It is common knowledge among Ukrainian soldiers that those who join the army sooner or later become cat people.
Felines are found in the most unlikely places on the front lines. In the trenches, at checkpoints, in destroyed homes, and at medical stability points, they are always looking for warmth and a little food in exchange for a hug and a morale boost.
But even the toughest front-line animals can be in danger from time to time. Earlier this month, Ukraine’s 14th Independent Mechanized Brigade finally succeeded in using drones to evacuate dogs and cats from the middle of a battlefield.
The cat Barsik and the dog Zadiburg regularly appeared in the areas occupied by the brigade, and then somehow made their way to one of the front-line positions.
It would be too dangerous for a human to pick up a four-legged visitor from the dugout, so Barsik and Zajburg decided to send out a drone. “The members placed them in special ventilated pouches, carefully strapped them to the drone and evacuated them,” brigade spokeswoman Nadiya Zamliga told CNN by phone.
He said the task required special skills from the drone pilot, who had to fly the animal about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) before landing in a “gentle” manner.
Zamliga said the evacuation had a happy ending when Barsik was recognized by his “cat dad,” an injured soldier who is now recovering. They plan to meet again soon, she added.
Meanwhile, Zajburg remains in a rear unit, away from the front lines, where he is thriving, Zamliga said. “The stress of flying the drone quickly disappeared. These animals have been living with their companions for two years and have no intention of letting them go,” she said.
Even amidst the initial chaos and brutality of Russia’s all-out invasion in February 2022, the determination of many Ukrainians to care for animals during wartime touched many hearts around the world. The fierce war has entered its fifth year, but there are no signs of letting up.
Inga Sakada is the director of UA Animals, one of the largest animal welfare organizations in Ukraine. We have been involved in the evacuation, treatment and care of thousands of animals in frontline areas.
“Twice a month, our veterinary team goes to the front lines, sometimes working around the clock from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., to treat, vaccinate and neuter every animal brought in,” she said, adding that a single vet mission can treat as many as 500 to 600 animals.
Many people forced to give up their animals during evacuations know they may not be able to get them back soon, Sakata said.
“There were people who were evacuated and couldn’t take their cows with them. We received a handwritten letter from the owner. In the letter, they wrote about the cow’s personality, how they like to spend their time, what they like, how kind they are, how they want you to talk to them, and that the cow loves it,” she said.
Sakata added that the cow, called Lipka, is currently living at a shelter and has already gained many fans.
The group constantly struggles to meet demand, she said. We don’t have enough volunteers, we don’t have enough shelter space, and we don’t have enough people who want to adopt lost or abandoned pets. Money is also not enough.
“The number of animals stranded in frontline areas is huge… At peak times we can receive around 100 requests a day, and unfortunately we can’t respond to all of them,” she said.
Not all animals can be saved. In September, the Ukrainian Equestrian Federation announced that several top racehorses had been killed in a Russian drone attack on a stable. In October, a strike at a farm in Kharkiv caused a massive fire that killed as many as 13,000 pigs. And just this week, the head of the Ukrainian government agency that manages the Chernobyl exclusion zone warned that landmines left by Russian troops who fled in 2022 are killing off wildlife in the area, including the rare and endangered Przewalski horse.
UA Animals said it has evacuated more than 10,000 animals since the invasion began in earnest, including cats, dogs, tigers, lions, camels, horses, cows, raccoons, wolves, donkeys, porcupines, lemurs, sheep and bees.
Yes, it’s a bee. Sakata said UA Animals successfully rescued 13 beehives from a newly liberated but still mined village in eastern Ukraine and transported them to Lviv, where their owners are being rescued. The team was stung several times on the trip, but it was worth it. The bees originally belonged to Holocaust survivors, who passed them on to their grandchildren. According to Sakata, the man cried when he was reunited with the bee.
Many of the evacuated animals ended up in shelters, while others found new loving homes.
Yulia, a Kharkiv resident who asked CNN to use only her first name for privacy reasons, said her 10-year-old son, Timofi, plans to adopt the rescue cat. So when a member of the 14th Brigade shared a photo of a kitten at the front on social media, especially since the kitten was found in Kupiansk, the deal was sealed.
The city in eastern Ukraine, which has been on the front lines of fighting for most of the past four years, is where Yulia’s parents are from and where she grew up.
It took 20 days for the soldiers to bring the kitten to Timofey, who found it very small and quite dirty. Timofey immediately fell in love.
This little guy was called Andriulicus by the soldiers, named Plush by Timofey, and is now known as Andriulicus Plush.
Like any self-respecting cat, Andriurix Plush knows he’s the boss, and he’s not afraid to show it, according to Yulia.
“When a (Russian) Shahed drone flies overhead, he climbs on the windowsill to watch where it goes. He is not afraid of noise at all. He is a real fighting cat,” Yulia said.
