緊急支援：ウクライナの動物・ペット達のために、私達ができることを

Financial relief aid to animal rescue groups as a result of Russian war invasion.

The war scenes from Ukraine and from the frontiers flooded by people running from the Russian tanks and missiles have touched humankind all over the world.  We (FOA) are very concerned and thinking of the Ukrainian people and their animals and we are trying to find the best ways to help them now and on a longer term. People are desperately fleeing with their pets, showing the whole world that they value their animals’ lives just as they do their own. The only way we can help is launching this donation campaign, knowing that the Japanese people are also worried and trying to help ease the pains of this unfortunate war. The donation will be directed to verified animal rescue groups in the war area, to help them continue their hard work.

Thank you for your kind support!

Ukrainian refugees fleeing the outbreak of war in their country are bringing their beloved pets with them, and fortunately, the neighboring nations Poland and Romania relaxed the restrictions on the cross-border movement of animals. As soon as the war crisis started, Romanians and Polish people organized themselves and took packages to the border, while others offered transport, accommodation, food, hygiene products, food for animals and all the necessary for refugees coming to our countries. Images with people holding in their arms not only children, but also cats and dogs, the image of a crying child, tired, but protecting the cage with a small parrot or the images of a man carrying on his back an old and sick German shepherd that he couldn’t abandon in his escape from war, moved us to tears. As expected, the animal protection organizations` reactions were immediate. 

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is, first of all, a devastating humanitarian crisis, but a huge part of the refugees’ stories are also the dogs, the cats and the other beloved pets, all of them considered family. The loyalty of their pets helped them and their families to go to such an exhausting escape towards safety. Especially for children, the presence of their animals is a source of comfort in this traumatic situation of war. These refugees are scared and exhausted, but rescuing their pets, too, is a huge relief. 

Help is needed not only at the borders, but also for the remaining population and animal shelters existing in Ukraine, for the zoological gardens and local animal rescue groups that cannot abandon Ukraine and are isolated in the war areas.  Everyone is asking how to help faster, better and in a more efficient way. Direct help is being given as much as possible, but the resources are limited, so making donations directed to the groups that are already in action there is the best thing we can do from distance. The donations will be used first of all for food supplies, medical aids and other rescue emergencies, as the number of animals being taken into care is increasing dramatically.

There are hundreds of animal shelters, veterinary clinics, rescue centers, zoos, cows and horses farms, as well as thousands of families that remained in Ukraine and fight desperately to find food and safety for animals and for themselves.  There is also a large number of dogs and cats roaming abandoned on the streets of Ukraina, separated by their families, they are hungry, traumatized, injured and in need for help.

The tragedy of war does not make the difference between two-leg and four―leg creatures. Many vulnerable animals are being left behind without their guardians or other caring people, which will lead to terrifying and prolonged deaths. 

Romanian NGOs, in cooperation with Polish, French, German and Italian associations are preparing food and medical care for cats and dogs for both Ukrainian animal shelters, for the local animal rescue groups that offered shelter to refugees with animals at the entry points in the country and also prepared and offered assistance to the Moldavian republic, which has very limited resources. In Moldova the situation is also very tensed because they are very close to the conflict area and there are many refugees from Crimean Peninsula and the big bombarded cities of Mariupol, Mykolaiv, as well as Odesa.

Many local animal welfare groups are helping the Ukrainian refugees that carried their pets, providing emergency supplies, food, shelter and medical care immediately after exiting the war zone and then further on their trip. The persons who access those assistance services are relieved that they could save their pets and spare them and their children of more traumatic experiences.   

The biggest obstacle is the transportation inside Ukraine because any kind of movement there is very dangerous. The drivers are exposed to the bombing and shootings of the Russian military. Every rescue is risky and takes time, but it is very important to save everything that lives and breathes, no matter if people or animals, because they have value as well. We must not make difference.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine offers us a powerful lesson: most people with pets will not willingly leave them to fend for themselves. The evacuation efforts cannot be successful if they don’t include the desire to protect a beloved pet from danger and harm and to do everything possible to stay together. That’s what we see in the images from the conflict zone, the images of people with the pets they love and would not leave behind.

Please donate to protect animals endangered by disasters or humanitarian crisis like the conflict in Ukraine and to support our lifesaving work.