During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many people stayed behind to defend animals, but regrettably not all of them were successful. When the invasion began at the end of February 2022, 485 dogs were being cared for in an animal shelter in Borodyanka. However, the dogs were ᴀʙᴀɴᴅoɴᴇᴅ for a number of weeks because there were Russian soldiers stationed close to the shelter.

Now that the Russian soldiers have left the shelter, people can finally get to the dogs. But in the most tragic way imaginable, the shelter has been ᴀʙᴀɴᴅoɴᴇᴅ.

Despite the fact that volunteers wouldn’t be able to see the dogs until April 1st, 2022, UAnimals still wanted to help. At that point, the dogs had gone weeks without food or water. Animal rights advocates anticipated that the shelter would be in poor condition, but they did not anticipate what they would see next.

Out of the 485 animals in the shelter, only about 150 were still alive. ᴅᴇᴀᴅ dogs littered the floor of the shelter, and the ones that were still alive were in grave danger. Oleksandra Matviichuk of the Center for Civil Liberties shared a video of what they saw on Twitter, but it’s difficult to watch. In the video, volunteers pᴀss the dogs’ corpses as other dogs howl for ᴀssistance.

 

“We were horrified to learn a few days ago that the Borodyanka Animal Shelter had killed over 300 dogs. The animals died a horrible ᴅᴇᴀтн in their cells, without food or water; the bombs did not kill them “In a statement, UAnimals. “Everyone who, by remaining silent, contributed to the tragedy must be held accountable.”

 

The invasion caused the dogs to die a protracted and painful ᴅᴇᴀтн, while they had not been directly slain by Russian soldiers. UAnimals is demanding that the dogs be treated fairly because no one had stepped in to help them before they arrived. They think that some persons might have had the chance to save the dogs but chose not to.

Even though this is a painful situation, blaming others is not the best course of action. Currently, ensuring the survival of all living animals is the main priority. UAnimals provided the survivors with food and water in addition to veterinary care for the dogs that were in danger of dying. Many more dogs are still alive, even though some dogs pᴀssed away at the vet’s office.

Even if staff from the shelter had stayed behind to watch over the dogs, they would still have been in danger. Supplies and resources are needed by numerous organizations in Ukraine so they can take care of their animals. Unfortunately, many volunteers have died while making an effort to protect strays. However, UAnimals will continue to make every effort to ᴀssist the needy dogs despite this.

Although they are unable to do so on their own, UAnimals is making an effort to take in as many dogs as they can. Anyone who can take in the dogs they can’t keep will receive a $1,700 reward. To aid in the survival of the remaining dogs, you can make a donation to UAnimals. Of course, every donation helps, but even with more volunteers, they still struggle to care for so many dogs.