“They Were Abandoned and Scared”
Kherson zoo evacuated amid Ukrainian shelling
Under shelling from Ukrainian military, residents of Kherson continue to evacuate to safer lands in Russian-controlled territories. Not just the human residents of Kherson, but many animals as well.
The Russian army on Saturday helped to escort 18 furry and feathered residents of the Kherson zoo, which is located on the island of Maly Potemkin in the middle of the Dnieper River. The animals were in danger of flooding because of threats to the nearby Kakhovskaya hydroelectric dam, which has already been shelled by encroaching Ukrainian military.
According to RIA Novosti, the animals were evacuated by ferry to the Crimean Peninsula, on Russian territory, where they will soon be housed at the Taigan lion park, located in Belogorsk. The park offers “safaris” to young and old enthusiasts who pass through in trams and take photos.
News of this animal rescue has not been widespread in Western media, though there are claims that Ukraine evacuated the zoo. There is plenty of Russian coverage of the animals being evacuated, however, and I found one short video with English subtitles on Telegram, which I uploaded to my YouTube channel. You can watch it here:
“They were abandoned and scared,” the owner of the Taigan Park, Oleg Zubkov told local reporters. Zubkov personally helped to transport the animals to safety in Crimea. “Earlier I did not even suspect that there are zoos in Kherson. Our team and I went there in the evening, we had to get there before curfew, otherwise they would not let us out. All the animals were abandoned and very frightened,” the park director said.
Zubkov told RIA Novosti that the heads from both sides of the local region agreed to the transfer for the sake of the animals. “Indeed, we’re evacuating the animals,” he said. “We’re transporting them in protected conditions. At the moment they are crossing the border. The animals and the birds will be placed in the Taigan park. There will be a place for everything.”
Zubkov said that the evacuated animals include wolves, a llama, a donkey, and some raccoons as well as pheasants, eagles, and other birds which were held at the zoo in Kherson.
But moving the animals, as you can imagine, was no easy chore. Vesti reports that it took three employees of the Crimean zoo just to move a rather large llama named Roma, and capturing the animals took several hours.
TVC, a Crimean news channel, reports that after a day on the road, Roma the llama finally reached his destination in Crimea and that he is getting used to his large enclosure, which is 40 by 60 meters in size. He will have to get used to his new neighbors, ostriches, which are incubating their offspring in a nearby enclosure.
Dasha the donkey is also getting used to her new home, though she is not terribly fond of the lioness living next door.
A number of peacocks and partridges were also evacuated and the group of raccoons seem to have taken the entire evacuation in stride, even showing some curiosity about the news cameras.
“Raccoons are very communicative animals,” Zubkov observed, “which — you will see in a week — will hold out their paws to the visitors.”
The wolves were another matter. They had to be tranquilized for the journey. Though these wolves from Russia’s steppes are born to cover long distances in the wild, the unfamiliar smells of cars and people are traumatizing. Happily, the wolves will have a large enclosure to explore at the Crimean park. According to TVC, one of the wolves is already having a look around at his new digs.
Staff at the lion park say it will take a couple of weeks before the animals are settled in. They will spend a month in quarantine during which they will undergo examinations and vaccinations before they will again be greeted by the public.
“The animals will be in preventive quarantine for exactly 30 days. During quarantine all necessary measures will be taken — such as examinations, vaccination according to the type of the animal,” clarified Elena Mozharenko, a veterinarian from Belogorsk who is treating the animals.
The Taigan park will also bear the costs of feeding its new guests. “It’s a small load for our park,” Zubkov said, “so we haven’t even thought about fundraising for the new residents. All the pets will be fed plenty. You don’t even have to worry about that.”
Throughout the past week, Kherson’s human residents were evacuated to safety amid constant shelling by Ukrainian forces.
According to Vesti, one of the routes evacuees took, the ferry crossing near Anonovsky Bridge, was especially dangerous. The crossing is mainly used by heavy trucks which deliver food to Kherson, and many of the drivers are using the route for the first time.
The evacuation zone was expanded last week due to the increased shelling, and notices were left on streets throughout Kherson, warning people to flee. But despite the dangerous situation, the local administration at Novaya Kakhovka continues to offer social services and utilities. Residents have access to electricity, gas and water.
About the author:
Deborah Armstrong currently writes about geopolitics with an emphasis on Russia. She previously worked in local TV news in the United States where she won two regional Emmy Awards. In the early 1990’s, Deborah lived in the Soviet Union during its final days and worked as a television consultant at Leningrad Television.
