On May 26-27, two trucks of the All-Russian ZooFriend zoo and shelter Campaign successfully reached their destination cities and delivered help to Kherson, Melitopol, Donetsk, and Mariupol.
There is a variety of feed for dogs, cats and rabbits, wheat groats, medical and veterinary drugs, a diesel generator for the Mariupol zoo, sedatives to organize the evacuation of wild animals for the zoo in Pridorozhnoe, equipment for the Donetsk Botanical Garden with the total weight of 28 tons.
ZooFriend took another milestone and became the first to deliver aid to shelters and animals in Kherson and Melitopol. For Donetsk and Mariupol, the help of ZooFriend is becoming regular, but it's no less long-awaited and necessary. There are many animals and people who care about them in spite of the situation. We have already sent four trucks totaling more than 63 tons.
“However, the need remains high,” Elena Sharoykina, initiator of the ZooFriend campaign and chairwoman of the Commission on Ecology and Environmental Protection of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, told wek.ru. “It is fundamentally important for us that the help reaches the addressees and specific people, and does not get stuck in warehouses and not fall into the hands of resellers. Therefore, the organizing committee of ZooFriend is in constant contact with representatives of each shelter, the Public Chambers and other organizations in the regions. I would like to thank everyone who participates in the collection of aid and helps to organize the delivery.”
The aid delivered by two ZooFriend trucks will be distributed among more than 50 DPR shelters and individuals who care for homeless animals in Mariupol, 17 shelters and kennels in Kherson and 9 shelters in Melitopol. In total, this amounts to more than 3,000 dogs and 1,750 cats.
Mariupol zoo received a diesel generator, needed for uninterrupted power supply of refrigeration units, which will allow storing meat for predators from the organization. More than 60 representatives of the family of felines consume more than 300 kg of meat on a daily basis. There are no problems with its delivery, but there were great difficulties with storage due to the lack of electricity, which has just begun to recover.
A diesel generator for Mariupol Zoo was purchased within the framework of the Helping Animals in Donbass campaign, initiated by Irina Donnik, vice president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, together with the Giving Hope Foundation and its participants are teachers and students of veterinary universities from all over the country, scientists and associations of veterinary doctors.
Anna Krivonogova, Head of Yekaterinburg veterinary clinic Neovit, and Taras Aliper, CEO of Vetbiohim, provided funds for the purchase of the diesel generator.
Biologists and veterinary practitioners consider it important to help animals not only as an act of mercy, but also as a necessary measure to prevent the spread through animals of dangerous infectious diseases.
ZooFriend donated the sedatives needed to organize the evacuation of four bears that had been left without care in the nearby settlements to the zoo in Pridorozhny. The sedatives were provided by a member of the ZooFriend organizing committee, the Russian Biological Society, and assistance in their purchase was provided by Alexey Sautkin, chairman of the Moscow Veterinary Committee.
ZooFriend also delivered aid to the Donetsk Botanical Garden, which became the distribution center of aid in the DPR. These are pruners, loppers, sprayers and other means of plant care, which were collected and donated by employees of the Russian Geographical Society.
The ZooFriend distribution centers in Kherson are the Palace of Culture and in Melitopol is the St. Panteleimon Church.
We would like to remind you that the ZooFriend aid collection point is located in the public humanitarian aid collection center for the residents of Donbass in the building of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation on Miusskaya Square in Moscow.
All the information about the aid is in the official Telegram channel of the ZooFriend All-Russian campaign: https://t.me/zoo_drug