Vladimir Putin’s ruthless invasion of Ukraine has seen families ripped apart, homes blown to smithereens and children savagely killed as part of his indiscriminate bombing campaign.
But other forgotten victims of war have been left to suffer in bleak conditions as missiles rain down around their cold enclosures.
The animals of XII Misyatsiv Zoo in Demydiv, on the outskirts of Kyiv, have remained in their pens throughout the brutal conflict, now in its ninth month.
Many have been left traumatised from the nearby shelling in the early days of the war when Kremlin troops marched on the capital before they were forced into a humiliating retreat.
As the cold winter months loom with business worse than during the Covid lockdowns, the zoo has been forced to rely on donations.
A lonely rhinoceros rubs its horn against a metal gate at Misyatsiv Zoo yesterday more than eight months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
A zoo worker pets capybaras XII at Misyatsiv Zoo as forlorn animals face cold winter months ahead with no visitors at the zoo
A bear looks longingly beyond the bars of its enclosure as missiles rain around the zoo located on the outskirts of Kyiv
A rare white tiger lurks its cage without any guests at the zoo for months in another sad impact of Vladimir Putin’s brutal campaign
A group of camels feed at the zoo which has been relying on donations, in front of the park’s fairy-tale castle
A tiger roars and bears its teeth in the big cat enclosure of the park which is the only one in Ukraine open 365 days a year
Animals sit and stalk their empty cages with no visitors filling the normally crowded halls
Generous well-wishers have been donating heat generators to help keep the animals warm with temperatures soon expected to drop to below freezing.
Among the forlorn animals stuck in their enclosures are a very rare white tiger, lions, camels, zebras, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses and bears.
The zoo is normally open every days of the year with guests able to get close to more than 100 different species across its 16 hectares.
At its entrance, visitors are welcomed by the owl sanctuary before entering ‘wolf alley’ where they meet a variety of wolves including white arctic wolves and red wolves.
The ‘Island of Cats’ features a family of white lions, cheetahs, leopards, Bengal white tigers, pumas, lynxes and hyenas.
Further on, guests can explore the ‘Island of Apes’, get up close and personal with a rhinoceros, meet crocodiles and gawp at giraffes.
A giraffe peers over the bars of its enclosure while a zoo worker sits nearby in the bleak conditions at the popular zoo
The animals of XII Misyatsiv Zoo in Demydiv, on the outskirts of Kyiv, have remained in their pens throughout the brutal conflict, now in its ninth month
As the cold winter months loom with business worse than during the Covid lockdowns, the zoo has been forced to rely on donations
Many have been left traumatised from the nearby shelling in the early days of the war when Kremlin troops marched on the capital before they were forced into a humiliating retreat
At its entrance, visitors are welcomed by the owl sanctuary before entering ‘wolf alley’ where they meet a variety of wolves including white arctic wolves and red wolves
A majestic lion looks out beyond the metal bars of its confines near the Ukrainian capital amid the brutal war
The zoo is the only one in Ukraine that is open all-year round but that has now become a problem for owners who are desperately fighting to keep the animals safe amid the explosions.
The ‘XII Months’ zoo normally holds regular celebrations, festivals and concerts, and has a swimming pool, castle and fishing lake for families to explore.
But now it is only the animals and their dedicated carers populating the normally thronging park.
It comes after it emerged that desperate Russian soldiers were so hungry they allegedly resorted to eating zoo animals at a separate park.
Volunteer rescue workers said the soldiers committed horrendous acts of cruelty at Yampil Zoo in the eastern Donetsk region.
The zoo is the only one in Ukraine that is open all-year round but that has now become a problem for owners who are desperately fighting to keep the animals safe amid the explosions
Generous well-wishers have been donating heat generators to help keep the animals warm with temperatures soon expected to drop to below freezing
The ‘XII Months’ zoo normally holds regular celebrations, festivals and concerts, and has a swimming pool, castle and fishing lake for families to explore
Two crocodiles lurk near the water in the zoo which boasts more than a hundred different species of animals
Among the forlorn animals stuck in their enclosures are a very rare white tiger, lions, camels, wild dogs, zebras, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses and bears
The ‘Island of Cats’ features a family of white lions, cheetahs, leopards, Bengal white tigers, pumas, lynxes and hyenas
A family, one of the rare visitors to the zoo in recent months, stand by the camel enclosure
The ‘XII Months’ zoo normally holds regular celebrations, festivals and concerts, and has a swimming pool, castle and fishing lake for families to explore
Yampil village was liberated by Ukrainian forces on September 30.
The rescue workers arrived ten days later to find animal skeletons and pieces of flesh and bone scattered across the zoo grounds.
‘Many animals were eaten by the orcs,’ said one of the volunteers, using the Ukrainian slang for Russian invaders.
According to the authorities, two camels, a kangaroo, a bison, some piglets, birds and wolves were killed.
Those animals that were saved are being care for in the city of Dnipro.
Before the February 24 invasion, zookeepers said the compound was home to a wide range of animals, including bears, camels, antelopes, and wild boars.
Volunteers are collecting materials in order to contact Ukrainian law enforcement agencies with a view to pressing charges.
It emerged that desperate Russian soldiers were so hungry they allegedly resorted to eating zoo animals at a separate park
Volunteer rescue workers said the soldiers committed horrendous acts of cruelty at Yampil Zoo in the eastern Donetsk region
There have been fears Russian bombs could destroy enclosures and allow the dangerous animals to escape