“Shaybyk had the biggest charisma. It was getting cold, so I took him with me one night into my sleeping bag. And that’s when I fell in love with that cat,” said Liashuk, 26. “He’s not just my best friend, he’s my son.” – Politico
Don’t you love those words? Such a close relationship. It makes Liashuk’s life in this horrible war so much better and the benefits are mutual. However, the risk to life and limb for both of them is very real. The man knows the risks while the cat does not.
“Shaybyk the lover” is one of four strays cats living with the soldiers of Oleksandr Liashuk’s unit in southwest Ukraine. I understand that the southwest is much safer than the southeast where most if not all of the fighting takes place as it is the ‘prize’ of the Russians who want a corridor to the sea from Russia to improve trade when the war is over.
The human-to-cat relationship is likely to be at its strongest in war. It may have a shortened life and is more intense.
Shaybyk is a phenomenal mouser but there are lots of mice in the trenches 😢. Liashuk said that “once we were at the position in the forest and he caught 11 mice in one day. Sometimes [he] brings mice to my sleeping bag.”
Shaybyk can come and go as he pleases and in June he went away for 18 days. He was found by soldiers several kilometers away. But he always returns to Liashuk who said that his cat was on vacation 😎.
Shaybyk and Liashuk also collect donations for the Ukrainian army, with Shaybyk receiving a special award in September for helping to raise money to buy seven cars and other supplies.
Liashuk and Shaybyk is a good excellent example of the many relationships between Ukrainian soldiers and companion animals during this horrendous war, the result of an invasion by Putin’s forces to annex Ukraine.
The Russians have been aggrieved at the public relations success of the Ukrainian ‘warrior cats’ and have tried to do the same thing according to the Politico website.
Stories have emerged from the Russian side of cat mousers in the trenches. One cat named Marusya was sent to the front by a regional department of the Emergency Situations Ministry in western Russia’s Oryol which is about 300 km from the Ukraine border. The ministry said that Marusya is a good mouser and helps to boost morale.
On the Ukrainian side many dogs have assited the soldiers in a different way: acting as a lookout for instance to detect, with their acute senses, approaching Russians.
RELATED: War machine Russia becomes uncivilised towards stray dogs and cats
But in Russia the war which is supported by 30 percent of GDP tax receipt spending is having a negative impact on the welfare of dogs and cats. War makes people less civilised. This translates to lower standards of animal welfare. Click the link below to read about this development:
RELATED: Rescue cat in Irpin, Ukraine dies of a heart attack during Russian bombardment
you and your comrades are all true sons of valor, and Shaybyk iand his strike group are true warriors too… take good care of them and they will bring you the favor of true victory over the oppressors … best from NYC _ David W.
Thanks David. My sentiments too.