Kusia thought she had finally found safety, a warm home, familiar routines, and a family that loved her. Then war reached Kyiv, and in a single week, the life of this rescued housecat was turned upside down.
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Her owner, Anna, shared Kusia’s story as the family scrambled for shelter, supplies, and a way to stay together. Through Kusia’s eyes, the fear is simple, the confusion is real, and the loss of normal life hits hard.
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What happened next shows just how quickly everything changed.
Just over a week ago, Kusia, a regular house cat, was startled to the core.
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“I’m really into playing fetch and bringing the ball. My parents say cats don’t do that.
But I love it! Especially when my parents are still sleeping; I can bring a ball in my teeth and throw it at their noses.
To definitely wake them up, because c’mon, let’s play! If they don’t respond, I can basically become a barber and start licking my dad’s beard.
That’s when he wakes up and strokes me. Then we’d play and have breakfast.”
Kusia wished to leave the shelter and return home, but she realized she couldn't.
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“But seven days ago, everything changed. We all woke up to a very loud siren.
The sky was still grey. My parents quickly began to gather things.
At first, I followed my mom everywhere and purred, still waiting for her to give me a treat. But it didn’t help.
I had never seen my mom like this. She was panicking.
And Dad was very serious. I became very scared again.
Just like when I was hiding under the car, waiting for a black cat to kill me. So I crawled under the bed and refused to go anywhere.
But the sirens didn’t stop. My parents forced me into a cat carrier - they said we needed to evacuate to a bomb shelter.
I didn’t know what that was. Until now. Since then, this has been my new home.”
Kusia finds comfort in her parents and siblings
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“At first, I couldn’t calm down, and I was looking for a way back home. I checked all the cracks and flaws of the bomb shelter, trying to find a way out.
But my mom took me in her arms, hugged me, and cried. I don’t like the taste of her tears; they’re salty. So I tried to purr louder because then my mother smiles through her tears.”
And she still wants to play
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“I’m not bored here. Three more cats live in my new house - Stepan, Kuzya, Mutya, and Gerda the dog.
All the cats are also adopted from the streets, just like me. From the very beginning, Kuzya annoyed me; I hissed at him a lot.
But now we are friends, and we can even play together. Those games distract us, so we can almost not hear the explosions and sirens.
My mom doesn’t cry as often anymore but tries with all her might to find insulin, and Dad is on the phone all the time, even more serious. I think his hair has gone silver.
I miss my favorite cozy bed; I’m tired of sleeping on the floor. I really want to go back home and live in a world where no evil, unbearable black cat can attack.”
She has a sibling, Mutya, to keep her company
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Kusia can’t wait to go home
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Here’s what Kusia’s owner said:
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Anna added:
“Here’s a little update on the situation in Kyiv:
Tonight was insane; we couldn’t sleep at all because the city where my grandmother lives was under attack. It’s a really small city called Izyum (which means “raisin”) in Eastern Ukraine, and there are only civilians there.
We couldn’t reach her by this morning. It’s impossible to explain how I felt the whole night, but it’s like your heart doesn’t belong to you anymore, and your mind is so shocked that you feel like you have already lost someone you love… you’re trying to suppress those thoughts, but it feels like a tsunami.
With all hope and prayers, we finally reached her; she was also hiding in a bomb shelter with her dog. That night, there were a few huge explosions over Kyiv, and we could feel them very close.
Animals were shocked, and they were trying to hide everywhere. Kusia usually sleeps with me, and she really was trying to calm me down that night because I was beyond my limit.
She’s an angel and the best kitty depressant ever. For now, we’re okay with supplies like food; I think everyone has seen some apocalyptic movies, so it’s like this - high-carb food and water are a must.
But we still have some problems with medication. I hope that with the logistics, it will soon improve. A lot of people usually underestimate the power of the vibes animals can give you, b...[truncated]
Animals don't wage wars. They don't kill for pleasure. They don't lie about higher goals.
uanimals.official
Poor little thing hiding
Lesia Smykovska
They need to be evacuated
BlueParrotBooksI
We hope that this madness ends soon. War brings destruction, death, and suffering.
So many lives are lost, and the survivors carry trauma for the rest of their lives.
We truly thought we had moved on from killing each other over a piece of land or ideas, and this has caught us off guard. It turned out that we must work on peace.
