Rescued from zoo, lions Tsar and Jamil arrive in South Africa

On March 10th, two lions, transported from Ukraine to Belgium at the beginning of the full-scale war, were transferred to the african nature reserve Shamwari Private Game Reserve. Tsar and Jamil will now live in the wild.

When the animals were young, they were rescued from the petting zoo of the Yasnohorodka farm in the Kyiv region. Due to improper living conditions and poor nutrition, the lion cubs developed rickets. They had bone fractures and numerous strains. UAnimals and the Wild Animals Rescue Center treated the lion cubs, and after the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the team evacuated them abroad, to the rehabilitation center in Belgium. The animals lived there for two years.

In March, Tsar and Jamil traveled over 12,000 kilometers from their temporary home in Europe and finally reached South Africa, where they are looked after by the Born Free Foundation. Glen Vena, the foundation’s manager, says, “The lions are already enjoying the natural environment of Africa, the sights, sounds and especially the bushes: Jamil has been walking through them, cleaning his mane on them. We will take great care of them as they continue to adapt to their new life here in South Africa.”

Support UAnimals—your donations save lives!

Photo: Born Free Foundation

 

UAnimals to accept assistance requests in Kharkiv and Donetsk Oblasts

The UAnimals team will be accepting requests for help with pet food in Kharkiv (starting March 15th) and Donetsk Oblasts (starting March 16th). Applications can be submitted through the official Telegram bot by registered organizations, as well as internally displaced persons, animal volunteers, and military personnel.

The acceptance of requests will continue until the end of March or until the supply of food runs out. And the food will be sent to the applicants by May 15th.

11 tons of food is prepared to be sent to the Donetsk and Kharkiv Oblasts. For dogs, dry and wet food, as well as cereals for making porridge will be provided. As for cats, UAnimals has stocked up on dry food .

UAnimals can purchase pet food thanks to the support of donors. Join the fundraiser to feed animals in the front-line regions. Every contribution counts!

 

UAnimals volunteers photograph animals in search of a new home

On Saturday, volunteers from the UAnimals’ community went to shelters in different regions of Ukraine to take beautiful pictures of animals. The photos will be shared on photographers’ and shelters’social networks so that the animals can find a new home.

Volunteers visited 7 shelters: Best Friends, Sirius, and Zoopatrol in the Kyiv Oblast, Animal Rescue in Kharkiv, Red Dog in Ivano-Frankivsk, Meow-Woof in Dnipro, and Mitten in Kryvyi Rih.

Irina visited the Meow-Woof shelter in Dnipro: “It was intense and interesting, I got a lot of emotions,” the girl says. “I’m glad to contribute to a great cause. After talking with the shelter’s head, we found out that there is a need for diapers for sick cats, as well as food.”

“Most of the animals are very friendly and easily approachable,” says volunteer Tetiana, who photographed dogs at the Zoopatrol shelter in the Kyiv Oblast. “I hope our photos will help these little ones find their way into some people’s hearts and homes.”

Join the UAnimals volunteer community — and soon your weekends will become more exciting!

 

Welshmen represent UAnimals at Barcelona Marathon

On March 10th, Daniel Mathews ran the Barcelona Marathon to raise money for Ukrainian animals. Several months prior to the marathon, Dan from Wales organized a fundraiser on the UAnimals’ platform. Dan trained diligently and successfully completed the annual Barcelona Marathon this Sunday afternoon. “I can barely move,” Dan confessed after the run. “But now, a few of my friends will donate: they promised to do so when I finish. That was my motivation.”

Dan ran the marathon with his father. The men wore UAnimals logo t-shirts, and so did all their friends and family who came to Barcelona to support them. Together they raised 24 000 hryvnias for Ukrainian animals.

Anyone can open a fundraiser for their special event: it’s easy to do on the UAnimals platform.

Join in – and your gifts will be truly meaningful!

UAnimals opens a fundraiser for an animal shelter

The UAnimals team has launched a fundraiser for a veterinary hospital building at the City of Dogs shelter near Mykolaiv. The facility, planned to be constructed within 6 months, will enable the treatment of animals directly at the shelter and provide immediate assistance if needed. By the end of March, they need 290,000 hryvnias for construction materials.
The fundraiser was initiated at the request of Liudmyla Tkach, the head of the City of Dogs shelter. Currently, there are 185 dogs, 28 cats, and 2 sheep living there. The shelter lacks proper facilities; there are only outdoor enclosures. As the shelter is situated outside the city, sick animals have to be transported far to get treatment, incurring significant expenses on journeys. These issues are intended to be addressed by the establishment of the stationary veterinary clinic.
Recently, a young dog from the shelter passed away suddenly. The dog fell ill, and the staff couldn’t provide help in time. According to Liudmyla Tkach, “While we were in panic trying to find a car to take us to the city, the dog passed away. The vet said: if we had arrived just 20 minutes earlier, they could have administered medication for lung edema and heart drugs, and saved him. If there had been a stationary facility at the shelter, we could have administered everything necessary on-site, instead of losing two hours.”
Once the stationary facility is built at the shelter, emergency assistance will be provided to animals on-site, and staff will administer drips and injections in a warm, dry environment.
Join in this life-saving cause and remember: every small contribution counts!

UAnimals turns 8 years old

On March 7th, UAnimals celebrates its birthday. It was on this day in 2016 that the UAnimals initiative went public: its founder, Oleksandr Todorchuk, registered a page on social media platforms.

The initiative emerged to combat the exploitation of animals in circuses. However, over the past 8 years, UAnimals has significantly expanded its field of work. Now, it is composed of a team of rescuers, veterinarians, volunteers, lawyers, and people from many other professions who advocate for animals’ right to a dignified life.

“I was the only person in the initiative, gradually adding friends, acquaintances, and then volunteers,” says Oleksandr Todorchuk about the inception of UAnimals. “More and more people joined us. Soon it became clear that we were united by much more than just circus issues. Therefore, we began to address other problems and fight to solve them. In the beginning, I couldn’t even imagine how extensive this work would become.”

Thanks to the efforts of UAnimals and its partners,  the use of animals in mobile exhibitions has been banned in Ukraine. They have managed to strengthen accountability for animal cruelty, prohibit photo services and begging with animals.

Moreover, last year, a law banning the use of fireworks came into effect, prepared and registered at the initiative of UAnimals.

Since 2017, UAnimals has been organizing the Animal Rights March every year in various cities of Ukraine. In 2021, it was held simultaneously in 30 cities. UAnimals draws attention to issues related to animals and the environment not only in Ukraine but also abroad.

“We talk about the environmental crimes committed in our country by Russia, and we need the world to acknowledge it,” explains Olha Chevhanyuk, head of the international department of UAnimals. “We organize demonstrations, creative initivatives, and involve embassies locally. Sooner or later, Russia must pay reparations for environmental crimes.”

With the onset of full-scale war, the UAnimals team began evacuating animals from dangerous areas. On February 24th, 2022, they helped the Right Sector battalion evacuate a wolf living with soldiers and transferred it to a rehabilitation center.

Currently, rescuers go on missions to the front-line cities and villages several times a month to evacuate animals. Often, only after this can the people who care for these animals also leave the dangerous area. “The most pleasant moment is when the animals come from the destroyed territories to families or shelters, and we know they are safe,” says rescuer Vlad Myachev. “The motivating moment is when they come out of the cage or the car, and you see that they are already happy.”

One of the important directions of UAnimals’ work is animal neutering. Stray cats and dogs are a priority, says Anastasia Heichuk, head of this direction: “We spay every day. The month starts, and I allocate a certain number of animals to each of our curators.” Last year, UAnimals sterilized about 30,000 cats and dogs.

All this is possible only thanks to donors. Support UAnimals in the fight for animal rights and their well-being!

UAnimals suggests doing 8 good deeds before the organization’s eighth birthday

UAnimals suggests doing 8 good deeds leading up to its eighth birthday on March 7th. As part of the celebration, the team is launching the 8 Good Deeds campaign, featuring a special video. 

By pausing the video, supporters can choose a good deed to perform. Of course, they can also choose to do all 8!

Among the suggestions are: providing a water bowl for stray animals, hanging a bird feeder, feeding a stray animal, walking dogs at a shelter, becoming UAnimals’ patron, spreading information about animals, and creating a festive fundraiser.

UAnimals encourages people to film themselves doing the good deeds and share the videos on social media @uanimals.eng.

Join the campaign— good deeds start with small steps!

UAnimals accepts requests for animals treatment in March

During March, UAnimals will provide financial assistance for the treatment of animals that were affected by the war in the Donetsk Oblast. Charitable foundations and organizations can request help through a chatbot.

UAnimals will help cover the treatment costs for both wild and domestic animals that have sustained shrapnel or gunshot wounds, injuries due to building destruction, or any other harm resulting from hostilities. In March, UAnimals will be able to assist 30 animals, with a maximum allocation of 10,000 hryvnias per organization.

Financial assistance will be provided only to officially registered organizations, including charitable foundations, that have not received assistance from UAnimals in the past two months. The funds will either be transferred to the organization responsible for the animal’s care or UAnimals will directly pay the bills issued by a veterinary clinic.

All recipients of funds for animal treatment are required to provide a financial report.

UAnimals assists animals thanks to donors. So, there is currently a fundraiser underway for medications for animals in frontline territories.

Every life is worth saving. Join us!

WWF Ukraine and UAnimals suggest companies to remove animals from their logos

On March 3rd, on World Wildlife Day, hundreds of companies around the world annually remove elements of nature from their branding to draw attention to environmental risks. This year, UAnimals, together with the World Wildlife Fund, invited companies in Ukraine to join this initiative.

Company owners can remove an animal or plant from their logo, reminding that these species are disappearing right now. To participate, on the day of the campaign, you need to:

– temporarily remove the logo or its part related to wildlife from social media.

– make a post with a video showing the disappearance of the branding element, adding hashtags #WORLDWITHOUTNATURE and #СВІТБЕЗПРИРОДИ and tagging UAnimals.

Remind the world about the state of wildlife—it’s our shared responsibility!

Image: Yaroslav Kozak

UAnimals suspends animal evacuation applications

The Direct Aid Department of UAnimals has temporarily closed the animal evacuation application form due to heavy workload. Before accepting new requests, the team members will process the ones already submitted.

Currently, the animal evacuation schedule is full for the next two weeks. Still, it will not cover over 30 requests that have accumulated.

“Our team is working on a very hectic schedule, but still, we cannot process all the requests we already have. The situation is only worsening, especially in Donetsk Oblast,” says evacuation manager Nina Neronova. “People have to wait for a very long time for a response. They rely on us, not leaving dangerous areas until help arrives, which in the worst-case scenario can cost them their lives.”

It’s worth noting that the UAnimals evacuation team focuses its efforts on the front-line areas. Currently, many people are leaving Donetsk Oblast. Primarily, from Selydove and the surrounding towns, which have been affected by shelling. People from Selydove turn to us for help every day, and UAnimals lacks the resources to meet all the needs.

Stay tuned for updates from the organization to not miss when UAnimals reopens the application.

Since the beginning of the full-scale war, the organization’s team has evacuated over 3,700 animals from the front-line territories.

Join the evacuation fundraising to help us rescue more animals from dangerous areas!