Mikey petitions the Cosmos to allow an exception to the rule…
One of the many hard to understand rules of this world, at least from a human perspective, is that the saints among us are almost never recognized as such until after their lives on this planet have ended. Perhaps it’s because they do not waste any effort in proclaiming to be saints, and humility has a way of hiding greatness in plain sight. Those whose lives are touched by a saint certainly appreciate the acts of selflessness extended on their behalf, but these are the voices that go mostly or completely unheard. Seeing herself mentioned in the same paragraph as the word saint, the subject of this post would more than likely be strongly repelled by such praise, but it’s certain that after learning of the daily sacrifices of this woman, virtually all of the readers will agree with this assessment. And now for the story of an intercessor for the dogs and cats of war in a city virtually unknown outside of Ukraine.
Roughly 130 miles southwest of Ukraine’s capital—Kyiv, lies the city of Vinnytsia, and this is where a very saint-like woman—Mikey’s words, not hers—inconspicuously goes about the relentless work that she has taken upon herself. Her name is Svetlana Tkachuk. Her Instagram account is koshkinn dom and her TikTok is kishkin_dim. Both of these transliterations meaning House of Cats. Mikey became familiar with her story through a friend and is grateful for the opportunity to share it. It is hoped that this post might bring Svetlana—and the hundreds of dogs and cats she cares for—at least a little additional help and relief.
Roughly 130 miles southwest of Ukraine’s capital—Kyiv, lies the city of Vinnytsia…
It should be mentioned that Ukrainians would never accept such praise, especially in writing. But since Mikey is an American, he asks that Svetlana forgive him for foisting this cultural taboo upon her. This is the reason that Intercessor is used in the title rather than Saint.
The following are Svetlana’s own brief words, translated of course from Ukrainian:
The Story of My Shelter
Very often people write to me in the comments, ‘My dream is to have an animal shelter.’
Maybe I’ll disappoint you, but I never had a dream of having a shelter for animals.
I’ve loved animals my whole life, fed the homeless on the streets, and treated them whenever I could.
My journey to having a shelter started 15 years ago, in 2011.
I won’t describe the sad events of my life after which the first homeless kittens appeared in my home.
When I saw helpless kittens being thrown in trash bags into a field, forest, or plantations, my heart would break. At that time, I was working, and all my salary and my uncle’s pension went to taking care of the cats. My cat family of 70 cats started being joined by dogs. We lived happily until the quarantine began. Then I thought it was the scariest period of my life — the store where I worked closed, only my uncle’s pension remained, and the savings I had quickly ran out.
24.02.2022 was the scariest day for every Ukrainian.
It’s impossible to describe my state in words.
People started fleeing abroad, leaving their pets behind. I have no judgment toward those who ran, fear for children’s lives, for their own lives, chaos in the country.
Rockets flying, explosions, gunshots, tears, first reports of casualties.
I remember driving and seeing abandoned purebred dogs and cats along the road.
They wouldn’t survive on the streets, my heart was breaking into pieces, I couldn’t eat or sleep. I took in everyone I could. But my house is small, the animals were in the garage, the shed, every outbuilding, I started urgently building enclosures for the big dogs.
And there were more and more of them.
Then I turned to my friends and followers, did a live stream, and showed everything as it is. Thank God and praise to the Ukrainian people, we managed to buy a little house on the very edge of the village (so as not to bother anyone). And I started building enclosures, where today 240 dogs live. In the house, there are cats—220 of them, many old ones, some with spinal issues, some blind. I do everything to improve their lives, to keep them warm and fed. I treat them, vaccinate them—it’s absolutely necessary, because in a shelter without vaccination, and without treatment for ticks, fleas, and worms, they wouldn’t survive.
I never thought I would have more than 455 animals, and that’s just in the shelter. As for those under my care outside the shelter, it’s hard to count—definitely more than a hundred. I really feel for retirees who have animals; it’s impossible to feed them on a meager pension. That’s why, if foundations help me, the first thing I do is deliver food to the retirees, and I also treat their animals for ticks. But unfortunately, in recent years, foundations hardly help at all. That’s the story of my life, my shelter, and my little ones.
War has a way of reducing distant places to headlines and arguments. But behind every headline are ordinary people trying to survive extraordinary circumstances. Whatever opinions people may hold about the conflict itself, suffering has no political party—and neither does compassion. Sadly, every war attracts those who seek to profit from suffering, regardless of their stations in life. Fortunately, it also reveals people whose compassion refuses to surrender. For those with tender hearts, it would be much easier to bear if Svetlana were just another con artist; for then the misery, that she works so tirelessly to ease, would not be the somber reality that now confronts us. Unfortunately, the misery is real. Thankfully, so is she. While her story is overflowing with heartbreak, it is equally filled with kindness, and this is what Mikey would like to focus on.
While her story is overflowing with heartbreak, it is equally filled with kindness…
Svetlana begins her mornings at five AM, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year—she had one five-day respite earlier this year that was made possible by one of her supporters who insisted she take a break. Whether it’s snowing, raining buckets—and sometimes missiles, Svetlana has an unyielding and grueling routine. She starts her day by cooking huge potfuls of kasha on a wood-burning stove, adding in whatever meat or other food she is able to obtain. After the Herculean task of feeding such an unimaginable quantity of animals, she cleans up after them, lets them out into the yard, washes everything and also personally walks with the animals who have severe injuries or missing limbs or those that just need special attention.
She had a friend and helper at the shelter named Vladimir, who also very much loved all the animals, but he passed away in April of 2025 a few days after having had a heart attack. Working with the animals is not only laborious and very demanding, but it is also dangerous as many of the animals have suffered abuse or wartime injuries and can at times be aggressive towards people or other animals. This aspect makes finding those willing to provide physical relief even more difficult than it would already be.
Vladimir, who also very much loved all the animals…
She receives help with the physical labor from time to time and currently two young girls are helping her regularly. She is also able to get assistance from area vets for the more serious issues and at least one of them works free of charge when needed or lets her pay when she is able. Spending just a few minutes on Svetlana’s Instagram page is an emotional roller coaster. It will cause you to sob with despair one moment and smile with joy the next as you observe from afar the images she beholds with her own eyes on a daily basis.
…and worries later about how to meet the extra demand.
Svetlana does her best to find suitable homes for those that she has taken under her wing and despite her desperate circumstance, she maintains specific requirements that must be met by would-be families or fosters—that dogs are never to be kept on chains is one of these. Yet another chore that steals time from a day already short on hours is that she routinely checks for strays at the usual dumping grounds such as landfills and abandoned buildings. Any that she finds she welcomes into her home and worries later about how to meet the extra demand. A few years ago she took in a small owl that had been injured and was able to nurse it back to health and return it to the wild. As she has become quite well known in the area surrounding her shelter, she also has the added difficulty of people using her property as a drop-off zone for unwanted animals.
“Little tails” as she calls them—khvostiki in Ukrainian.
In addition to all that has been described, Svetlana must do everything she can to reach out to others so that she can continue to provide relief for the “little tails” as she calls them—khvostiki in Ukrainian. On her Instagram account there is a link that will open a page where she can receive donations via Paypal (cats.lana.help@gmail.com) or Monobank. At the bottom of that page is some text where she briefly describes the situation and the help that she needs to fund the shelter she has built. Below is a translation of that.
One Small Request
Sadly, there are people who have copied Svetlana’s photos and videos in an attempt to divert donations intended for her shelter.
If you decide to help, please use only the official links provided in this post or those available through Svetlana’s official Instagram account.
Every dollar should reach the animals—not someone pretending to care about them.
Welcome to the “Gift a New Life” Animal Shelter
Since the war began, we have saved the lives of more than 3,600 animals. ❤️
Sadly, not every rescued little tail has found a new family. 420 dogs and cats still live at our shelter. They ended up on the streets for many different reasons—old age, illness, disability, or simply being abandoned and left to fend for themselves.
We are also caring for dogs that were rescued from active combat zones by soldiers who risked their own lives to save them. We were able to save these animals, but unfortunately many were left with permanent spinal injuries and disabilities.
Our shelter survives only through the generosity of compassionate people with kind hearts. ❤️ Covering these enormous expenses on our own is simply impossible. Financial support and donations of supplies are always greatly needed.
Please consider making a contribution to the “Gift a New Life” Animal Shelter. Please also keep all of them
in your prayers. If you’d like to follow Svetlana’s work directly, we’ve also added permanent links to her
Instagram and TikTok accounts in the upper-right social menu. And lastly, if you know an individual,
rescue organization, publication, or business that might be interested in Svetlana’s story, please consider
sharing this post with them.
Humans like to talk about world peace. Until then, people like Svetlana quietly create little islands of peace wherever they can.
