Today should have been a day of playing in the backyard, chasing a ball and digging in the dirt for Paulo. Instead, he has been recovering from eight gunshot wounds. He was rescued from Ukraine and brought to Poland for treatment. He spends his days healing at ADA Foundation in Przemsyl, Poland. He is one of the very few, one of the fortunate.
You can see the pain in Paulo’s face when I take him for a walk. He’s still excited to get back to his undersized cage for his breakfast. ADA has taken in more than 100 dogs and 60 cats from Ukraine. Another Romanian shelter has taken in more than 200 Ukrainian dogs, and we delivered food to a shelter in Eastern Ukraine where the founder refuses to leave and has one assistant serving more than 400 dogs.
More than four million people have fled Ukraine. As a conservative number, approximately 30 per cent have pets. That’s more than one million animals. Poland has changed their laws to make it easier for humans to migrate and harder for animals. Some of the zoos have abandoned their animals for their own personal safety. How can Ukrainians do this? Imagine bombs dropping and getting to the bus or train station, where you are told that you have to leave your luggage to make more room for people. No pets. So, you let them loose at the station and pray for the best or try to find a nearby shelter that is open.
If you visit the refugee centre here in Przemysl, you’ll see an amazing network of non-profit organizations. They help people process through the system, and the EU has granted them three-year visas. That safety net does not exist for animals trying to make it through a war they had nothing to do with.
During war, survival is often more difficult for domesticated animals. Stress is one thing, but we humans stripped away their survival skills. Now they deal with land mines, being shot, missiles, or just finding something to eat. We know from past wars, like Iraq and Afghanistan, that domesticated animals are often overlooked and left behind.
According to research by Jerome de Hemptinne, an expert on international humanitarian law, animals are largely excluded from wartime treaties like the Geneva and Hague conventions. So, the Russian killing of innocent animals continues without consequence.
For nearly a month, I’ve been volunteering at a no-kill shelter on the border of Ukraine and Poland. I’m also working at a warehouse distributing pet food, supplies, and meds deep into Ukraine. There are a lot of volunteers here working seven days a week, 16-hour days. But, the archaic laws and the lack of regard for these animals, it’s nearly impossible to bring them out of Ukraine and find them safety. Three things need to happen: First, Ukrainian shelters and zoos need support from veterinarians and regular supplies of food and medicine. Second, animals need to be rescued and provided with physical and emotional care. Third, a system needs to be set up to get these animals adopted into loving, caring families.
I believe that the EU, Canada, and the USA, along with charities around the globe, must prioritize animals in their response. This will take work, process, resources, and some incredibly brave people driving into very dangerous places so animals won’t starve. A large, co-ordinated response is needed to work together to solve this challenge created unnecessarily by Putin. Let’s take strong action to keep innocent animals healthy and safe – after all, they depend on us.
Daniel Fine is a retired West Vancouver IT executive who has spent the last month near the Ukrainian border in Poland, helping animals affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Donations to Fine's work in Ukraine can be made at GoFundMe.
