On a harrowing mission to save four dogs deep in the war-torn hellscape of Vovchansk, Ukraine, a PETA-supported rescue team stared death in the face. A Russian glide bomb detonated mere feet away—the thunderous blast shredding their van and gouging one rescuer’s leg with shrapnel.

The team was forced to abort its mission in order to put the rescuer’s leg in a tourniquet and seek medical attention. The dogs could only cower amid the ruins that had once been their home, desperately clinging to life while mortars rained down.

© Animal Rescue Kharkiv

© Animal Rescue Kharkiv

But the team didn’t give up. Once the wounded rescuer was in the hospital, the rest of them went back for the dogs. But the Ukrainian military turned them away: The area was being bombarded, and it was much too dangerous.

So they waited, and once clearance was given, the rescuers barreled through the rubble to reach the four dogs, not knowing if they had survived and not stopping until they reached the destroyed home. One dog appeared, then the others, close behind. Calling for help, the team gathered them up, grateful that no one had been wounded that day, and dashed to safety.

How You Can Help Save Animals

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, PETA Germany and its partners have been on the ground building a robust network of rescue workers, volunteers, and activists to help as many animals as they possibly can. You can support this work through PETA’s Global Compassion Fund.