Dogs in East European, and Eurasian Culture

Dogs are some of our best friends! This page introduces famous dogs in East European and Eurasian culture from areas like folklore, literature, science, history, and pop culture. You'll also learn some fun proverbs and sayings in different languages related to dogs and meet some dog breeds from East Europe and Eurasia. We will discuss wolves, since they are closely related to dogs, but other canines, like foxes, are excluded in the interest of space.

The list below is not exhaustive. We've chosen some of our favorites but can only assume there are more Eastern European and Eurasian cats deserving of fame out there. Now let's meet some of these celebrated canines!

Dachshunds/Sausage Dogs in Poland

Poland has the third-highest population of dogs per capita in the EU, with 21 dogs for every 100 people (EuroNews), and dachshunds remain a popular dog breed, particularly in Kraków. Poland is one of the top breeders of dachshunds in the world.

A parade of jamniki (pl.), the 'Marsz Jamników' or the March of the Dachshunds, was first hosted in 1973. Mieczysław Czuma, editor of a satirical periodical “Przekrój”, started the event to celebrate the magazine's anniversary (TVP World 2024). Eventually communist authorities banned the event. The parade was later resurrected by Radio Krakow with the support of the Krakow Festival Office in 1994 and hosted annually until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The parade returned in 2024, drawing hundreds of sausage-shaped dog friends, with the 2014 March's 'queen' travelling from Tennessee to attend. Pet parents often dress up the dogs in themed costumes, and dogs and humans alike parade through the city following the same route as royal coronations and official parades (Ball 2015). Prizes are given for the best costumes and the parade organizers' names, and a king and queen.

Each year the parade features a different theme. Some themes include "Traveler" (2012), "Change a dog’s life for good" (2016), "Jamnik & I – A Pair With Flair!" (2026). Following the parade winners of various contests are announced including “distinctive walk,” “elegant sit,” “noble temperament," and the costume contest.

The parade helps bring awareness to local humane societies. Past parades have featured advice from veterinarians, dog nutritionists, trainers, and even zoophysiotherapists.

Check out photos from the 2017 parade in the Krakow Post.

But why dachshunds? 

There are many links (get it?!) between sausage dogs and Polish culture. For example, there is a communist housing complex in the Praga district of Warsaw known as Jamnik because of its 508-metre length. The Solaris Urbino 18 low-floor articulated buses in Poland sport a green dachshund logo (Ball). There was also a short run of Polski Fiat 125p cars (produced from the 1960s-1990s) that featured a six-door body and seven seats inside. The model, created by welding two car bodies together, was named Jamnik. Only a few dozen were created.

Dachshunds are known for their practicality in small communist era apartments. Some say the breed came to Poland 500 years ago. Supposedly, during talks about the marriage of Duke Frederick of Legnica to Princess Elisabeth, a dachshund, possibly named Kupido, was brought to Wawel Castle by Bishop Jan Thurzo in mid-September (TVP World 2024).

Want to bring your Dachshund to the parade? Learn more about traveling with dogs in Poland. 

Dżok

In 1990, Dżok's owner passed away from a heart attack near the Grunwaldzkie Roundabout in Kraków. Dżok, pronounced "jock," maintained vigil at the roundabout for his late owner for over a year, surviving on scraps. He resisted efforts of animal shelters and passersby to take him in, continuously waiting for his owner to return. He was eventually taken in and adopted by a woman named Maria. He lived with her and another dog for six years until Maria's death. He was taken to a shelter, from which he escaped. Tragically, he was hit by a train and died.

 He has become a symbol of unconditional love and loyalty in Poland today. His story is considered one of the many legends of Kraków. A monument in his honor can be found in the city. Though city officials were initially opposed to the monument, enough organizations and prominent people banded together and contributed to its creation. 

The monument, created by sculptor Bronisław Chromy, was unveiled on May 26, 2001. A German shepherd named Kety removed the cover with her teeth. The monument symbolizes the bond between humans and animals as well as canine loyalty and devotion.

The monument features an inscription in both Polish and English that reads "Dżok the dog—the most faithful canine friend ever, epitomizing a dog’s boundless devotion to his master.”

Reksio

Reksio was a Polish animated series designed for children. The title character, Reksio (Polish for Rex), is a brown and white terrier, inspired by the show's main producer/writer/creator, Lechosław Marszałek's, dog named Trola.

 The show centers around good-natured Reksio, his human owners, his animal friends (cats, dogs, hens, and their owners), and their adventures. It aired from 1967 to 1990, with a total of 65 episodes. The Polish Studio Filmów Rysunkowych produced the show, the same studio that produced Bolek and Lolek, who made guest appearances in the show.

Reksio has achieved cult status in Poland. There is a brand of chips named for him, and a series of educational children's puzzles and video games that star him. These games made their way to other East European countries as well. Reksio aired on East European iterations of the Disney Channel from 1990 to 1997.

Watch episodes from the series on Studio Filmów Rysunkowych's YouTube page. 

There is a statue of Reksio in the Southern Polish city Bielsko-Biała on a square named "Plac Reksia" (Reksio's Square). 

Reksio, who was a talented athlete, has inspired the Reksio Cup (Puchar Reksio), a popular children's sporting event in Poland. There is a summer cup, a cycling comptetion for children up to age 15, and a winter cup, which is a skiing competition, for children up to age 13. View photos from past events or check out the Reksio Cup Facebook page.

Reksio had a lot of great messages for children. In the first episode, "Reksio the Polyglot," Reksio is upset and lonely because he couldn't communicate with the other animals in the yard since he did not know their languages. In an interview commemorating the 50th anniversary of the show's debut, Helena Filek-Marszałek (Reksio creator Lechosław Marszałek's wife) said that the show's "mission was to encourage children to learn languages, showing them that doing so would open up the world to them" (Drost, 2017). Be like Reksio, study a language!

Dogs in Polish Literature

Ferdynand Wspaniały

Ferdynand Wspaniały, which means Ferdynand the Magnificent, is a children's book about a dog who dreams he becomes human. Written by Ludwik Jerzy Kern and illustrated by Kazimierz Mikulski, Ferdynand Wspaniały was published in 1963. A sequel, titled Wake Up Ferdynand (Zbudź się Ferdynandzie), came out in 1965. Both books appear in translation in several languages. There is also an animated series, which ran from 1975 to 1977 as well as theatrical adaptations of the books. 

Watch the first episode of the Ferdynand Wspaniały animated series titled "Pierwsze kroki (First Steps)."

Lampo

Lampo is a character from the 1967 short story "About the Dog Who Traveled by Train" (O Psie Który Jeździł Koleją) by Polish author Roman Pisarski. Lampo is based on a true story, though the dog lived in Campiglia Marittima in Italy, not in Poland. Pisarski took notice of the real Lampo and was inspired to turn his tale into literature. Lampo, the stationmaster's dog, who discovers a love for travel, rides the rails each day, evading the watchful eye of the conductor. The story is required reading in Polish third grade classes. In 2023, the short story was adapted into film, directed by Magdalena Nieć.

Saba

Saba is a canine character in the 1912 novel In Desert and Wilderness (W pustyni i w puszczy) by Nobel-prize winning author Henryk Sienkiewicz. The name Saba means lion in Arabic and is fitting for the dog because he is a huge, tawny colored mastiff who is mistaken for a lion at one point in the book. Saba is a loyal companion, protecting the two protagonists, an English girl named Nell Rawlison and a Polish boy named Staś Tarkowski, throughout their adventures in Egypt.

 There are two film adaptations of the novel, one from 1973 and one from 2001.

Dogs of the Moscow Metro

Of the approximately 35,000 stray dogs living in Moscow, about 500 of them live in the Moscow Metro. About twenty of these dogs "commute" regularly, riding the metro, using escalators, and obeying traffic guidelines. Anthropologist Alaina Lemon notes in her article "MetroDogs: The Heart in the Machine," that the dogs are able to navigate the metro lines and are aware of which stations are warmest and have the most food vendors, sometimes commuting to a location where they are more likely to get food. In an interview with ABC News, Dr. Andrey Poyarkov, a biologist studying canine behavior, commented, "In Moscow there are all sorts of stray dogs, but... there are no stupid dogs" (Marquardt). 

In 2010, Susanne Sternthal published an article in the Financial Times quoting animal behavior specialist, Andrei Neuronov, describing how the dogs of the Moscow Metro navigate and orient themselves. Neuronov notes, “they figure out where they are by smell, by recognising the name of the station from the recorded announcer’s voice and by time intervals. If, for example, you come every Monday and feed a dog, that dog will know when it’s Monday and the hour to expect you, based on their sense of time intervals from their ­biological clocks" (Sternthal). The dogs are also well adapted to the incredibly stimulating environment of the Moscow Metro, often sleeping in seats on trains and crowded areas, ignoring loud sounds and footfalls, something Poyarkov notes, many domesticated dogs are unavvle to do.

Canadian author Rachelle Delaney wrote a children's book titled The Metro Dogs of Moscow (2013) about the dog of a Canadian diplomat stationed in Moscow named JR (Jack Russell) who sneaks out of their apartment, travelling the Moscow Metro in search of adventure. JR makes friends with stray dogs and is enjoys his newfound freedom, but when dogs start to go missing, he must help solve the mystery. 

Bronze Dog at Ploshchad Revolutsii station

Ploshchad Revolutsii station in Moscow is home to 76 bronze sculptures, the most popular of which are a dog and a rooster. The dog depicts "a Soviet hybrid derived from shepherds, trained to work with police and military units," Lemon explains. The dogs were used in WWII to defuse mines and detonate explosions under enemy tanks (Lemon, 663). The dog in the metro statue is named Ingus.

In 1938, students at the Bauman Technical University in Moscow started rubbing their report cards against the dog's nose hoping for good luck on their exams. What started as a student superstition has turned into a phenomenon with people at times lining up to rub the dog's nose (Moscow Times 2020).

Dogs in Russian Literature

Henrietta Mondry, in her book Political Animals: Representing Dogs in Modern Russian Culture, argues that dogs serve several key symbolic functions in literature related to mortality, morality, and positionality in the universe. She argues that stories about dogs become a way that we can understand human nature. 

Below we look at just a few representations of dogs in Russian literature, however the list is far from exhaustive. We recommend Mondry's book for a fuller examination.

Medji and Fidele of "Diary of a Madman" by Nikolai Gogol*

Nikolai Gogol's short story "Diary of a Madman" tells the story of Porprishchin, a low-level civil servant who descends into madness. The first sign of his slip from reality is that he begins to understand the language of dogs, in particular his boss's daughter Sophie's dog Medji (Меджи) and Medji's friend Fidele (Фидель). By listening to the dogs' conversations, Porprishchin gets a view into the world of the upper classes from which his rank excludes him. The dogs discuss letters they had written to one another. 

Porprishchin, who is in love with Medji’s owner, Sophie, attempts to use the letters to get closer to Sophie and learn more about her. 

Medji displays a high level of class and sophistication in her writing. Her spelling and punctuation are perfect, for example. She discusses other dogs in the letters, differentiating between “house dogs,” about whom she writes with disgust and disdain, and “a gentlemanly dog.” This further highlights the theme class conflict so prevalent in Gogol’s Petersburg Tales. 

Medgji eventually tells Fidele in one letter that Sophie is to be married. Porprishchin gets very upset and his thoughts become increasingly disorganized. Eventually he convinces himself he is the king of Spain and is committed to an asylum where he is beaten and mistreated.

Mondry explains that, as “a Ukrainian and a closet homosexual, Gogol had good reason to explore the realm of punishable alterity, and the abusive treatment of an incarcerated madman in 1830s’ Russia establishes a strong parallelism between the treatment of people and dogs” (Mondry, 119).

Read "Diary of a Madman" in English translation.

*Nikolai Gogol is a Ukrainian author who wrote in Russian. He is considered part of the Russian literary cannon, though much of his work is influenced by his Ukrainian heritage.

Kashtanka of "Kashtanka" by Anton Chekhov 

Kashtanka, the titular character of a short story by Anton Chekhov, is a “young, rust-red dog, half-dachshund, half-mutt, very much resembling a fox” (Chekhov, 131). At the beginning of the story, Kashtanka belongs to a cruel, drunk named Luka Alexandrovich and his equally unkind son, Fedyushka. She gets lost and is taken in by a kind stranger, who renames her "Tetka," or Auntie. Her new master treats her well and trains her to be a part of his circus act, although she continues to think of her old life with nostalgia. During her debut with the circus, Kashtanka hears Fedyushka's voice and rushes away to rejoin her old family and her life of malnourishment and abuse. 

The plot is based on a chapter in Vladimir Durov’s 1929 book My Animals titled “My first trained dog Kashtanka.” Durov, a friend of Chekhov’s, was a well-known animal trainer who founded the Durov Animal Theater in 1912. Durov’s training technique did not involve any cruelty or punishment. In the real Kashtanka’s story, there is no mention of mistreatment by her previous owner, and she stays with Durov for the rest of her days, living a happy life.

Mondry explains that there is a parallelism between dogs and humans in “Kashtanka” especially related to the theme of dogs responding with love to people who abuse, mistreat, or torture them. She argues that Kashtanka, as a female dog, “serves as an allegory of the base nature of conception and procreation” shared by humans and animals, and explains that Kashtanka’s owner’s “superior attitude to his dog” is depicted in a gender-specific mode” (Mondry, 96).

The lower, uneducated classes hate female dogs because, for them, "they are the incarnation of sin and representative of female sexuality." Kashtanka's first owner "despises them [female dogs] in the same way as he despises the female sex” (Mondry, 96-7).

Mondry compares the treatment of Kashtanka by members of different social classes. While the gentleman circus trainer treats her well, the lower class abuse and torture her. She draws a parallel between Kashtanka’s longing for her abusive owners and the folk saying “If he does not beat me, it means he does not love me” (Не бьет-не любит) (Mondry, 101).

Watch the 1952 animated version of Kashtanka or watch the 2004 animated version.  Access a PDF of the English translation of "Kashtanka."

Mumu of "Mumu" by Ivan Turgenev 

"Mumu" is one of the most tragic dog stories in Russian literature. Ivan Turgenev wrote the short story in 1952 while in prison for violating censorship laws. The work, published in 1854, follows Gerasim, a deaf and mute serf living under the control of a wealthy mistress in Imperial Russia.

Gerasim falls in love with another serf, Tatyana, but his cruel mistress forces Tatyana to marry another man. Heartbroken, Gerasim later rescues a puppy from drowning in a river and names her Mumu. The dog becomes deeply attached to him and follows him everywhere. 

After Mumu bares her teeth at the mistress, the mistress orders her steward, Gavrila, to get rid of the dog. Mumu is sold but finds her way back to Gerasim. After the mistress hears the dog whining, the steward warns Gerasim that Mumu must disappear. Gerasim promises to handle it himself. The mistress character is based on Turgenev's mother, Vavara Petrovna Turgenev, a woman who took pleasure in administering corporal punishment to her serfs (Mondry, 153).

In one of the work's most devastating scenes, Gerasim takes Mumu out for a final meal before rowing her to the river where he first saved her and drowning her himself. The story highlights the cruelty and inhumanity of serfdom and its practice. Mondry notes that the most important and most common interpretation of Mumu is that the dog represents the suffering of the oppressed classes (Mondry, 154).

"Mumu" is incredibly well-known in Russian culture. There is a bronze monument to the dog in Turgenev Square in St. Petersburg. There are several film adaptations of the story and there is even a Russian song titled "Gerasim and Mumu" played here by Aleksei Kornev, which asks repeatedly why Gerasim drowned the poor animal.

Watch the 1987 Soviet animated short film "Mumu" with English subtitles. 

Sharik of Heart of a Dog by Mikhail Bulgakov

Mikhail Bulgakov wrote Heart of a Dog in 1925. The novella was not published, however, until1968 during Leonid Brezhnev’s tenure as General Secretary of the Communist Party, when there was an easing in censorship following the death of Stalin. 

Sharik, meaning “little ball” or “balloon,” is the central character of the novella. Sharik, a former stray dog, is transformed into a human-dog hybrid by Dr. Filipp Filippovich Preobrazhensky, who implants him with a human pituitary gland and human testicles from a proletarian class drunk named Klim. The new Sharik, now named Sharikov, develops a crude vocabulary and acquires a job for the government catching stray cats. 

Though technically a medical success, Sharikov is so unpleasant and socially unacceptable that Dr. Probrazhensky reverses the operation and Sharikov turns back into Sharik. One question in the work is whether Sharikov’s undesirable traits came from the dog Sharik, or from the human Klim. Mondry points out that most commentators, as well as Dr. Probrazhensky himself, conclude that the worst features came from Klim.

The novella is a satire of the new Soviet man, homo Soveticus, and Bolshevism as a whole. “Russian patriots and nationalists took offense at being equated with ‘Sharikov’s children’” (Mondry, 339). 

Mondry calls Heart of a Dog “one of the most prominent literary responses” to a time preoccupied with “the scientific correlation between animals and humans” (339). She states that the novella contains “a moral message about the unpredictability of experiments in which man tries to play God” (Mondry, 339).

The novella has been adapted for film, opera, and as both straight and musical stage play. A list of adaptations in different genres is below.

Soviet Space Dogs

In the 1950s, when the Soviets were working toward sending an animal into space, the consideration of which species was important. Many animals, including monkeys, were considered. However, they eventually decided to use dogs. There was already a lot of research on dogs, thanks to Ivan Pavlov (see Pavlov's dogs below), they were easier to train than monkeys, and were considered closer to humans in their emotional and physical reactions (Burgess & Dubbs).

The Soviet space dogs were exclusively female and predominantly Moscow strays. Females were selected because their anatomy made it easier for the engineers to design waste disposal systems, while stray dogs were believed to be tougher and better equipped to handle the stress of space travel. The dogs had to be between 13 and 16 pounds, between 18 months and 6 years old, and needed light-colored fur since they would be filmed in limited light (Burgess & Dubbs).

 The dogs travelled in pairs on their flights to help them remain calm. The dogs of the space program were regarded as heroes and have been featured in cinema, television, and on stamps. The bond between the engineers and the dogs was considered an important part of the scientific process to ensure the highest level of care. 

Dezik and Tsygan (Дезик и Цыган)

Dezik and Tsygan were the first mammals to survive flight on July 22, 1951. It was the first time dogs flew in a rocket. They launched from a remote location, Kapustin Yar. The rocket launched at dawn, reaching about 62 miles in altitude, the dog capsule landing by parachute. Both Dezik and Tsygan had survived the flight and were in good shape.

In September of the same year, Dezik travelled via rocket again, this time with a dog named Lisa. While both dogs survived the launch, upon landing, their parachutes failed to deploy, and both dogs died. Following Dezik’s death, Anatoli Blagonravov adopted Tsygan and took her home. Blagonravov was the former president of the Academy of Artillery Sciences who left to head the Commission for the Investigation of the Upper Atmo- sphere, which oversaw biological launches (Burgess & Dubbs).

Laika (Лайка)

Laika, meaning “barker,” was a stray dog from Moscow who, in 1957, became the first animal to orbit the Earth (George). Laika’s ship, Sputnik 2, was sent into space in November at the request of Nikita Khrushchev, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Russia’s Bolshevik Revolution. 

Laika’s physical responses to orbit were recorded by surgically implanted devices which monitored her pulse, breathing rate, blood pressure, and physical movement (George). She orbited the Earth in 103 minutes while in great physical distress. 

The Soviets never expected Laika to survive. They sent her into orbit with a seven-day supply of oxygen (George). Although originally the Soviet government claimed that Laika survived a week in space. They even falsified documents to keep the fiction alive. It was later revealed that she died a few hours after takeoff due to overheating and the stress of the launch.

Laika, however, lives on in a variety of cultural tributes. You can find postage stamps with her image, poems and books about her, an animation studio and magazine named after her, books, songs, and films that reference her, and even a few bands from around the world that feature her name (George). There is a monument, erected in Moscow in 2015, that depicts Laika atop a rocket ship. In 2005, NASA named a crater on Mars “Laika” (George).

Belka and Strelka (Белка и Стрелка) 

Belka ("squirrel") and Strelka ("arrow") were the first animals to travel to space and return alive. They were launched into orbit on August 19,1960 aboard Sputnik 5, along with several plants, 2 rats, and 40 mice. They orbited Earth 18 times before returning safely (Burgess & Dubbs). Like Laika, Belka and Strelka were female strays small in stature. Belka and Strelka both lived long, happy lives and died of old age. They can be seen at the Museum of Cosmonautics in Moscow.

Strelka eventually had puppies and Nikita Khrushchev gave one, named Pushkina, as a gift to US president John F. Kennedy (George). Pushkina and JFK's dog Charlie had puppies of their own, which JFK referred to as pupniks (Ferris). 

A 2010 Russian animated film titled Belka and Strelka: Star Dogs opens with Pushkina (or Pushok in the movie) arriving at the Oval Office. Pushok tells the story of his mother to the other White House pets.

Pavlov's Dogs

Ivan Pavlov (1849–1936) was a Soviet experimental neurologist and physiologist who discovered classical conditioning. Pavlov studied conditioned responses (salivation) to conditioned stimuli (dinner bell ringing). He also conducted important research on digestive physiology, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1904. Much of Pavlov’s research involved experiments using dogs.

Pavlov noticed that the dogs in his lab salivated when the person who fed them arrived, not just in the presence of food, deducing that the dogs anticipated being fed. He called this anticipatory salivation "psychic secretion." He then conducted an experiment which involved auditory stimulus (bell ringing) and immediate feeding. Eventually, he demonstrated that the stimulus itself without the presence of food could spark a salivation response in the dogs.

In his research, Pavlov put the dogs in a secluded environment in harnesses to limit distractions. He redirected the dogs’ saliva into a tube outside their mouths so that he could measure production (McLeod).

Slavic Gods/Spirits and Dogs

Psoglav

Псоглав (Serbian)/Psoglavac (Croatian)/Psoglavec (Slovene), which means "dog head," is a chimera of Balkan folklore with the head of a dog with iron teeth, the body of a man, and the legs of a horse. They were said to live in caves and other dark places where the sun never shone and where there were many precious gems. They are said to fear water and practice cannibalism/dig up corpses to eat (Serbian Mythological Dictionary, 261). People would place menhirs (large standing stones) on top of graves to protect bodies from the psoglav (Šešo).

The concept of dog-headed demonic figures made its way into South Slavic folklore from Biblical stories and through translated literature from Byzantium. One such work, which dates back to the 13th century, is the Alexander Romance, an account of the life and adventures of Alexander the Great. In chapter 28 of book three it reads "for we saw dog-headed men and men without heads who had eyes and mouths in their chests. And there were also those who burrowed holes, wild creatures who lived under the earth" (Alexander Romance). The Alexander Romance was translated into Serbian in the 15th century and into Croatian in the 17th century (Šešo).

Luka Šešo argues that the dog-headed creatures in The Alexander Romance “evoked the concept of dog-headed creatures already existing in South Slavic oral culture” but helped shape the narrative surrounding them by adding the link to savagery and cannibalism (Šešo).

He argues that the psoglav was used as an allegory for the foreign other in South Slavic culture, particularly the invading Ottomans. He cites a Croatian folk tale that tells of a “Turkish emperor’s daughter [who] was impregnated by a dog and gave birth to nine pups” (Šešo). He notes that in the South Slavic cultural consciousness, "the concept of dog-headed creatures was...used to point out dishonorable, immoral deeds, i. e., those which deviate from “our,” approved cultural norms" (Šešo).

There are many instances in the Bible that link the image of the dog to otherness. Jonathan Pageau notes examples of icons that depict "the dog-headed men as representing barbarian foreigners" describing them as "cannibal, savage, hybrid creatures who later will be conceived as descendants of Cain fallen to a monstrous state" (Pageau).

In 2011, Russian writer Alexei Ivanov published the novel Psoglavtsy (Псоглавцы). The novel tells the story of three young people who travel from Moscow to the village Kalitino to collect a fresco of St. Christopher depicted with a dog's head and to document the local population's behavior and reactions. The locals tell stories of werewolf creatures that the protagonists encounter later in the novel.

In Byzantium, beginning around the 5th century, it was thought that St. Christopher was a member of the barbaric dog-head race. He was not depicted as such, however, until the 17th century.

Folk Beliefs and Superstitions

Dogs are often treated very cautiously in Slavic folk belief. They are often considered dirty and unclean and were traditionally not let into the house or churches. Dogs also represent liminal or in-between spaces and thresholds, which are also treated with caution in Slavic folk culture. 

In contrast to cats, which typically represent the feminine, dogs represent the masculine. In some traditions, dogs play a role as guides between life and death, highlighting their liminal status. 

There are many sayings related to dogs and wolves in Slavic languages. Look below to see some Slavic beliefs regarding dogs.

Turkey

Istanbul has an estimated 100,000-400,000 stray dogs, but is known for their humane approach to and coexistence with the stray population, with many residents feeding stray dogs and feeding stations available for stray animals. A 2026 policy shift has transitioned from the 'no kill-no capture' policy with attempts to spay, neuter, and vaccinate the population to a collection and shelter approach to get dogs off of the streets. 

The 2020 documentary film, Stray, directed by Elizabeth Lo, follows three stray dogs in Istanbul from their perspectives. Lo filmed the movie at eye level with the dogs to bring the viewer into their world. The film comments on status and belonging as well as human animal interactions and how society treats the most vulnerable. 

Boji

Boji is an Anatolian Shepard mix who became famous for his skills navigating public transit in Turkey. His name is Turkish for bogie or truck (two or more wheelsets in a framed under vehicle). Boji learned to use buses, trams, trains, and ferries, sometimes traveling up to 30km a day (Almond). In response to his popularity, Boji was vaccinated and outfitted with a microchip that allowed the city to track his whereabouts with an app. The city also set up a little kennel for Boji at a Metro station and provide food when he visits. 

A photographer, Chris McGrath, who photographed Boji in 2021 said of the dog, “He knows exactly where the doors are for the trains...He’ll stand on the side of the platform, and as soon as he hears the vibration of the train coming, he goes to the very end of the platform and then basically chases the train back and waits by the door. He knows exactly where the doors are. He’s quite pushy actually; people are trying to get off, he tries to get on" (Almond).

Watch footage of Boji's travels on YouTube!

Boji was adopted in 2022 after a plot to frame the dog for pooping on a tram seat. A photo appeared on Twitter showing feces on a tram seat with the caption "IMM's permanent dog BOJI pooped on the tram." However, the spokesperson for IMM (Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality), Murat Ongun, responded by sharing tram security camera footage that showed someone putting feces on the seat that he had brought on the tram with him in an effort to frame the dog (Merkezi).

An Instagram page, @bojithetravellingdog, chronicled Boji sightings prior to his adoption. 

Sirko

Sirko (Сірко) is a Ukrainian folk tale featuring an old dog and a wolf. When the dog, Sirko, is cast out by his family, he meets the wolf. The wolf offers him a solution and says he will drag the youngest child into a ditch, and Sirko can scare him off. The canines perform this ruse, and Sirko is welcomed back into the family with praise and adoration. Soon, the eldest daughter is getting married, and Sirko, to repay the wolf, offers to steal food from the banquet. Soon, the wolf gets thirsty and asks Sirko to steal some vodka as well. The guests notice Sirko taking food off the table, but the family assures them that Sirko is a hero and that he should be rewarded. The wolf gets more and more drunk and begins to sing, eventually letting out a loud howl. The guests panic seeing the wolf, and Sirko lies down on him to try to keep him quiet. The guests want to beat the wolf away, but the father worries that they will hurt Sirko and tells them that Sirko will handle the wolf. Sirko takes the wolf outside, and having balanced their debts, they part ways.  

Pec Patron

Pec Patron, or Patron the Dog, who takes his name from the Ukrainian word for “bullet” or “cartridge,” is a 9lb bomb sniffing Jack Russell Terrier. His small stature is an asset in his work as he is not heavy enough to trigger the land mines he is searching for. Patron was born in 2019 and, in 2022, was awarded the Order of Courage by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for his work detecting explosives (Lister).

Patron, born on July 20, 2019, was originally purchased to be raised as a pet but was trained by his owner/handler, Mykhailo Iliev, as a bomb detection dog. Iliev has worked as a bomb disposal technician for the State Emergency Service of Ukraine since 2014. Patron and Iliev began working to locate and remove explosives after Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Patron first went viral in March of 2022 after the State Emergency Service posted a video of him at work in Chernihiv. 

Patron has 372K followers on Instagram, where Patron-related outreach projects and photos of his daily life are shared. He visits classrooms to educate kids about landmine safety in addition to being a very handsome cultural ambassador! 

A YouTube series based on Patron was created in 2022 to teach children about landmine safety. The production of the program was halted by the cancellation of USAID grant programs in 2025. In June of 2022, Patron was awarded the Golden Paw by the Irish Kennel Club as a canine hero. 

Patron's latest project, in collaboration with the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, and UNICEF Ukraine, is a book titled "Koly Ty..." ("When you...") that helps children to recognize and discuss emotions and to learn coping strategies to support mental health. 

Patron merchandise is available here, including books, stickers, stuffed animals, and apparel. 

Chornobyl Dogs

On April 26, 1986, there was a catastrophic explosion and fire at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine which released massive amounts of radiation. The city is now a ghost town following complete evacuation. The Chornobyl dogs are the descendants of hundreds of dogs that were unable to be evacuated. Though many domestic animals were killed by Soviet soldiers, many hid and survived in the wild (The Dogs that Survived).

The estimated population of the remaining dogs in the exclusion zone is over 700 (CleanFutures.org). A program called “Dogs of Chernobyl” through the Clean Futures Fund makes an effort to provide vaccinations, health care, and spay/neuter to help control the population and care for existing dogs. 

Checkpoint guards also care for the dogs. Some pull out ticks and provide rabies shots. The dogs entertain the guards, dispel loneliness, and protect them from wolves. The guards name the dogs, though with a “distributed sense of ownership,” among the guards, many dogs have multiple names. (The Dogs that Survived). 

The dogs also interact with tourists and have become popular attractions. They have large social media followings and were even live-streamed during the pandemic by paying customers on Airbnb.

The lifespan of Chornobyl dogs is tragically short, typically 3-6 years, because of disease and predators (Baraniuk). A program briefly existed to adopt dogs from Chornobyl, with 34 dogs successfully adopted. The full-scale invasion of Ukraine has halted relief efforts and left the Chornobyl dogs without reliable access to food and healthcare. Click to read more about relief efforts for the dogs of Chornobyl.

In 2025, the Chornobyl dogs caused a stir when people noticed some of the dogs turning blue. Despite initial concerns of a possible radioactive mutation, researchers concluded that the dogs had most likely been rolling around in waste from a nearby porta-potty, and their fur had simply been dyed by chemicals in the waste (Cull).

Watch the 2019 short film Fallout Dogs, directed by Julia Oldham, a "cinematic portrait of Chernobyl guided by the movements and activities of the stray dogs that live in the exclusion zone and the people who take care of them" (Juliaoldham.com).

International Dog Day

Did you know that International Dog Day is August 26? The holiday was created in 2004 by animal welfare activist Colleen Paige, who hoped the day would help promote animal adoption and advocate for animal welfare/rights.