Meet the dogs of Chernobyl – the descendants of the pets thousands of families were forced to leave behind in the wake of the world’s worst nuclear disaster.
After the reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded on April 25, 1986 – releasing 100 times more radiation than the atom bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki – more than 120,000 people were evacuated.
The hastiness with which they left the Ukrainian city of Pripyat and surrounding villages meant they were only able to take what they could carry – and banned from taking their beloved pets.
Hundreds of stray dogs (pictured, a puppy), the descendants of the pets evacuees were forced to leave behind after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986) live around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant
The stray dogs endure harsh Ukrainian winters and have a shorter life expectancy due to the radiation they carry in their fur
Squads were sent in to kill the animals left behind, but some managed to survive in the woods.
Now, hundreds of strays, the descendants of those dogs, live around the 30km exclusion zone among the foxes, moose, lynx, hares, horses and wolves that are also thriving in the area.
They endure harsh Ukrainian winters and have a shorter life expectancy due to the radiation they carry in their fur.
But they have friendly natures and a willingness to approach the visitors who come to see the remnants of the plant and the ghost town that housed the families who worked there.
Hundreds of strays live around the 30km exclusion among the foxes, moose, lynx, hares, horses and wolves that are also thriving in the area. They often linger at security checkpoints approaching visitors for food
After the reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded on April 25, 1986 – releasing 100 times more radiation than the atom bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki – more than 120,000 people were evacuated. Pictured, a dog inside an abandoned gym
These pictures, taken by local tour company Solo East Travel , show the stray dogs wandering near and interacting with visitors, particularly those working at the plant.
‘Most of the time people find them cute, but some think they might be contaminated and so avoid touching the dogs,’ one tour guide said. Pictured, a dog interacts with a woman in the area
These pictures, taken by local tour company Solo East Travel, show the stray dogs wandering near and interacting with visitors, particularly those working at the plant.
Nadezhda Starodub, a Solo East guide, says the visitors to the exclusion zone love the dogs.
‘Most of the time people find them cute, but some think they might be contaminated and so avoid touching the dogs,’ she told the Guardian.
Although visitors aren’t prohibited from handling the dogs, Ms Starodub said she advises them to use the same common sense as when dealing with any stray dog.
Although visitors aren’t prohibited from handling the dogs, visitors are advised to use the same common sense as when dealing with any stray dog
The dogs are cared for by The Clean Futures Fund (CFF), a non-profit organisation that provides support for communities affected by industrial accidents
A stray dog sits outside the sarcophagus built to contain the remains of the No. 4 reactor unit at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant near Pripyat
A dog is seen near the New Safe Confinement shelter, built in 2016 to seal in some of the most dangerous waste material in the world for 100 years
The CFF estimates that ‘over 250 stray dogs live around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, over 225 stray dogs live in Chernobyl City, and hundreds of other dogs live at the various security checkpoints and roam throughout the exclusion zone’
The dogs are cared for by The Clean Futures Fund (CFF), a non-profit organisation that provides support for communities affected by industrial accidents.
The organisation estimates that ‘over 250 stray dogs live around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, over 225 stray dogs live in Chernobyl City, and hundreds of other dogs live at the various security checkpoints and roam throughout the exclusion zone.’
The CFF has set up three veterinary clinics in the area, including one inside the plant, to treat emergencies, provide vaccinations and are also neutering the dogs.
The CFF has set up three veterinary clinics in the area, including one inside the plant, to treat emergencies, provide vaccinations and are also neutering the dogs
The area is now considered one of the world’s most unique wildlife sanctuaries with a thriving populations of wolves, deer, lynx, beaver, eagles, boar, elk, bears spotted as well as the wild dogs
A dog is picture near the the Duga radar system, which were used by the Russians as part of a missile early-warning network from 1976 to 1989