Watch Homeless Dogs Run Everywhere In Odessa Ukraine - A Very Dog Compassionate City! The Rescuers' DNA

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WA2S Films cameras are in Odessa, Ukraine to see what a city looks like that just recently underwent study and intervention.

Former Russian city Odessa, Ukraine is now considered one of the most compassionate dog aware city's that no longer collects dogs off the street only to kill them.

In 2016 a census of the homeless dogs on the street was conducted by volunteers after animal activists forced change.  The census was completed and interventions that were non lethal were introduced, including the very controversial dog T-N-R (Trap, Neuter, Return).  A practice not supported in most of the rest of the world, including North America.  Mostly, because dogs still bite, and not enough data exists yet to underscore this method.

In 2018 the World Animal Awareness Society will re-survey Odessa, Ukraine to understand if the mitigation recommended in 2016 and implemented since is having any effect.

The dogs in this video wearing tags, have been vaccinated and neutered then returned to the street.

There is evidence to suggest that it is better to have a known, existing dog occupy a public space then it is to have an unknown dog take his place if the known dog is taken away.  If the conditions exist to support dogs, others will always take the place of a dog removed.  At least that is the theory. There are studies to review.

The WA2S stray dogs team is heading to more than a half dozen 2018 Fifa World Cup Russia host cities months prior to the soccer matches being played, to get a good look at how Russia is dealing with its stray / homeless dog crisis.

It has been suggested that the government will be removing the dogs from the streets for the events because they do not want people to see dogs everywhere on their streets like here in Odessa, Ukraine.  To much of a safety issue for sure.  The risk of fans getting bitten is not something the government or Fifa wish to endure.  So, what then?  Collecting and hiding away and / or killing?

Even though Odessa is now seen as a new compassionate-to-animals city in Eastern Europe.  What will the World Cup cities do when the matches have been completed?  Will they let those dogs back on the street?  Will they exterminate them?  Will other dogs take their place, because of this new void?  We don't yet know.

However, we are going to find out.  Stay tuned as we share stories of streets dogs from Saint Petersburg to Rostov-on-Don, Russia and every world cup city in between.

A huge thank you goes out to Odessa, Ukraine animal lover and newest WA2S member Elvira for filming these dogs. This is Elvira's neighborhood on the North side of Odessa, and she looks forward to working on the survey next.

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