A fundraiser for the Dogs of Chernobyl program is seeking money to help care for the descendants of dogs that were forcibly abandoned there when people evacuated as the nuclear power plant melted down in 1986.
About 900 puppies and dogs now live in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, a 1,000-square-mile piece of land where contamination is still severe, Motherboard reported. Animals of all kinds have begun to proliferate in the zone, where no people have lived since 1986.
Sadly, visitors to Chernobyl are not supposed to pet the dogs because they may have radioactive particles on their fur, Motherboard said.
According to the GoFundMe campaign, some of the 2,000 people working at the plant site have tried to take care of the pups, who sometimes have a hard time finding enough food and water and leave the exclusion zone to wander onto the plant site.
Taking care of the dogs poses risks to the workers, including worries about rabies since vaccinations are in short supply, the video said.
The fundraiser’s goal is to raise $80,000 to spay, neuter, and vaccinate the dogs of Chernobyl so they don’t continue to proliferate and cause further problems at the site. The funds also aim to provide medical care for dogs that become injured or have medical problems.
The Clean Futures Fund is behind the fundraising efforts to help the dogs of Chernobyl. The campaign was partly inspired by the Drew Scanlon documentary “Puppies of Chernobyl” that chronicles the stories of some of these puppies, Motherboard reported.
Twitter could not contain its tears over these very cute puppies.