The stories coming out of Ukraine are both horrific and heroic at the same time. If you can, please help.
Somehow, 9 survived! They need food, special care – and found forever homes. AND, we must sterilize as many dogs and cats as possible to prevent future suffering and death. Please, help!
A few days ago, our partner Oksana Zhurba of Ecoprotection of Starokostyantyniv (EPS) made a heart-breaking discovery: 13 tiny puppies suckling their dead mother in the basement of a dilapidated house in Ukraine. Tragically, it was too late for 4 of the little guys, but the surviving babies were immediately rushed to safety. They need your help!
It wasn’t immediately clear how the mother died, but since she was homeless and nursing her litter, it seems she died of starvation and malnutrition.
Oksana’s team made the discovery after receiving a call from a concerned neighbor who had heard crying from the house. The puppies were starving. They were still desperately trying to fill their little bellies with any drop of milk they could get, but their poor mother’s body had given up – totally depleted after literally giving her life for her babies. She had nothing left to give.
We’re devastated that we were already too late for 4 of the precious little souls, but we must now focus on the orphans who need all our help to survive.
Oksana reports that miraculously, they found another dog on the scene who, while not the mother, appeared to have recently had her own litter and was allowing the puppies to feed from her. In this time of war, many humans could learn from the selflessness and ‘humanity’ that these animals show towards each other.
When assessed by a vet, it was clear that the mother dog had almost no milk left. The puppies were rescued in the nick of time – any longer and all of them would have been dead. Puppies must be kept warm and well-fed to survive, and these babies were not receiving any of that critical care – this much was clear from the ones who had sadly already died.
The puppies are estimated to be one month old: just old enough to start eating solid food. They would NEVER have had access to food in the dilapidated basement in which they were found. Dogs and cats left homeless in this atrocious war are scrounging the streets for food and finding nothing but their dead friends and empty bullet shells. Thank goodness they are safe now.