Before the full-scale invasion, dog handler Vitalii Ivanyer and his spaniel Joker were engaged in hunting. It had good working qualities and participated in field game competitions, where he earned the title of Outstanding Field Champion of Ukraine. With the outbreak of the war, the dog changed its main profile to a detector dog for searching for explosives, weapons and ammunition.

After completing training at the National School of Service Dog Training of the "International Police Corporation for Public Security", Vitalii and Joker began their direct duties in interacting with law enforcement agencies: working at checkpoints and participating in rescue operations. Over 2.5 years, they repeatedly detected and stopped the transportation of explosives and ammunition. Last year, Vitalii and Joker joined the dog Search and Rescue Unit, which is engaged in rescue operations to search for people from under the rubble. At one of the locations in Odessa, Joker marked the place where the bodies of the deceased were later discovered.

Before the full-scale invasion, dog handler Vitalii Ivanyer and his spaniel Joker were engaged in hunting. It had good working qualities and participated in field game competitions, where he earned the title of Outstanding Field Champion of Ukraine. With the outbreak of the war, the dog changed its main profile to a detector dog for searching for explosives, weapons and ammunition.

After completing training at the National School of Service Dog Training of the "International Police Corporation for Public Security", Vitalii and Joker began their direct duties in interacting with law enforcement agencies: working at checkpoints and participating in rescue operations. Over 2.5 years, they repeatedly detected and stopped the transportation of explosives and ammunition. Last year, Vitalii and Joker joined the dog Search and Rescue Unit, which is engaged in rescue operations to search for people from under the rubble. At one of the locations in Odessa, Joker marked the place where the bodies of the deceased were later discovered.

American pit bull Athena, together with her owner, medic Dmytro Seliutin from the 36th Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Bilinskyi, defended Illich Iron & Steel Works and helped the wounded. Athena helped protect everyone at the plant and warned of danger.
Before Dmytro was taken into Russian captivity, he had to force Athena to leave him to save her life. They did not allow her to be taken into captivity with them, and in case of disobedience, they threatened to kill her. Athena spent more than a year at the garbage disposal plant, while Dmytro's mother Nataliia Nikolaieva searched for her. Thanks to the Lord and good people, she returned home, and on September 13, 2024, Dmytro himself returned home from captivity.

In 2024, Dmytro and Athena became a symbol of all prisoners of war in this war in the project Dogs-Heroes of Ukraine.

American pit bull Athena, together with her owner, medic Dmytro Seliutin from the 36th Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Bilinskyi, defended Illich Iron & Steel Works and helped the wounded. Athena helped protect everyone at the plant and warned of danger.
Before Dmytro was taken into Russian captivity, he had to force Athena to leave him to save her life. They did not allow her to be taken into captivity with them, and in case of disobedience, they threatened to kill her. Athena spent more than a year at the garbage disposal plant, while Dmytro's mother Nataliia Nikolaieva searched for her. Thanks to the Lord and good people, she returned home, and on September 13, 2024, Dmytro himself returned home from captivity.

In 2024, Dmytro and Athena became a symbol of all prisoners of war in this war in the project Dogs-Heroes of Ukraine.

The background of this heroic act began back in 1989, when Liubov Tarasenko began to engage in rescue activities in Sevastopol, but after some time she left this business and devoted her life to sports training.
With the outbreak of the war, wanting to be useful, Liubov suggested her students to unite in the rescue work, which she knew well. And they agreed. This is how the history of the Azart dog rescue unit from the city of Dnipro began, specializing in searching for both the living and the dead. Among them is our heroine.

After a year of preparatory work, in November 2022, Maryna Hrinchenko and her first Doberman dog Leksa began active search and rescue activities.
On the evening of June 28, 2023, a Russian missile hit a nine-story residential building in Dnipro. 13 people were injured, including a pregnant woman and a seven-month-old girl, and two people died. Not giving up to the last, Leksa and Maryna found the remains of another deceased under the rubble. They were the ones who allowed their relatives and friends to say goodbye with dignity.

The background of this heroic act began back in 1989, when Liubov Tarasenko began to engage in rescue activities in Sevastopol, but after some time she left this business and devoted her life to sports training.
With the outbreak of the war, wanting to be useful, Liubov suggested her students to unite in the rescue work, which she knew well. And they agreed. This is how the history of the Azart dog rescue unit from the city of Dnipro began, specializing in searching for both the living and the dead. Among them is our heroine.

After a year of preparatory work, in November 2022, Maryna Hrinchenko and her first Doberman dog Leksa began active search and rescue activities.
On the evening of June 28, 2023, a Russian missile hit a nine-story residential building in Dnipro. 13 people were injured, including a pregnant woman and a seven-month-old girl, and two people died. Not giving up to the last, Leksa and Maryna found the remains of another deceased under the rubble. They were the ones who allowed their relatives and friends to say goodbye with dignity.

Since the beginning of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, Master Sergeant of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine Rubis Yurii has taken an active part in the defense of the city of Chernihiv.
After the withdrawal of the aggressor's troops from the territory of the Chernihiv region, together with the service dog Fox Terrier Alpha, he performs combat missions at checkpoints within the city of Chernihiv. During the performance of combat missions during 2023 and 2024, this tandem detected at checkpoints: more than 90 kilograms of narcotics, 148 cartridges and 1 grenade.

Since the beginning of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, Master Sergeant of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine Rubis Yurii has taken an active part in the defense of the city of Chernihiv.
After the withdrawal of the aggressor's troops from the territory of the Chernihiv region, together with the service dog Fox Terrier Alpha, he performs combat missions at checkpoints within the city of Chernihiv. During the performance of combat missions during 2023 and 2024, this tandem detected at checkpoints: more than 90 kilograms of narcotics, 148 cartridges and 1 grenade.

The work of a dog handler and its four-legged partner will be effective if both have the skills, know how to work in pairs, understand and feel each other. “One life for two,” says border guard Master Sergeant Oleksandr Kaplunovskyi about his service dog Boy.
Cocker Spaniel Boy is the third pet of the employee of the State Border Service of Ukraine, Oleksandr. “Not the first, but the most beloved” - specifies the military man, who has devoted more than 18 years to dog training.

The service dog is trained to inspect and detect weapons, ammunition and explosives in railway, air and road transport.
For the third year in a row, side by side with their combat comrades-border guards, Oleksandr and the red-haired spaniel Boy have been performing tasks to repel armed aggression, defending their hometown - the hero Kharkiv. The cynology pair found 22 small arms, about 6,000 rounds of ammunition of various calibers, 33 grenades, and more than 30 kg of explosives.

The work of a dog handler and its four-legged partner will be effective if both have the skills, know how to work in pairs, understand and feel each other. “One life for two,” says border guard Master Sergeant Oleksandr Kaplunovskyi about his service dog Boy.
Cocker Spaniel Boy is the third pet of the employee of the State Border Service of Ukraine, Oleksandr. “Not the first, but the most beloved” - specifies the military man, who has devoted more than 18 years to dog training.

The service dog is trained to inspect and detect weapons, ammunition and explosives in railway, air and road transport.
For the third year in a row, side by side with their combat comrades-border guards, Oleksandr and the red-haired spaniel Boy have been performing tasks to repel armed aggression, defending their hometown - the hero Kharkiv. The cynology pair found 22 small arms, about 6,000 rounds of ammunition of various calibers, 33 grenades, and more than 30 kg of explosives.

The dog, known in Ukraine as the “Shaggy Guide,” Nicole, along with its owner Tetiana Minkova, worked on Ukrzaliznytsia evacuation train journeys for a year and 10 months without vacations or days off during the Russian-Ukrainian war. They fell on the hardest times, when UZ trains became a symbol of loss and separation.

Nicole provided psychological support to people overwhelmed by the pain of the war. It posed her body so that a disabled boy who constantly banged his head on the table could fight against it, and later helped the baby completely calm down. Nicole did not leave a single step from a soldier after a concussion, who was making noise throughout the train, crying, screaming and looking at it, asking how his dog, who had died, ended up in front of him. Later, he squeezed it so tightly that it squeaked, but did not go anywhere, feeling it was needed.

Nicole supported a passenger near the tracks in Lviv who had a nervous breakdown too, nudging her with its nose and looking her in the eye with understanding and compassion. Another time, after learning that a woman had just been informed of the death of her husband, Nicole simply laid down on her feet to support her.

The dog, known in Ukraine as the “Shaggy Guide,” Nicole, along with its owner Tetiana Minkova, worked on Ukrzaliznytsia evacuation train journeys for a year and 10 months without vacations or days off during the Russian-Ukrainian war. They fell on the hardest times, when UZ trains became a symbol of loss and separation.

Nicole provided psychological support to people overwhelmed by the pain of the war. It posed her body so that a disabled boy who constantly banged his head on the table could fight against it, and later helped the baby completely calm down. Nicole did not leave a single step from a soldier after a concussion, who was making noise throughout the train, crying, screaming and looking at it, asking how his dog, who had died, ended up in front of him. Later, he squeezed it so tightly that it squeaked, but did not go anywhere, feeling it was needed.

Nicole supported a passenger near the tracks in Lviv who had a nervous breakdown too, nudging her with its nose and looking her in the eye with understanding and compassion. Another time, after learning that a woman had just been informed of the death of her husband, Nicole simply laid down on her feet to support her.