She didn’t think twice.
When the volunteer lay down in that field next to the dog — not to pose, not for a photo — but just to be with him, something quiet happened. The dog, who had been alone for weeks in a frontline village, stopped trembling.
That moment is what the Hope Pets Program looks like from the inside.
When families fled, pets couldn’t always follow.
Russia’s invasion gave millions of Ukrainians minutes to evacuate. Minutes to grab documents, children, whatever they could carry. For many families, that meant leaving behind a dog who didn’t understand why no one came home. A cat waiting by a door that never opened again.
More than 450,000 dogs may have been abandoned since the war began. Shelters in frontline areas have seen their populations double. These animals aren’t strays by choice — they’re the leftover evidence of a country forced to run.
Hope For Ukraine’s volunteers go back for them.
During humanitarian missions in frontline communities, teams encounter abandoned animals and bring them out when they can. For animals that can’t be moved yet, volunteers make regular food deliveries — keeping them alive until rescue is possible.
Once rescued, pets are transported to trusted shelters where they get food, clean water, and veterinary care. Many arrive injured or shut down from weeks alone in a conflict zone. With time and consistent care, most recover. Some are eventually adopted into new homes.
But the work starts with a person willing to lie down in a field.
To slow down. To make eye contact with an animal that has every reason not to trust a human right now. To stay until the trembling stops.
That’s not a program metric. It’s a choice volunteers make every day in places most people are trying to leave.
Your support funds that work directly — the food runs, the transport, the shelter care, the vet visits.
- $25 helps feed and care for a rescued animal during recovery
- $50 helps cover veterinary care for an animal rescued from a frontline area
- $100 helps support a full rescue operation and shelter placement
War leaves a lot behind. Hope For Ukraine is going back for it.
Donate today to support the Hope Pets Program →