Donations for BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr and our Stray Animal Care project can be made here.

Even since the first weeks of the war, our BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr has been a continuous shelter for bears in need – temporarily welcoming seven bears in an emergency rescue mission from White Rock Shelter located in the Kyiv region, run by the organisation Save Wild. Fortunately, three bears were relocated to Germany in March 2022 while the other four bears have been able to return to White Rock Shelter in June 2022. Additionally, we could finally rescue former restaurant bear Vova in March 2022 and bring him safely to our BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr. At the end of September 2022, FOUR PAWS rescued an abandoned brown bear Bakhmut from war-torn Donetsk region and transferred him to BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr.

Since the beginning of the war FOUR PAWS has taken several emergency measures to help the animals affected by the war, including the delivery of specialised food for zoo animals to Kyiv Zoo and the delivery of pet food to shelters in need.  

To cover the high and urgent need for dog and cat food at the beginning of the war, FOUR PAWS partnered with Dogs Trust Worldwide and International Registration System Animal ID in 2022, to set up an organisation called Ukrainian Pet Association Worldwide (UPAW) that coordinates and distributes pet food and other supplies to registered shelters and volunteers. By the end of 2022, UPAW had taken care of the distribution of more than 1,000 tons of humanitarian aid, which has helped more than 125,000 dogs and cats in Ukraine.

Since the beginning of the war FOUR PAWS has taken several emergency measures to help the animals affected by the war, including the delivery of specialised food for zoo animals to Kyiv Zoo and delivery of pet food to shelters in need. But the need for dog and cat food in Ukraine is so big, we cannot meet these requests alone. Therefore, FOUR PAWS, together with Dogs Trust Worldwide and International Registration System Animal ID, set up an organisation called Ukrainian Pet Association Worldwide (UPAW) that coordinates and distributes pet food and other supplies to registered shelters and volunteers. As of mid-November, UPAW has taken care of the distribution of almost 1,000,000 kilogrammes of humanitarian aid, which has helped more than 100,000 dogs and cats in Ukraine.

Please find out more about our emergency aid in Ukraine here.

While our Stray Animal Care team had to pause its actions at the beginning of the war, since mid-April they are back at full working capacity. FOUR PAWS remains on the ground, working tirelessly to reduce the stray animal population by conducting a sustainable sterilisation programme, in addition to helping sick and injured dogs and cats where we can. By November 2022, over 2,000 stray dogs and cats have been treated in wartime. We also launched ‘Project Kishka’, a unique project fully focusing on helping stray cats (Kishka means female cat in Ukrainian) with the aim to sterilise and vaccinate approximately 10,000 Ukrainian stray cats until December 2023.

Additionally, we have launched an e-learning course called ‘Shelter Adoption Academy’ which is currently available in English, and it will also be launched in Ukrainian at the end of November. The course aims to substantially increase adoption rates in shelters, create adoption culture among the local communities and improve the quality of life for shelter dogs – as at the moment, sadly thousands of dogs are in shelter without the hope of ever getting out. The course includes an online toolkit and guidelines on welfare management and adoption and is delivered in an interactive format designed for shelter staff and volunteers. To find out more click here.

Even since the first weeks of the war, our BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr has been a continuous shelter for bears in need – temporarily welcoming seven bears in an emergency rescue mission from wild animal sanctuary White Rock Shelter located in the Kyiv region, fortunately these bears have been able to return home in June.

Additionally, we could finally rescue former restaurant bear Vova in March and bring him safely to our BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr. At the end of September, FOUR PAWS rescued an abandoned brown bear Bakhmut from war-torn Donetsk region and transferred him to BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr.

Even under the difficult circumstances, our dedicated team in Domazhyr is continuously taking excellent care of the 31 rescued bears who are currently homed in the sanctuary. You can find regular updates on the website of the sanctuary: https://www.bearsanctuary-domazhyr.org/

Please contact Vets for Ukrainian Pets

If you are in Moldova please contact our partner DoctorVet. Tel: +37361014422

We are aware of the extremely distressing situation in Ukraine and our hearts are broken about the immense suffering of humans and animals in these difficult times. 

Although some pet owners may have left their pets behind, we are receiving reports of an overwhelming number of refugees bring their pets with them into the EU to safety, where they are receiving food and water, transport boxes, and medical care.

Yes, all European borders are open for refugees with their pets. Please find more details on our info page "Ukraine: How to Cross the Border With Pets"

We greatly appreciate that many of our supporters are offering donations-in-kind to help animals in Ukraine. We have been working hard on finding an efficient way to collect these donations in kind and to distribute them to those who need them the most.

We are glad that with the platform UPAW we have now been able to find an efficient way to do so. Donations in kind can be sent to the Polish-Ukrainian border or Livi. Currently only palleted deliveries can be accepted due to import regulations. If you want to donate a smaller amount of food or other items, please refer to local collection points organised by many different organisations in each individual city or country. Please find out more about the procedure here: https://upaw.notion.site/How-to-make-a-delivery

Should you wish to support our BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr and our Stray Animal Care projects in Ukraine and its neighboring countries please donate here.

Humans and animals alike are suffering greatly under the current situation in Ukraine. 

At FOUR PAWS we are putting all our energy into finding solutions to deliver active support to animals in shelters and in the streets, but logistics into and inside Ukraine are extremely challenging right now. We hope that we will soon be in a position again to actively support the efforts for animals in need in Ukraine. 

Therefore, the most effective way to provide support at this time, is through a financial donation, which we can then use to provide the supplies that are most needed, to those that need it the most.

Although we greatly appreciate that many supporters offer to provide help at the borders to Ukraine, we strongly discourage individuals from such initiatives. The authorities along with organisations that are trained in humanitarian aid are coordinating their efforts to help refugees – with and without pets – at all border crossings.

The most effective way to provide support at this time, is through a financial donation, which we can then use to provide the supplies that are most needed, to those that need it the most.

Although we greatly appreciate the fact that many of our supports want to offer their help in Ukraine, we strongly discourage individuals from travelling into the country.

BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr, which currently houses 30 rescued bears, is located in the western part of the country and although there have been air attacks reported in this part of the country as well, our colleagues and animals are currently doing well under the circumstances. We continue to take care of the bears in our sanctuary and are of course carefully considering the safety of our colleagues at the same time.

The most effective way to provide support at this time, is through a financial donation, which we can then use to provide the supplies that are most needed, to those that need it the most.

Although we greatly appreciate the fact that many of our supporters want to offer their help in Ukraine, we strongly discourage individuals from travelling into the country.

Additionally, our stray animal care teams work with highly skilled professionals that are trained to perform high-volume treatments with a focus on high-quality clinical practice, as well as professionals that are trained to catch, handle and transport stray animals in a humane way.

Due to the very specific requirements for our team and moreover the unpredictable conditions in the country, we are unable to accept any volunteers. The most effective way to provide support at this time, is through a financial donation, which we can then use to provide the supplies that are most needed, to those that need it the most.

Yes, although we had to temporarily pause some of our stray animal care activities at the beginning of the war, our team is now back at full capacity. Find out more about our stray animal care work in Ukraine here.

FOUR PAWS’ response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis was swift, coordinating with partner organisations Fallopia in Slovakia, DoctorVet in Moldova, and Animal Society in Romania. Together, we reached over 2,500 people and their animals supplying food, pet carriers, vaccinations, medications, as well as guidance and information.  

A new project was set up recently – Vets for Ukrainian Pets, a reimbursement scheme operating in 38 European countries, supporting private veterinarians treating pets of Ukrainian refugees. The programme will cover the treatment costs of up to five dogs, cats, or horses, up to 250 Euros per animal, for acute care and medication, rabies and other vaccinations as well as microchipping and medical examination required for safe passage through the EU.   

With the gradual decline of refugees crossing the borders with their pets, and with the launch of the Vets for Ukraine initiative, we are starting to refocus our efforts in our organisations’ core projects. We will continue working within Ukraine, through our established Animal Assisted Interventions programme.

Many thanks for your interest in the work of FOUR PAWS and our projects in Ukraine. The wellbeing of our Ukrainian colleagues is of the utmost importance, especially during these difficult and challenging times. We can, therefore, not grant you a live interview.

We are, however, able to offer you an interview in print form and our international colleagues remain at your disposal for live/TV interviews.

For press inquiries, please contact PR-Int@four-paws.org.