The FOUR PAWS Stray Animal Care (SAC) program was officially launched in 2012 in various cities of Ukraine. The program aims to provide veterinary treatment to ill and injured stray animals throughout the country, as well as to humanely neuter stray animals to help contain overpopulation. 

Our vets conduct surgeries, treat wounds and illnesses, vaccinate dogs and cats against rabies, and find homes for animals that can’t be returned to the street. 

Through cooperation agreements with City Councils, FOUR PAWS has provided support to over 39 municipalities using humane dog population management throughout Ukraine. In 2017, a partnership with a municipality and a local public enterprise allowed FOUR PAWS to begin operating a stationary veterinary clinic and neutering program for stray animals in Zhytomyr, west of Kiev.

Since 2017 FOUR PAWS supported a municipal partnership along with a local public enterprise operating a stationary veterinary clinic and neutering program for stray animals in Zhytomyr, west of Kiev.

Starting in 2018, FOUR PAWS set the first steps of a new project in Ukraine by training former strays to become therapy dogs and partnering with key institutions in preparation of the first therapy activities. Selected former stray dogs are currently in training to prepare for the first sessions with specific target groups in 2019. 

Over this short time period, FOUR PAWS Ukraine has grown to become one of the country’s most renowned and respected animal welfare organisations.

FOUR PAWS Ukrainian SAC team has 7 members of the team, including vets, veterinary assistants, dog handlers and animal caretakers and travels to different municipalities with a mobile veterinary clinic. The mobile veterinary clinic is fully equipped for our vet team to perform neutering on stray dogs and cats wherever it is set up.

During a field clinic, FOUR PAWS dog handlers bring dogs to the mobile vet clinic for neutering. The team works together with the local community and educate residents about humane stray animal care, which helps to make the catching process easier. Local residents are made aware of the purpose of the project and understand the importance of solving the problem of animal overpopulation in their city using a humane approach. 

Community volunteers and ‘animal guardians’ are often contacted to help locate stray dogs. A volunteer or animal guardian is an incredibly important person who knows the city well, including knowing places where dogs are fed or where they normally reside. Sometimes an animal has a specific community carer or has been fed by an animal guardian in the past, and these people can help make the dog feel safer and more comfortable attending the neutering clinic.