Karatik was a homeless dog, so in winter he was forced to survive on the streets of Yakutsk, where the temperature often drops to -50 degrees. The dog was kind and calm, it was difficult for him to get his own food in a snowy city, so Karat learned to hunt mice. People ignored the hungry dog, but this is typical for Yakutsk, where only a few are ready to help our smaller brothers.
Before the New Year holidays, the city authorities decided to remove stray dogs from the streets, so trapping officers were actively working in the city for several weeks. It is impossible to call the actions of public utilities humane: there were raids in the city, traps appeared on the streets, people grabbed any animal that could not find shelter for itself. Local residents actively helped the trapping, both by talking about the place of concentration of homeless animals, and by helping to catch them.
The success of the authorities in clearing the city of stray animals was constantly reported in the local news and written in the press, often accompanying reports with frightening stories about animals, which seemed to be trying to justify the unfolding cruel company.
It was from the press that I learned about this tough company and gradually got involved in the work of countering it. We took out those dogs that we managed to find before the advent of trapping. One day I found out that the dog Karat, who is disabled, fell into the hands of people. Volunteers did not want to take a sick dog, preferring to save healthy ones, because then it is much easier for them to find a new family. It became clear that Karatu hopes for no one.
They sent me a photo of Karat. From the picture, a skinny and sad animal looked at me, hunched over either from the cold or from long years of hard life. The dog had only three paws, he lost the fourth in a trap, which he approached in the hope of satisfying his hunger with a piece of food left by the trappers.
The dog was not immediately able to get out of the trap, he just sat in the cold, immobilized and useless to anyone. The animal, which had suffered from hunger and cold for more than one day, had almost no strength left, he understood that he could either try to save his paw, or take a risk to save his life. Karat made a decision that made him disabled, but allowed him to stay alive.
I am even afraid to imagine what this animal had to go through, but it was clear that he really wanted to live and for this he was ready to go through pain and suffering.
For the sake of his salvation, the dog also endured a long journey, overcoming 8 thousand kilometers separating Yakutsk and the capital. I immediately agreed to shelter Karat, because I understood that it was almost impossible to find an overexposure for a disabled dog, and the poor fellow had already suffered and was in great need of love and care.
