![\"Ukraine](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.animals24-7.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Picsart_25-06-15_17-35-08-514-e1750034141557.jpg?ssl=1\")
<\/a><\/p>\n(Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n KIEV, Ukraine\u2013\u2013<\/strong>The outcome of Russian president Vladimir Putin\u2019s war on Ukraine has yet to be determined,\u00a0 eleven years after Russian troops seized Crimea and more than three years after Russian tanks rolled into the Ukrainian mainland,\u00a0 but Ukrainian dogs\u2013\u2013for the time being,\u00a0 at least\u2013\u2013appear to have won a substantial societal status upgrade.<\/p>\n This was among the messages evidenced by the world premiere of the Ukrainian-German anthology film Animals in War<\/em> on June 8,\u00a0 2025 at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City,\u00a0 but Animals in War<\/em>,\u00a0 featuring U.S actor\/director Sean Penn in one of seven anthology segments,\u00a0 is only the latest of many media reports delivering essentially the same message.<\/p>\n Another example is the War Tails <\/em>documentary about homeless pets in Ukraine made by War Animals Relief Fund founders Tana Axtelle and Dan Fine,\u00a0 aired at the Global Peace Film Festival held in Winter Park,\u00a0 Florida,\u00a0 in September 2024.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Explained Washington Post<\/em> Ukraine bureau chief Siobh\u00e1n O\u2019Grady, \u00a0with colleagues Kostiantyn Khudov and Serhiy Morgunov on May 28, 2025,\u00a0 \u201cRussia\u2019s invasion has made the security of pets a national priority. \u00a0Families in front-line towns often flee Russian shelling with multiple pets in tow, \u00a0and soldiers feed and care for those left behind.<\/p>\n \u201cThe lengths Ukrainian troops and volunteers have gone to rescue vulnerable dogs has spurred a massive cultural shift, \u00a0transforming Ukraine \u2014 once criticized for its treatment of animals \u2014 into an extraordinarily dog-friendly country,\u201d\u00a0 O\u2019Grady,\u00a0 Khudov,\u00a0 and Morgunov assessed.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n The Washington Post<\/em> team credited former Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba with helping to spark the transition by allowing employees to bring their dogs to work in the immediate wake of the Russian invasion.<\/p>\n The presence of pet dogs\u2013\u2013often howling in terror when left at home alone\u2013\u2013became a stabilizing influence on the diplomatic workforce.\u00a0 The dogs\u2019 ears also helped to alert workers to incoming rockets,\u00a0 bombs,\u00a0 and artillery.<\/p>\n \u201cKuleba resigned in 2024,\u201d\u00a0 wrote O\u2019Grady,\u00a0 Khudov,\u00a0 and Morgunov,\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cbut the Foreign Ministry confirmed that his dog policy remains in place.<\/p>\n \u201cDogs are also now welcome inside most restaurants, \u00a0cafes, \u00a0beauty salons, \u00a0grocery stores and hotels in major Ukrainian cities. \u00a0They\u2019re often greeted with water bowls and treats or, \u00a0in some cases, \u00a0their own menus.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cUkrainians\u2019 commitment to saving front-line animals \u2018literally changed how we as a nation are perceived abroad,\u2019 \u00a0Kuleba said.\u201d<\/p>\n For decades after Ukraine left the Russian-dominated Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 1991,\u00a0 most and perhaps all media documentation about dogs in Ukraine focused on the brutality of the convict-staffed budka<\/em> animal control system inherited from Communism,\u00a0 and before that from rule by czars.<\/p>\n The budkas,\u00a0 <\/em>or dog pounds\u00a0 were expected to fund themselves through the sale of dogs,\u00a0 dog pelts,\u00a0 rendered remains,\u00a0 and reclaim fees amounting to bribes of varying amount paid by owners to recover impounded dogs before they were killed,\u00a0 skinned,\u00a0 and rendered.<\/p>\n Even after Ukraine left the Soviet Union,\u00a0 the budka<\/em> system persisted,\u00a0 sustained by corruption and criminal violence.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Secondarily,\u00a0 pre-Putin\u2019s war western media coverage of dogs in Ukraine mentioned endemic rabies and lack of spay\/neuter service.<\/p>\n Twenty-odd years of growing Ukrainian animal advocacy and supporting investment from outside charities,\u00a0 notably Four Paws of Austria and Naturewatch of the United Kingdom,\u00a0 gradually brought the end of the budkas<\/em> and widespread introduction of western-style animal sheltering,\u00a0 rescue,\u00a0 and improved access to affordable spay\/neuter.<\/p>\n Outside perception of dogs\u2019 status in Ukraine did not change,\u00a0 however,\u00a0 until the world began to see Ukrainian efforts of dogs\u2019 behalf under fire.<\/p>\n \u201cAnimals in War<\/em> is a collection of seven short films, most of which are based on true events,\u201d\u00a0 publicist Olga Pradid told ANIMALS 24-7<\/strong>. \u00a0\u201cEach story centers on the tragedy of animals whose lives have been changed by war. \u00a0The anthology encompasses various genres and narrative styles, all united by a common theme \u2014 compassion.<\/p>\n \u201cThe anthology was developed over the course of two years by around 500 Ukrainian and international filmmakers,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid continued.\u00a0 \u201cThe film was produced by Oleg Kokhan and Oleksiy Makukhin, \u00a0while the opening episode was directed by Ukrainian filmmaker Myroslav Slaboshpytskyi.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the project\u2019s partners,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid mentioned,\u00a0 \u201cis Save Pets of Ukraine, \u00a0part of the international U-Hearts Foundation platform, \u00a0founded in 2022 by Ukrainian pet food manufacturer Kormotech.<\/p>\n \u201cThe impact of war on animals often remains outside the focus of public attention,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid wrote.<\/p>\n Actor Sean Penn in Ukraine.<\/strong><\/em> \u201cUkraine still only has official [animal] statistics for 2022,\u201d\u00a0 the first year of the Russian invasion of the Ukrainian mainland.<\/p>\n \u201cAccording to estimates by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid summarized,\u00a0 around six million domestic animals died that year.<\/p>\n \u201cSince then,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid said,\u00a0 \u201caccording to a study by Save Pets of Ukraine and Kormotech, conducted in 2023, \u00a0the number of animals in shelters and under the care of animal welfare volunteers has surged: \u00a0by 20\u201330% in areas away from the front lines, \u00a0by 60% among volunteers, \u00a0and by 100% or more in shelters in frontline areas.<\/p>\n \u201cIn 2023 alone, \u00a0nearly 26,000 dogs and 20,000 cats in Ukraine were under the care of shelters and volunteers \u2014 and those numbers have only continued to rise,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid told ANIMALS 24-7<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u201cSave Pets of Ukraine has funded the rescue of animals from frontline regions and delivered 1,900 tons of food to shelters and volunteers caring for cats and dogs saved from combat zones,\u201d Pradid said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe organization has also helped to find new homes for over 2,000 animals left without care due to the war,\u201d\u00a0 Pradid said,\u00a0 \u201cand has facilitated more than 21,000 vaccinations.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n While Putin\u2019s war may have helped public acceptance of dogs,\u00a0 it has not been good for animals otherwise,\u00a0 including thousands of dogs and cats who have become homeless;\u00a0 not only those aided by Save Pets of Ukraine and Kormotech,\u00a0 but also helped by dozens of other organizations,\u00a0 ranging from start-up \u201cmom and pop\u201d charities abroad,\u00a0 and of course the major international animal welfare charities,\u00a0 some of which were already involved in Ukraine to some extent.<\/p>\n Judging from websites about animal aid and rescue in Ukraine,\u00a0 many of which have not been updated in months or even years,\u00a0 both the big international charities and most of the foreign start-ups appear to have become inactive, \u00a0after enthusiastic beginnings.<\/p>\n (SOTA Cinema Group photo)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Donor fatigue set in as the war dragged on.\u00a0 Even the online scammers who converge on any well-publicized disaster are much less active now in response to animal needs in Ukraine.<\/p>\n Yet Ukrainians themselves have stepped up,\u00a0 concerned not only about the dogs and cats immediately in need of rescue,\u00a0 but also about whatever comes next.<\/p>\n Pradid mentioned \u201cdestruction of ecosystems: \u00a0mined forests, \u00a0polluted water bodies, \u00a0and ravaged nature reserves,\u00a0 depriving animals of their natural habitats \u2014 and often, of any chance of survival.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Iryna Skubii,\u00a0 the Mykola Zerov Fellow in Ukrainian Studies at the University of Melbourne School of Historical & Philosophical Studies in Australia,\u00a0 offered a similar perspective a year earlier via the July 24,\u00a0 2024 edition of the academic online magazine The Conversation<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were approximately 5.5 million cats and 750,000 dogs in Ukraine before the war,\u201d\u00a0 Skubii wrote.\u00a0 \u201cMany have been killed or abandoned by their owners, \u00a0causing the stray population to explode.<\/p>\n \u201cIn response, many organizations have launched efforts to help shelter and treat wounded animals.<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough it is hard to provide an exact number of refugee animals, \u00a0in 2022 alone, \u00a0more than 10,000 animals are believed to have crossed the Ukrainian-Polish border. \u00a0Some pets later came back to Ukraine with their owners, \u00a0while others stayed in Europe or were moved further around the globe.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage) <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe fate of livestock is much grimmer,\u201d\u00a0 Skubii said.\u00a0 \u201cMany barns, for example, have become direct targets of Russian army shelling and missiles.<\/p>\n \u201cIn March 2022, \u00a0for example, \u00a0the Russian army killed 100 cows and calves on a farm as they advanced in the Chernihiv region. \u00a0Later that year, \u00a0a missile strike killed 45 cows and injured a dozen and a half in another village in the region.<\/p>\n \u201cEarlier this year (2024), \u00a0a dairy industry figure estimated that some 200,000 cows in total had been killed.<\/p>\n \u201cAt a chicken factory in the Kherson region \u2013 then the biggest in Europe \u2013 four million chickens died when the feeding system was disabled due to the destruction of a nearby power station.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Incomplete as the available information about the effects on animals of Putin\u2019s war is from Ukraine,\u00a0 far less is accessible from the Russian side.<\/p>\n The Times<\/em> of London on February 10,\u00a0 2025,\u00a0 six months ago,\u00a0 reported that \u201cPutin\u2019s forces, short of vehicles, \u00a0are using donkeys to take ammunition and supplies to troops on the front line as the war with Ukraine nears the three-year mark.<\/p>\n \u201cViktor Sobolev, \u00a0a retired general who is now a member of the Russian parliament\u2019s defense committee, \u00a0defended the use of the animals as a necessity,\u201d\u00a0 The Times<\/em> continued.\u00a0 \u201cRussia is estimated to have lost about 20,000 pieces of military equipment since the start of its all-out invasion of Ukraine almost three years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Said Sobolev,\u00a0 \u201cThere are currently great difficulties in providing units and divisions with ammunition, \u00a0military supplies, \u00a0as well as food. \u00a0If some methods such as donkeys, horses, and so on are used to deliver ammunition and other supplies to the front line, this is normal.\u00a0 It is better for a donkey to be killed than two people transporting supplies in a vehicle.\u201d<\/p>\n Acknowledged The Times<\/em>,\u00a0 \u201cIt is unclear how widespread the use of donkeys is. \u00a0However, Russian soldiers have been seen using horses, motorcycles, \u00a0and even electric scooters to move around the front in recent months.\u201d<\/p>\n The use of donkeys,\u00a0 mules,\u00a0 and horses in wartime,\u00a0 including in deep snow and mud where motor vehicles have bogged down,\u00a0 is actually nothing new or unusual.<\/p>\nIndifferent a generation ago toward suffering street dogs,\u00a0 Ukraine is now a dog-loving nation<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cInvasion has made security of pets a national priority\u201d<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nDogs come to work<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cChanged how we as a nation are perceived\u201d<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nTwenty years of change<\/h2>\n
<\/a>\u201cSeven short films\u201d<\/h2>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
(Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\nBy the numbers<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nForeign help groups fade out<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nUkrainians themselves step up<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nRefuge animals<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cBarns have become targets\u201d<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nRussians using donkeys<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cThis is normal\u201d<\/h2>\n