‘We stay to help the animals’, says Ukrainian conservationist

Posted by Anita Froneman on 18 March 2022

Wildlife conservationists are scrambling to keep wild animals out of harm’s way as Russia continues to invade Ukraine. The ripple effect of war means that not only are human lives in danger, but also the lives of animals caught in the crossfire.

Dr Maryna Shkvyria, Chief Zoologist and project coordinator of the Save Wild organisation said the situation is dire. ‘Thousands of people are under bombing. Thousands are killed. Millions left the country.’

Save Wild manages the White Rock Bear Shelter in collaboration with Four Paws International. Here, bears who were rescued from circuses or other commercial practices are rehabilitated. ‘We want as many people as possible to change their attitude towards wild animals as an object of entertainment,’ their website reads.

Now, Maryna and her team have seven bears in their care who will once again be exposed to traumatic circumstances. ‘When we understood the situation was too dangerous, our main issue was to avoid damage of fences and escape of predators. So we decided to evacuate all bears to our partners in Western Ukraine – Domazhyr bear sanctuary of Four Paws Fund,’ she said. Some of the bears also went to shelters in Germany.

‘We did it in two days. It was extremely hard without proper drugs, vets, cages. One bear is now sick because of inflammation and stress after the long and hard road. We did surgery today and can only hope now for his recovery.’

Maryna said they will continue to treat, feed and care for the animals alongside the Domazhyr staff. ‘And we try to help other organizations with the evacuation of their wild animals. Many wild animals are abandoned in private menageries and are starving.’

Not only the animals, but also the environment has been affected, Maryna added. ‘A lot of valuable biotopes and protected territories were destroyed and burnt. It is hard to estimate now what the damage will be for small mammals, reptiles, amphibians and bird populations.’

She added that with the existing climate challenges, diseases, economic and conservation challenges the world is facing, wars like this will have detrimental effects on the planet.

‘We stay in our country and continue to help animals. Now we just wait for victory in our country.’

To find out more or donate, visit https://savewild.org/en/donate_en/

Picture: Save Wild

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