Story of Sahak and his Little Exotic Zoo in Mariupol
- How are you? Hello? Yasha! – Yasha, the crow says hi to me.
Nearby, Chilean squirrels are busily spinning a wheel, snakes are looking indifferently as they slide along the snags, and a snapping turtle watches me in a completely unfriendly manner, wondering how many lunches would she have out of me. “Damn strangers walking around here,” this is what one reads in her little eyes.
NURCED A VIPER IN HIS BOSOM
In an ordinary 9-story building in Mariupol, next to a pet store, an exhibition of exotic animals is open around the clock. Access is free! Its owner, Sahak Kubelyan, says that Mariupol residents come here to relieve stress.
It all started back in the 80’s in Sahak’s homeland in Armenia.
“I was bitten by a viper in Yerevan, these snakes have lived there from the beginning of time,” he shows the index fingers of both hands, each missing a nail phalanx. - This is the result - necrosis occurred. The pain was horrible. It was as if my fingers were charred. Even anesthesia does not relieve such pain.”
It would seem that after such an acquaintance, even a slighest wish to look in snakes’ direction would disappear. But Sahak, on the contrary, fell in love with these mysterious creatures. He says that their wisdom and grace totally stole his heart.
“Snake never bites without a reason. Poison is a very powerful weapon; in the nature it is not to be wasted in vain, it would only be used for hunting and for self-defence. It’s like we would throw money away and then die of hunger,” – Sahak justifies that viper who bit him.
That's when the fascination with snakes began. He studied their behavior, bred them and gradually put together an entire little zoo. Now there are 40 species, mostly reptiles and snakes. But there are also chinchillas, rabbits, raccoons, ferrets, and guinea pigs. Some of them were bought by Sahak, some were presented to him as gifts, some were born here, and some were saved from predators. Some veterans have been inseparable from their owner for decades.
“People sometimes ask me: “Sell!” But how can you sell a friend? This is not good”.
Among the veterans is the rabbit Stepan, he is in a special position - he is even allowed to run around the zoo. And also a ferret - Lucky, an old man dozing in a hammock. Sahak says that in nature animals do not live that long, but in his case they are all long-livers.
Sahak is convinced that no one should be considered a favorite, because they feel everything and suffer. He only gives more attention to those who are sick. Sahak treats them not only with medicines, but also with his energy and prayers.
Before the war, there was a zoo group for kids here, the children adored Sahak, and he taught them responsibility towards all living beings. If you take an animal, it is not for fun, you must take good care of it.
ICE IN THE BASEMENT, FLAMES OVER HEAD
The little zoo had to go through the most terrible times when the battles for Mariupol began.
“The roar of the bombings, the building was shaking, but that was not the worst thing. There was no light, no heat. The temperature outside was negative, but here in the basement, it was + 10 at best. If I only had one snake, I would warm it on myself, put it under my T-shirt. But how can you keep them all warm when there are dozens of them? I couldn't leave them and run. But I couldn’t save them either, especially the big ones.”
He covered, wrapped, lit the terrariums with flashlights, candles, but still… Two anacondas, carpet pythons, Cuban boas, sea turtles, and a chameleon did not survive. They come from the tropics, after all.
“Every evening I carried out new dead bodies. They also died from stress. “I still can’t think of it without tears,” Sahak falls silent and, turning away, wipes his eyes.
Together with his pets, he also saved people. The zoo is in the basement, which meant shelter from the shellings. Mariupol residents came here with whole families.
“We all slept on the floor, right here, between the snakes. There was even one pregnant woman. Ukraine shelled the hospital where she was staying. She came running with her husband, her face was burnt. And they lived here until the safety corridor to the DPR opened. Later she gave birth to a boy in Russia. I didn’t refuse shelter to anyone. I think it is a sin to love animals more than people. After all, we are all God-like, but how can you put an animal above God?”
In the basement it was freezing cold, but there were fires on the floors after shellings. “If it weren’t for us, there would be nothing left of the building. We put out so many fires! One night I started to choke, and suddenly I felt something dripping on me. I slept dressed and with a hood on my head to escape the cold. It turned out that the house caught fire due to another “arrival”, and molten bitumen flowed into the basement”, he recalls.
COMMON TABLE
Half of the animals died, and the rest would have died too, if not for the generator given to Sahak by a volunteer Vladimir from the group “Good People”. He just went into the basement, saw the animals and asked how to help. Sahak asked for a generator. Food supplies saved them from starvation. People cooked food for themselves and their animals over the fire, shared what they could and supported each other. One family brought a bag of apples and carrots to the basement, another brought cereals, and they all ate together.
Probably, constant communication with snakes made Sahak a real philosopher, because the exhibition and excursions here are completely free.
“I don’t like begging. I don’t make money from animals, and I spend everything that the pet store brings in for them. Sometimes visitors also bring gifts. This is how we survive.
I only dream of one thing, that peace would come soon,” - says Sahak, stroking the surviving snake, which curled up like a kitten in his arms.
Now, looking at the building, you can’t really tell what hell was once happening here. Mariupol is rising back to life, construction workers in bright overalls from all over Russia are everywhere.
But every so often you notice a trace of a mine explosion on a sidewalk, near some playground... Or shrapnel marks on a house wall...
It seems that same marks remain in the hearts of everyone who survived those terrible days in Mariupol and understood something maybe most important in life.
