The feat of the workers of the Leningrad Zoo: how people helped animals survive the blockade

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Was released 72 years ago besieged Leningrad … These days they talk a lot about the horrors of war and about the heroic deed of the inhabitants of the hero city, who managed to withstand inhuman conditions. Animals suffered from enemy shelling along with people. Our today's story about Leningrad Zoo, and how its exotic inhabitants survived the blockade.

During the evacuation from Leningrad, 80 animals were taken out, lucky panthers, tigers, polar bears, rhinoceros … They were sent to winter in Kazan, but the rest of the inhabitants remained under bombing in the besieged city. The shelling was hard for the animals: they were agitated by the explosions and rushed about the cages. It was almost impossible to calm them down.

The administration made a difficult decision: to shoot large predators, because in case of broken enclosures, they could escape from the zoo and harm people. By the way, the escape from the menagerie did happen: however, the monkeys ran away, they were caught all over Leningrad. One of the most tragic deaths from the bombing was the death of Betty the elephant, she was wounded by shell fragments, and the zoo guard died with her.

The bison also had its own story, he fell to the bottom of the funnel at night, but the staff helped him climb out, erecting a flooring and luring the animal with food. Deer and a goat became the victims of the shelling, they were lucky to survive one of the bombings and survive, despite the injuries, but they died in subsequent airstrikes.

One of the most difficult tasks for the zoo workers was the need to feed the animals. In these terrible years, people were dying of hunger, so there was no question of any full-fledged diet. With their sophistication, the workers managed to feed even the predators with grass and vegetables. Hay harvesting took place literally under shelling, garden beds were laid out on the territory of the zoo. Rabbit skins smeared with fish oil and stuffed with grass became a favorite delicacy for tiger cubs in those years, rats were caught for the golden eagle, bears became vegetarians and switched to vegetable dishes.

It was especially difficult to care for the hippo named Beauty. "Girl" a day required about 40 kg of food, it was a mixture of boiled sawdust, grass, cake and peelings from potatoes. And also her caretaker - Evdokia Dashina - carried a barrel of water with a volume of 40 buckets from the Neva. This was necessary for Beauty's shower, otherwise her skin would dry out and begin to crack. The hippo also had "salon" procedures: every day her skin was smeared with camphor ointment (one procedure needed 1-2 kg), fortunately, before the war, they managed to deliver a 200 kg barrel. The beauty successfully survived the blockade, and died only in 1951 of old age.

During the war, about 20 people took care of the animals, many selflessly even lived in the zoo. 16 workers received medals "For the Defense of Leningrad". The zoo was closed only one winter of 1941-42, after the enclosures were put in order, and again worked for Leningraders.

Siege Leningrad and modern St. Petersburg - heartfelt photo collages are created in memory of the terrible pages of the history of our city.