

Well, he’s pooped a bit.

Alright.

You people live in the world of constant exchange.

You swap paper for food and basically everything else on a daily basis.

And it feels to me that sometimes even for yourselves.

Yes, it’s true, boy, you stink.

Why’s that? Tell me.

Even that tiny bit of luck I come across has to be small

and full of shit.

Alright. Phew.

But we dogs don’t waste time exchanging things.

When we make a choice, we don’t change our mind later.

A strange woman suddenly put me in water, and all the comfort was gone.

I thought I was a goner.

I stank like a bouquet of lilies of the valley now.

The previous smell was actually better.

This is how I lived with my new family for many days.

Days full of light which turns into darkness after a few quick blinks.

It felt like my body grew every single night

and I’d wake up stronger every morning.

Where do you go each night, man?

The woman who lived with us was called Veronika.

You should wash yourself as well. I’ve got hot water in the boiler.

And her dog’s name was Lilly-of-the-valley.

I’ll go to the gallery first.

Her hands smelled of fish cakes,

so I started to call her Veronika Fishie.

And this guy, Fred, smelled a bit like goat droppings,

so I named him Fred Goatdropping.

Whoop-la.

This is a brush for scrubbing myself.

Coffee’s ready!

She’s been very nice to me since I found you.

I wish I’d met you earlier.

I beg your pardon?

-I mean the boy here. -I see.

One night I sort of felt

that this carpark full of wheel-less cars is my home.

That I belong here and that I like the open sky above.

Well.

Come along.

Come on, come here.

The head is a magical place for us.

When we let a human being touch our head,

it signifies the beginning of a journey to our heart.

The other place is at the end of the tail near the bum.

It’s somehow interconnected with the eyes.

Because when somebody starts scratching me there, my eyes close.

But the belly isn’t bad either.

When we show the belly lying on our back,

one is either in our heart completely, or very close to it.

Bum, bum.

Red light,

you sit.

Okay.

Green light,

you lie down.

Lie down, okay. Red light,

you sit.

We used to laugh every day and I prayed it’d never change.

You see, dear friend? This is the world. What a sight, isn’t it?

That’s why I call it a gallery.

The best time’s early in the morning, there’s not a living soul here.

Everything wakes up, birds wake up, scents too.

Sometimes I think so much and dive into it all

that I completely forget why I came here.

And that’s so beautiful.

Look, Freddie, how those two beautiful dog souls

people wanted to get rid of have found each other.

Isn't it beautiful?

I wonder what they're talking about.

You’ve never told me how you found your girl.

Well, it was a silly day.

I even missed the bus, so I walked through the park.

And suddenly I heard something.

It was like a baby toy whistling, it was so terribly faint.

And then I saw

a small, frightened creature in the bushes.

And I realized that there was a reason why I’d missed the bus.

Freddie, I’m sure that this poor little doggie summoned me into her life.

Did you try to find out who she belonged to?

I'm at least sure that this boy of mine didn't run away from anyone.

-Dogs don’t lock themselves in bags. -No, I didn’t try to find out.

I was afraid that they might take her from me.

But she surely didn’t have a good life.

We'll never know what the poor thing went through.

Dogs don't tell people anything about people,

but they talk to each other.

Every time Lilly-of-the-valley was happy about something in this dark world,

it soon turned into pain.

Wait for me! Stop! Come back! Stop!

She just knew she had to keep running.

Come back!

Even through a wall.

At that moment I realized how brave this little dog grandmother was.

And what surprised me was that after all the things she’d lived through,

she still liked people.

Come here.

I wonder what Dasha will think about that new mutt.

What should she think about him? She'll just love him.

When she sees how much I love him, she’ll love him too.

We’re talking about a different Dasha then.

-I'm telling you she'll love him! -Yeah.

What are you blabbing about? Look how great and cute he is.

Do you think Dasha will be pleased that you have a dog now?

What’re you all talking about? She’s not here yet.

I’ll think about it when she comes back.

But I won’t confide in you lot.

Hello.

Hi.

-What are you doing here? -Well…

Dasha’s supposed to be back today.

Dasha. Oh dear.

-Hello. -Hello.

Can I leave him with you today?

Dasha’s coming back from the hospital, you see?

Will you go to your auntie?

Freddie, that woman will destroy you one day.

Just tell her you like the little one and that’s it!

I can’t do that all of a sudden.

Do it for me, please.

-Give him here. -Alright then.

I have to tell her little by little, strategically, you know.

I see. But how can you tell her little by little that you have a dog?

Come on, you know Dasha, don’t you?

I do.

He’s a coward.

Yeah.

Come on, lazybones.

Come here.

When it started to rain, it reminded me of the day

when we ended up in the dustbin.

It’s still inside me somewhere, but I don’t really know where.

I wish I could find that memory and chew it up, I don't want it in my head.

What’re you doing there?

And then a big guy in black approached us.

The closer he got, the stronger I felt

that it was me who had to protect Fishie and Lily-of-the-valley.

Freddie, I’m so sorry.

The man stopped beating him only when he stopped moving.

I didn’t know what to do, he was a maniac.

Darling, please forgive me. Please.

Let’s take him to the vet.

Well, it’s concussion for sure.

And he’s really badly bruised.

Who did it to him? Was that you?

-Me? -Yeah.

Doctor, he’s like my family.

He’ll need a lot of stitches.

And it won’t be cheap.

I’ve got money.

He deserves the best care possible.

PRIVATE VETERINARY CLINIC

Where?

At what vet? Where did he find the money?

What vet is it? Where is it?

This is out of the question. What?

I can’t believe it, I must be dreaming!

We’ve got nothing to eat and we’re supposed to spend money on a dog?

How much did it cost? How much did it cost?

Why didn’t you leave him there?

It was all the money you had!

I could never leave him there. He's my best friend.

Who is your best friend?

A mutt? Are you nuts?

-We’ve been happy together, Dashenka. -Don't make me mad!

But I thought we would bring him up together.

No, bringing you up is hard enough, because you’re uneducable.

Dasha, please, I'll earn the money back.

What will you earn? You haven't earned a penny so far.

You’ve just saved it from the pocket money I used to give you.

I should have stayed in the hospital. I should have died there!

Dasha, don't say that! Do not say that, Dasha.

Dasha! I was really looking forward to you!

Come here.

Too bad she didn't stay there, right? Come on, alright.

Okay.

Lily-of-the-valley, come on, let's go home.

Boy!

Come here!

I don't know how to tell you, buddy.

But it looks like I can't keep you.

Dasha made it clear to me that if I do,

she will leave me.

And I probably wouldn't survive that anymore.

You see,

when my wife kicked me out, I ended up on the street.

So I just wandered around.

If I hadn't met Dasha, I wouldn’t be alive now.

Dashenka made me feel like I still belonged somewhere.

That I'm still a man who somebody needs.

Why am I even explaining this to you?

You can’t understand me anyway.

And that's when I think it actually happened.

We were just staring at each other.

And Fred suddenly realized I could understand every single word.

Go now.

And stay outside.

You can't win love by force or fear,

love is something pure, cheerful and free.

But human love is not like dog love

with only one path leading to the heart.

Oh boy, you make it so hard for me.

I didn’t sleep a wink all night.

I just can’t say

goodbye to you, you see?

Nobody has loved me more than you do in my entire life.

Nobody.

I know that you’re a dog, my friend.

But to me, you’re

human.

My dear human being.

I really don't like it when the person of my heart is sad.

It makes me feel sad, too. But it occurred to me at that moment

that my brave Goatdropping was ready to leave everything behind.

Come on, let’s go.

Just to be able to stay with me.

Fred, where are you going? Stop!

-Fred, come back! -Let’s go.

Jesus, Freddie. Freddie, stop.

-Frederick. -Don’t call me Frederick!

I’m so sorry.

Freddie,

I didn’t mean it like that.

You know I love you.

I can no longer live without you.

But this boy will stay with us, I'm telling you!

But I knew that if she had a dog's tail,

he would have acted differently, contrary to her words.

Of course he will.

Alright then.

Come here. What starlight you are!

Dear friends,

Dashenka and I are so happy because we have a boy together.

Our boy.

So here’s to the boy, here’s to his health and beauty.

-Here’s to him! -Long live our boy.

One day he will graduate and become a college student.

And then even the president!

A dog jumped over oat

and a green meadow too.

A hunter behind him

with a feather or two.

And our boy will be a doctor or an engineer.

If it doesn't rain, we won't get wet.

Cheers to our boy.

A small sausage eaten by a doggie.

Mum!

And the cook hit him with a wooden mallet.

Let me silence you with a kiss.

All the doggies wept.

Digging a grave for him.

Wait. We are really happy.

-Well, the happiest in the world! -Veronica.

-Right? -We’re happy.

-You’ve been blessed. -Right.

Do you think there’s anyone up there? For me?

Jesus Christ, why me?

So here’s to your boy!

When it was dark, I was already very tired.

I don't even remember what show was on in the sky that night.

Come on!

-Come on, hurry up! -Oh.

Move it!

Faster!

-Get on with it! -Alright.

Shut it!

My home at Freddie’s place kept running away from me under my paws

and I was scared I’d never see him again.

Freddie!

He was my dad, my God.

And if I could, I’d sacrifice my life for a single moment with him.

Come on, coffee’s ready! It will do you good.

-Where's our boy? -Come on, I made you some eggs.

Isn't he with Veronica?

You should’ve seen yourself yesterday. Look at yourself now!

I had a lot of work with you, let alone taking care of the dog.

Stop it, will you? Boy! Laddie!

Stop shouting! Hush, you’ll wake everyone up.

It’s impossible. He wakes me up every morning,

he says hi to me.

-Sit down. -Something must have happened to him.

Come on, what could happen to him?

He will come back on his own. And if not, he must be around here somewhere.

Come on, eat!

Eat!

I can’t eat.

Boy!

Boy!

But not everybody!

We can’t all go together. We’ve got to split up.

Boy!

You’re all together again. Boy!

The only thing I knew was that I had to keep running like Lily-of-the-valley,

keep running in order to save my life.

-I see you’re looking for him so hard. -He’s run away to a bitch anyway.

Sure, and took his blanket with him.

You're kind of smart, aren't you?

-What did you do to him, you bitch? -Jesus, give me a break.

Watch your step or you’ll trip over.

I have to run along this path, because every path must lead somewhere.

And if I run along them all, I’ll definitely

come across the one that leads home.

Wait a minute.

-Tuli, wake up. What happened? -It’s not my fault.

-I know it’s not. -She…

-Who? -Her!

I didn't know which way to run,

but deep down I felt it was the right way.

See, I didn’t even give him a proper name.

Oh, dear boy.

When I found him, I didn't know what to do with him.

And now I don't know what to do without him.

Each dustbin probably belongs to another stray dog.

And these two belonged to Max.

He was a punk of sorts, someone who doesn’t think much of people.

I liked his name, the fact that he had one in the first place.

He was interested in my name, too.

I told him it was still waiting for me, but I wouldn’t tell him where.

I was scared that he might want to run there too.

Max saw how beaten-up I was,

but I didn't want to tell him who’d done it to me.

I didn't want him to think too badly of men.

That’s a principle of mine.

He told me to be careful around people. And about my dependence on them.

Max knew a dachshund whose human friend had died.

His master was the only thing in this world he ever believed in.

He was his god.

And when that god died

and the dog realized he’d never see him again,

his pain was so unbearable that he decided to go

and look for him beyond the rainbow bridge.

They found him the following day, as dead as a doornail on the street.

No one knew how it happened to him,

but he’d probably found his master that night.

I asked Max what the rainbow bridge was,

I told him I would go back and forth across it and even further still,

and that I didn't care how far it was.

If every dog really finds his master there, I need to go that way.

But Max told me I was still too young for the rainbow bridge,

and that I wouldn’t cross it until much later.

And that the bridge is not in this world,

and that my Freddie is not there yet either.

He said it was a place where my soul would go after I die.

And then I realized that the rainbow bridge was just a road

to my heaven.

CAUTION - WATCH FOR TRAINS

Max said he’d take me to a girl.

To Kate. She takes care of equally beaten-up dogs

like myself.

My fur was full of fleas and ticks.

They were hidden inside me all this time like stowaways.

Max, who did you bring to me? Hi, who are you? Show me.

What have you got here?

Jesus, this doesn't look good at all. We'll take you to the doctor, alright?

It was my first time in a moving car.

It felt like I was running this fast myself,

although I could never manage that.

And I started to enjoy the feeling.

A bit of grease. Show me the belly, come on.

Her hands smelled like meadow flowers.

So I started to call her Kate Meadow.

Alright.

Come here! Come here! Good boy!

Sit down, we'll take a picture of you for the papers

so that your master can find you.

Stay!

Stay!

You’re so smart.

Good boy!

All that peace and quiet was always disturbed by the sounds of the forest.

I was like a real wild animal. Like a hunter who doesn't hunt.

One day, on our way back,

we saw a huge, stinking pile of manure.

Well, pedigree or not,

those dog girls had a bit of a mongrel in them, too.

It was a carefree time which gave me a lot of strength.

But then something stirred in my heart.

Something stronger than this piece of dog luck.

My Freddie’s waiting for me somewhere.

-Cheers to your beautiful music. -To music.

So I couldn't stay there.

A dog can say thanks only with love.

And that’s what I felt for the whole place.

I will always think of them, even on my way to that rainbow bridge.

I know I'll think about them even in heaven.

I was very hungry.

But I had Freddie in my head, so there was no time for starvation.

I have to run, follow my muzzle.

Alright, calm down.

I remembered Veronica Fishie,

who’d put her hand on my head

and start petting me when I was a puppy.

It was the moment before heaven ignites. I woke up.

I waited a while for the light above my head

and then set out again.

I covered some distance

and then I smelled it.

Flesh and blood. I inhaled the scent deep within.

A small run-over hare who didn’t have a good morning.

This is bad, really bad.

Strange, if he was running across the field, I might chase him for a while,

but I felt sorry for him like this.

So I started telling him the story about the rainbow bridge.

The one that Max had taught me.

And I felt that he suddenly stopped being afraid of death.

We lay there next to each other for a while

and then I felt he wasn't there anymore.

That yesterday's story

about the dog,

it really, really moved me.

Father, I know it may sound like blasphemy,

but for me it's not just a dog.

He’s like my relative, a brother or a son.

Where there is love, there is no place for blasphemy.

This is not blasphemy.

You know,

sometimes even a dog

can do more for us than our immediate family.

Have a look at our beautiful organ. What do you say to that?

They taught us at school that the organ is like a woman.

It can be amazing, but also pretty fake.

Well, they taught us something little different.

When you touch an organ,

you immediately know whether it is amazing or fake.

But with some people you may never find out.

Oh, another dustbin.

It's sad how much food you people throw away.

So many animals have to die unnecessarily,

and you only take one bite of their flesh.

If you don’t like it, you just throw it out.

Oh, I got lost in thought for a while and they’re trying to catch me again.

-Open the boot. -Sure.

Alright, good boy.

Careful. Fine.

-Watch out. -Alright.

They took me to a shelter and quarantined me.

It’s a hospital for dog souls.

They put stray dogs there before people find out who they are.

This one cried every night. Ever since they brought her here.

Her name was Mia. She didn't talk to any single dog.

But it was said that the man she lived with wouldn’t feed her.

And that he made a living by selling her children.

She could only hunt rats in a shed where she stayed in winter.

She didn’t make one of the puppies warm enough

and it’s now fighting for its life.

She experienced the same thing like Lily-of-the-valley,

so maybe they know each other.

We have to take her to the vet for a jab.

Come here, Millie.

Come, we have to see the doctor.

Those dog factories for puppies.

How much sadness their mums must experience.

Good girl, come here.

It didn’t hurt, did it? Take the leash off.

I will. Alright. Good girl.

I WILL WAIT IN THE SQUARE AT 12 P.M. EVERY DAY. I WILL GIVE ANYTHING.

PRINTING HOUSE

This new one is kind of headstrong, isn't he?

He seems so strange to me, he’s so different from the others.

When he looks at me, I feel he understands me.

What shall we call him?

I’d call him Forrest Gump.

It’s too long. Just Gump then.

Gump?

Alright, Gump.

What is it? Is that my name?

Was it waiting for me here? Here in this shelter?

Mia’s puppy has crossed the rainbow bridge by the way.

Mia must never learn this.

Damn!

But maybe she can feel it. And she's just crying with pain.

Yeah, this girl will save her, I can feel it.

Only man can take happiness away from dogs,

and only man can give it back to them again.

Little Mia.

My quarantine was over and now I was amongst those

who waited in the pen for their masters.

But dogs never know that their masters have left them forever.

So they just naively wait for them there until the very end.

At the end of the row, there was a single doghouse.

With Ron living in it.

A huge kangal that people used for fights while betting

how fast he’d kill the poor dog they had thrown to him.

He was lost in himself.

A huge, bearded man would take him for walks.

Nobody else could hold him on the leash.

If this dog showed up here by any chance,

please leave a message for me at the vicarage.

-Alright. -Thank you.

-We'll see. -Goodbye.

Come on, I'll show you one more dog, you will like him.

He's such a tramp, too. He kept running around here after cars,

but nobody ever stopped.

Someone threw him out of the car, I guess. His name is Melichar.

Alright, Melichar.

You really look like him. Come here.

I’d take you at once.

But I have to find my boy, you know, there’s no more room in my heart,

you see.

I can feel he’s looking for me too, you know.

We have to find each other.

Buy something nice for him.

Thank you, thanks.

We were often disturbed by the legs behind the fence.

Everyone started barking because they thought

their master was coming to collect them.

But no old master ever came for anyone.

We just waited for new people

to choose us from the pens.

He’s a bit different, we caught him next to some dustbins.

It’s as if he’s still looking for someone. Is that right, Gump?

-So this is Gump? -Yeah.

Gump, come here.

This is Naty. Natalia, you know?

He likes your smell, I suppose.

Her hands smelled like those little strawberries in the forest.

So I named her Naty Strawberry.

All the dogs here thought she was one of their own.

And she’d managed to bring many of them

from the edge of the rainbow bridge back to life.

We went out together a few times.

And then she took my leash off behind the shelter.

I’d have never run away from Naty.

I’d have never left her there alone.

We met Ron once.

And when he saw us,

he wanted to fight, fight to the death.

And as his teeth were all around us,

he bit Naty as well.

When they took me back to the shelter, they put me next to Ron.

It wasn’t the dog I used to know.

The killer who the whole world feared.

I felt something completely different from Ron now.

As if that last experience

had put him back on the path of a normal dog.

He could do nothing at all but kill dogs back then.

People praised him for that and he did it for them.

Every time I heard footsteps behind the fence, I started,

all eager to see who would open the gate.

And then I saw her.

The most beautiful girl with tousled hair in the world.

Gumpie, come here!

Come here.

I’m so sorry, Gumpie, that I haven’t been here for so long.

I had to stay in hospital for a while.

I told them it didn't hurt, but they wouldn’t listen.

You were so brave, Gumpie. You are my hero.

But I knew that my hero was this little human girl

who seemed to be afraid of nothing in this world.

I'm sorry, Gumpie, I still have some work to do.

Naty said something to Ron, but I didn't hear what it was.

She must have told him something very important though,

because ever since that moment Ron never attacked another dog again.

Alright.

Well, it’s fine now.

Alright, you’ve been rescued.

DOG & CAT SHELTER

He looks like a teddy dog.

More like a goat.

I didn't know what to think. But my tail, my tail was afraid.

Come on, he’s so cute.

Gumpie, so you’re lucky too. I’ll miss your smart head so much.

You're going there just for a few days, it’s just a test.

And we’ll come and have a look at you in no time.

And don't lose your scarf, it really suits you. Come on.

You’ll have a huge garden just for yourself.

And this beautiful, big family.

Could you wait for half an hour? A girl wants to say goodbye to him.

Yeah, we'll wait outside.

But nobody asks the dog for his opinion.

Not every home is better than this barred shed here

with a backyard full of forgotten dog lives.

One can easily trust another person who doesn't stink, but smiles and owns a car.

That must be the girl over there.

I had no time to say goodbye to any of my friends, Naty included.

Probably.

So off I went and didn't know where.

They put me in the same place as in Katy's car,

but right behind the shelter, the guy threw me in the trunk.

-That's my stuffed animal. -Here's the big garden.

If anyone comes here, bite him wherever you want.

Come here, come.

Come.

Up you go.

Whoop-la. Alright.

A dog reads smells like words in a book.

And the dog that was here before me had written down his whole life story.

As if he was still lying here and telling me the tale in my ear.

A distressed life on a chain waiting for the end to come.

Every single hair in that shed told me how my own was supposed to end, too.

Fortunately, my heart is still so full. It really helps me now.

I often saw Freddie and Naty in my head,

all those beings living in my heart.

“See you soon,“ I’d tell them. I won't stay here chained like this.

I won't wait here for my rainbow bridge.

The woman from the shelter stopped by again. Even with that girl.

They don’t believe that he ran away from you.

I don't care what they believe.

If anyone sees how you treat him, we will have to move out.

Another a dog in a state like this just because of some potential burglars?

We can't even take him to the vet, he knows you already.

He’s micro-chipped, they’ll all know he’s mine.

Jesus, the chain has grown into his skin, it’s disgusting.

Yuck.

Listen, get rid of him. Get rid of him.

Alright, dear boy,

I’m sure you’re having a blast.

A nice garden.

You can go wherever you want.

A dog bed in the hall, another one in the living room.

And you can even go to the bedroom.

Everybody loves you.

They keep stroking you, and you sleep.

And eat so well. Twice a day, in the morning, in the evening,

and perhaps something extra just in case you were hungry.

Why can’t I bite him now? Why not?

Who put it in my head that I can’t?

It would have saved my life, but I couldn’t do it.

And then I felt his fat fingers searching for something under my skin.

He belongs to a bastard from the village.

They locked him up later, and he left him there like this.

I saw the poor thing running around the village.

He’s aggressive though, he’s killed a few animals.

So you’re a killer, aren’t you?

He’s in a bad state, he must have been through a lot.

Well, that man was really bad to him.

He tortured him, beat him.

The whole village knew it, but nobody did anything.

You know, Doctor,

I don’t want him to feel any pain anymore.

I’ll pay for the injection and I’ll bury him myself.

-It’ll be 600 crowns. -Sure.

But we’ll take care of the whole thing ourselves.

Really?

Alright, how kind of you.

Oh, and his name was Gump.

You can write it on his sack, so he doesn’t go to heaven without a name.

-Thanks, bye. -Bye.

Why are you looking at me like that?

Do you want to tell me something?

Don’t worry.

It won’t hurt anymore.

Suddenly I felt how that little bit of power which was still in me

started to wane.

You’ll be alright, Gump. We’ll manage, brave boy.

I don’t think Gump is an actual killer. That man was really suspicious.

I’m sure it was him who did it to him.

Okay, okay, okay.

There were more dogs

that people found too old, too sick or too stinky at the vet clinic.

They didn’t want them anymore.

But the dogs still just talk about how great it was with those people

and how they miss them, the people that hurt them.

Dog souls are not only full of endless love for people,

but also full of endless naivety.

Come in.

For dogs like myself,

who were supposed to be in heaven already, different rules apply.

This is your new mistress.

A certain Dita used to come to us, she’d pay for vials called “Life“

and kept looking for people

who could take care of our broken souls.

-Hi. -Hello.

But I felt so silly around her from the very beginning.

Is that how you welcome a visitor, Bella?

Her painted hands kept stroking my head,

and in her eyes I saw something I’d seen only in animals before.

Pain and fear of people, as if she wasn’t human at all.

As if she was a dog like me.

What is it, baby?

Gump?

Gump!

Do you want to come to me? Alright, come.

You don’t have to tell me twice to jump onto a bed.

That’s a great advantage of a dog.

Once you show him a duvet,

he acts like he’s been doing it since he was a puppy.

Her feet smelled like biscuits for people.

So I started to call her Christine Biscuit.

I’m going to work.

Be good.

This dog girl was called Bella.

And before Biscuit adopted her,

she’d lived without human love locked up in an old building.

She was a bit jealous of me,

as she thought I was after her home at Biscuit’s place.

But I didn’t want that at all, my home was with Freddie.

That calmed her down.

Gump?

I’ve been nervous all day, but it was completely unnecessary.

When man laughs, his dog laughs with him.

With his whole body.

He bends his hind legs so much that his butt touches the ground,

bulges out his eyes and pulls out his tongue,

and starts running like crazy until absolute exhaustion.

Freddie!

I’ve found him!

-I’m calling. -I’ll try it.

Well, it’s busy.

I’ll keep trying.

This shining plate from which voices can be heard

often made Biscuit unhappy.

Dogs really hate it when the person they’re connected to cries.

It makes them suffer too.

It’s worse than a sharp knife running through your skin.

You’re both my darlings. I don’t know what I’d do without you.

Bella, come, hurry up.

I could smell him even from behind the door.

I remembered that smell from Freddie,

when one drinks so much that one starts smelling like that drink itself.

If he kills her, it’ll be my fault.

So I stood against my soul for the very first time,

against something that had been forbidden within my whole being.

If my own life had been at stake, I wouldn’t have done it,

but my person’s life means so much more to me.

I don’t know what happened,

but my mouth was suddenly full of that guy’s blood.

Gump, you shouldn’t have.

He’s gonna kill you now.

You can’t stay here.

So my brother doesn’t want you, Gump.

I’ve never asked him for anything.

But what do we do now?

We should probably call Dita, right?

I don’t really want to though.

Alright, let’s do it anyway.

I’ll take him, just for a few days.

I’m too busy, I don’t have time to look after a mutt.

He’s a good boy, you don’t have to be scared of him.

He’s just a bit lost, you see?

He’s got his work and cares about nothing else.

Gump,

teach my brother how to live.

Alright.

Fine.

I didn’t understand this person’s life at all.

He’d shut himself in this glass shed and tied a chain to himself.

He didn’t laugh, he wasn’t happy, he didn’t notice the world around him.

You can’t fool around like this.

His life was like this apartment, cold and empty.

It makes me nervous. I can’t work, do you understand?

Alright, come here.

Stay.

Gump.

Come here, come.

Move it.

I’m ready.

What should I tell the people at work? That I had to wait for your pellet?

Choose a spur-stone, please.

Perfect.

Thanks.

I’ve met a lot of once cool and relaxed dogs

who became cold and boring

after living with such a wet blanket for some time.

But I’ve met more of those

who managed to set their master free, get him out of his shed.

And they even managed to take that chain of unimportant worries off him.

Dogs hate being alone. It depresses them.

Waiting is the fate of all dogs, waiting for the loneliness to end,

but every time this boy came back,

let me call him Nut, for he ate almost nothing else,

that loneliness was still there.

But when you live with a person,

you either start changing according to the rules of his world,

or you change his world for him.

So I started showing Nut all the things he couldn’t see.

Here.

I’m so sorry, Father, for waking you up so early,

but I can’t get through.

It’s so kind of you to take me there. Thank you very much.

Okay, let’s try it. We’ll go for a walk, Gump.

Wait, Gump! Gump!

Gump!

Gump, wait! Please!

A friend.

It’s a friend.

-Okay, have a nice day. -Bye.

Goodbye.

Why are dogs so addicted to human love?

Why do we need to give them our love so much?

And as I was asking myself this question, I did realize why.

We are here to protect people. But not in the way some of you may think,

not because we don’t want your bike to be stolen from the garden.

We mainly protect your heart

and show you that love is the only possession in this world

that cannot be stolen.

We show you the only meaningful thing on this planet.

-Good morning. -Good morning.

We’re here because of your ad.

Do you know this dog?

I’m so sorry.

Come.

You people are like actors. That’s something we’ve got in common.

Good afternoon.

I think he liked her.

-Hello. -Hi.

I don’t want to boast, but she was interested in me more than in Nuttie,

and he knew it.

What a nice coincidence, right? Running into each other all the time.

He wanted to use me for bait, like a worm on a fishing hook.

Man is able to do such incredible things as opposed to animals.

He can fly without wings, put life or death inside vials.

He can make almost anything.

But all this knowledge somehow stirs his head so much

that he forgets even the simplest and most ordinary things.

Come here, come.

-You haven’t been here for a long time. -My Kuba is dead.

You’ve got to make a quick decision, they’re in demand now.

It’s been one phone-call after another since the morning.

And what about someone who’s not in demand?

-Melichar, he’s a loser of sorts. -Okay, I’ll have a look at him.

Fine.

He’s over there at the back.

Come, show yourself.

-Melichar. -Melichar? Melichar?

-You’re really nice, actually. -He is, he’s just unlucky.

Okay, you’ve got to wait.

-Hi. -Hello.

-Gump. -I’ve got something for you here.

Gee, he’s so cute. Jesus. Hi! Come here.

Oh dear!

So this has been my life so far.

I don’t know where my dog roads take me next,

but I know one thing for sure, I’ll find Freddie one day.

I don’t know if in this world or beyond the rainbow bridge,

but I will.

I also wanted to show you with my story

how one ordinary canine life for you, people,

may be so extraordinary for the dog in question.

We feel love in the same way you do, and we need it as much as you do.

Christ alive!

-Hi, sis. -When can I come for Gump?

Hang on, you don’t have to hurry.

Gump is kind of nice, I think I can handle him for a while.

A girl who knows the people who owned Gump has got in touch.

What? Wait.

And where are they from?

-From Velvary, the local vicarage. -From so far away?

I don’t understand how he managed to run that far.

Let them come for him then. Why should you take him there?

-I can’t reach them. -Alright, I see.

-See you later. -Bye.

Bye.

You’ll soon be with your family, mate.

I see.

I’ve never noticed this heart of yours on the side before.

How is that possible?

Yeah.

You’ve been giving me your heart all this time,

and I kept praying someone would come for you.

I guess it’s too late now to repay you for all that.

Boy!

My boy!

Every end is the beginning of something new, as a matter of fact.

Every dog’s life changes and flies by much faster than yours.

I’ve been lucky.

I’ve found my man.

But there’re a lot of dogs, a lot of Gumps,

who are still waiting in the shelter for their man

in order to give him their whole world.

Give them a chance to teach you how to live.

GUMP 1 IS A PUREBRED JACK RUSSELL TERRIER

BEARING THE SAME NAME AS THE HERO OF THE FILM - GUMP.

GUMP 2 WAS RESCUED FROM VERY BAD CONDITIONS.

HIS NAME IN REAL LIFE IS MARVEL.

GUMP 3 WAS TAKEN FROM A SHELTER

AS A NEGLECTED AND UNWANTED PUPPY.

GUMP 4 WAS RESCUED FROM VERY BAD CONDITIONS AS A PUPPY.

VERONIKA “FISHIE“ HÁJKOVÁ FOUND HIM WHEN HE WAS ON OFFER FOR ADOPTION

AND SENT HIS PHOTO TO FILIP ROŽEK, WHO WAS WRITING THE GUMP BOOK AT THE TIME.

When I found him, I didn't know what to do with him,

and now I don't know what to do without him.

LILY-OF-THE-VALLEY USED TO SERVE AS A PUPPY-BREEDING MACHINE

UNTIL THE MOMENT SHE WAS THROWN IN A DITCH.

MAX LIVED IN A SHELTER IN MĚLNÍK FOR TWO YEARS,

NOBODY WANTED HIM BECAUSE OF HIS UNDERBITE.

DORKA WAS BORN WITH ONE BLUE EYE, WHICH NEARLY COST HER HER LIFE.

SHE WAS SAVED BY KATE “MEADOW“ ZIKMUNDOVÁ

FROM THE ANIMAL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION.

MIA WAS RESCUED AFTER BEING BADLY TREATED BY PEOPLE

WHO HAD LEFT HER IN THE STREET WITH HER NEWBORN PUPPIES

IN THE MIDDLE OF JANUARY.

I know that you’re a dog, my friend. But to me you’re my dear human being.

MÍŠA IS A KANGAL SHEPHERD DOG ONCE TRAINED FOR DOG FIGHTS IN GERMANY

AND THEN ABANDONED IN A CZECH FOREST AS A USELESS VETERAN.

TERINKA, CALLED BELLA IN THE FILM, WAS LEFT ALL ALONE IN A HOUSE AS A PUPPY.

TOBY, AN UNWANTED PUPPY THROWN OUT OF THE CAR.

THE CIMPA FAMILY FROM TÁBOR FELL IN LOVE WITH HIM IN THE BOUCHALKA SHELTER.

“I ENJOY MY LIFE WITH A DOG“ IS AN ORGANIZATION

THAT SEES ANIMALS AS PEOPLE’S CLOSEST FRIENDS.

PLEASE HELP US BRING ALL THOSE WHO NEED IT BACK TO LIFE.

ALL THE ANIMAL SCENES IN THE GUMP FILM WERE SCRIPTED IN SUCH A WAY

THAT THEY WERE COMPLETELY NATURAL FOR THE ANIMALS.

ALL THE SAD SCENES IN WHICH GUMP WAS EITHER BEATEN-UP OR TRAPPED IN A BAG

WERE THE WORK OF MAKEUP AND SPECIAL EFFECTS ARTISTS.