Nine-year-old Nazar experienced the horrors of war up close when Russian soldiers with automatic weapons rushed into the family’s home. The soldiers put a hood on his grandfather and then started beating him in front of the other family members.
But Nazar is not alone in having to process traumatic experiences from the Russian invasion war in Ukraine.
At a support center outside Kyiv, there are children and young people between the ages of 2 and 18, all of whom have witnessed terrible events during the war. Many have parents or older siblings who participated in the war, some have died in the fighting.
– They are still afraid every time there is a knock or if a whistle is heard, says Nazar’s older sister Viktoria.
But there is happiness to be found in the midst of sadness. The ray of joy goes by the name Bice and is a pit bull terrier.
Thanks to the therapy dog, the children get a necessary break from the war. A leader of the support center explains that being with a dog can reduce anxiety and increase stress tolerance.
In the player above: Watch as the dog visits the support center outside Kyiv.