At first glance, Alexei Surovtsev looks like the epitome of the “tough guy” – he’s tall, beyond muscular, with pierced earlobes, a wild beard and angular features. But under his well-toned chest beats a big heart for animals. No stranger to Ukraine – before the outbreak of war, like President Volodymyr Zelenskyj, he took part in the Ukrainian version of “Dancing Stars” and was even a three-time “Striptease Champion” – Alexei uses his fame these days primarily to draw attention to the unspeakable suffering of domestic animals that unfortunately are all too often left behind by their fleeing owners during war.
Even if many pictures go around the world showing Ukrainians fleeing with their dogs, cats or rabbits, not everyone has the opportunity to do so – not least because they may not be able to do it anymore because they themselves have lost their lives. For these animals, who would be doomed to die alone, confused and utterly terrified in the midst of the eternal Russian fire, Alexei is now the savior in need: he has made it his mission to find and rescue abandoned furry friends – and very much so successful.
On social media, Alexei shares photos and videos from his rescue missions, showing him driving his car through completely devastated streets and searching for surviving animals in the ruins of bombed-out houses. While bombs can be clearly heard falling in the background, Alexei rushes around with animal transporters, feeding and petting cats and retrieving them from the death zone.
In the meantime, Alexei has been able to save countless cats, dogs, rabbits, hamsters and other animals – and is celebrated as a hero on social media for this. Alexei works with organizations to reunite the animals he rescues, mostly from the Kyiv area, with their owners, most of whom have fled to other countries.
Alexei himself says about his very dangerous rescue operations: “Yes, of course it is dangerous! Yes, of course it is difficult! And yes, it’s scary! But when you look into those scared, deeply saddened but infinitely faithful eyes, you have no doubt that it’s more than worth it.”
