IN the 19th century, nestled beside Bursa’s historic Irgandı Bridge, the Gurabahane-i Laklakan, literally “House of Fallen Storks” emerged as the Ottoman Empire’s first dedicated animal hospital. Revered today as possibly the world’s earliest such institution, it was purpose-built to care for migratory birds, particularly storks, injured along their seasonal routes.
Built in Bursa’s Haffaflar (Shoemakers’) Bazaar square, an area favoured by storks during spring and summer migrations. Local merchants and possibly Grégorie Baille, an Armenian-born staff member at the French consulate, first cared for injured birds and later institutionalised treatment under the name Gurabahane-i Laklakan. Beyond storks, the hospital also aided crows, owls and other wildlife, supported by community donations and municipal backing.
Influential Turkish poet Ahmet Haşim immortalised the hospital in his 1928 essay collection titled Gurabahane-i Laklakan,…
