Kristina Drahomarestska, who rescues abandoned pets during the Ukraine-Russia war, talks about her role as Tana Axel (left) and Dan listens in on a panel discussion at the Edmonds Theater on Saturday.・Mr. Fine.
On Saturday afternoon, nearly every seat was occupied at the Edmonds Theater for a screening and panel discussion of Tails of War, an award-winning documentary documenting the homeless pet problem in Ukraine after the Russian invasion in February 2022. is filled.
The film was spearheaded by Edmonds couple Tana Axel and Dan Fine, who spent a month in April 2022 caring for animals at a veterinary hospital in Poland, just a few miles from the Ukrainian border. was doing. Fine returned to the war-torn area several more times, and the two eventually founded the Ukrainian War Animal Relief Fund (UWARF) to raise support for the effort.
This documentary was created to highlight the work of dedicated veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and animal rescue volunteers who work tirelessly to save abandoned animals. Due to the looming threat of rabies and the proliferation of pets, this includes rounding up stray animals, vaccinating them, and spaying/neutering them.
Saturday’s panel discussion featured a special guest: “War Tales” star Kristina Drahomarestska, who is visiting the United States from Ukraine. In addition to touring the Seattle area with Fein and Axel, Drahomarestska was interviewed by CNN’s Kim Brunhuber early Saturday morning about the scale of the homeless pet problem in Ukraine and what’s being done about it. I received it.
Christina Drahomarestska
Drahomarestska can be found throughout Watertales rescuing animals in difficult situations. She was bitten multiple times and was treated for rabies after caring for the dog, but she later died of rabies. In addition, while protecting a rescued dog, a shell fragment from a Russian drone attack hit the dog in the leg. She explained to the Edmonds Theater audience that she had worked as an architect before the war, but began volunteering to rescue animals because “there was a need and I wanted to make a difference.”
“I’ve always liked protecting people who aren’t strong, because I think I’m strong,” Drahomarestska said. “That’s why I chose animals.”
An estimated 8 million people fled Ukraine after the Russian invasion began, and most had to leave their pets behind. According to Fine, statistics show that an initial litter of five dogs turns into 67,000 dogs within five years. “Cats are worse. They[reproduce]faster,” Fine said.
UWARF initially started with an ambitious goal of vaccinating and sterilizing 500,000 dogs, but said, “That’s too much for us. We can’t do that,” Fine said. “We don’t have the funds or resources to do it ourselves.”
The solution, Fine said, is to convince the European Union’s animal welfare department to prioritize the issue immediately. Although Ukraine is not yet a member of the European Union, animals cross the border from Ukraine into EU member states. “And they’re trying to spread rabies to Eastern Europe,” Fine said. “Not many people know about it, which is why we need to get the word out and do something about it now.”
Tana Axel
Mr Fine and Mr Axel are calling on supporters to send an email to Dr Andrea Gavinelli of the European Union urging the EU to “consider providing the necessary support and resources to veterinarians in Ukraine”. An email with sample language can be found here. “If they wait too long and the war ends and we rebuild Ukraine… they won’t be able to do it with all these rabid dogs and cats.” Mr. Fine said. The next step would be culling, or killing all infected animals, “which would be the largest scale in history,” he added.
“This is actually a very easy problem to solve,” Fine said. “Hundreds of Ukrainian veterans are unemployed because of the war, but they are willing to work. What we need is someone like the EU, the WHO (World Health Organization), the United Nations (UN) to All you have to do is convince them to do this.”
Someone in the audience asked about the possibility of administering oral rabies vaccines to animals. Fine responded that that was impossible in an area with no refrigerators, landmines and “Russian soldiers with guns in the woods.”
“We have to physically vaccinate dogs and cats,” he said.
Fine also revealed that he is undergoing treatment for cancer, which will prevent him from returning to animal rescue work. Instead, he told the audience, he was focused on ways to raise funds and develop partnerships.
“It’s not as easy as you think. Some people say, ‘Just call Bill Gates or Taylor Swift,'” he said, drawing laughter from the audience. “Here, I tried it.”
Dan Fine makes the case during Saturday’s panel discussion.
He noted that UWARF has forged a partnership with Humane Society International and is exploring partnerships with non-governmental organizations to support. “Due to insurance issues, they are not allowed to enter Ukraine,” Fine said. “If one of our employees goes in and steps on a landmine, which I did, and you rip your foot off, you’re going to sue for millions of dollars.”
Mr. Fine also explained that the wartime situation surrounding pets in Ukraine is unique. “I’ve never heard of anything like this in other wars like Afghanistan, Syria, Gaza,” he says. He said Ukraine has a large pet population, and the sterilization rate for animals in Ukraine before the Russian invasion was low, at 36% compared to 70% to 80% in the United States. When the war began, Ukraine had to close many of its free pet sterilization clinics, and the rate has now reached 10%. Regarding rabies, he said that the incidence in animals in Ukraine is at least doubling every year.
“It’s going to be a long process, but we need to convince the EU that it’s better to do this now,” Fine said. “If you fix it now, it’s going to be a minor problem; if you fix it later, it’s going to be a much, much bigger problem.”
Fine also focuses on distributing documentaries and has submitted them to several film festivals around the world. War Tails won the Audience Award and Filmmaker Award at the Seattle Film Festival and was a finalist at the Cambridge Film Festival. Fine sent the film to PBS and Netflix for distribution, but so far there have been no takers.
“If the film festival ends and it doesn’t get distributed, I’ll put it up on YouTube and hope for luck,” he said.
For more information, visit wartails.org.
— Story and photos: Teresa Wippel
