Tobolsk school students attended a class on humane treatment of stray animals

3 april 2023

As part of the Furry Home project, Tobolsk schools are hosting classes called "Do Good!" conducted by organizers and volunteers of the Right to Life Center for Stray Animals, a winner of SIBUR's Formula for Good Deeds social investment program’s grant contest.

The Furry Home project includes a whole series of events designed to instill a culture of humane treatment of stray animals in younger people, including by arranging tours of animal shelters where they will be offered to interact with the animals under the supervision of trained volunteers. At the dedicated "Do Good!" classes, the project’s authors will introduce attending school students to animal volunteering and to the reasons why neglected animals end up on city streets.

As part of our Furry Home project, we are pursuing several objectives: improving the quality of life of stray animals by helping repair dog pens or by offering classroom-based "Do Good!" lessons to teach students the rules of behavior when in contact with animals and how to treat stray animals humanely, by playing out various real-life situations, Elena Rasputina, the project’s head, explained.

The first lessons in kindness were given on April 3 at Tobolsk’s Schools No. 7 and No. 17 with over 80 elementary school students in attendance. In all, throughout the entire duration of the project from April to December 2023, more than 4,000 preschoolers, school and university students of Tobolsk will take part in these activities.

These Lessons in Kindness were designed to help children realize, through engaging them in role-playing games, that “you become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.” This has helped our children realize that you can find a solution to any problem and help all creatures big and small. Such lessons taught to our children are very much needed, as they serve to instill kindness, responsiveness and responsibility in them, Irina Shokhtina, homeroom teacher of School No. 17’s Class 1B, noted.

The problem of neglected animals and their humane treatment is very relevant. They get brought to the fore every time an incident involving these animals occurs. We believe that the first step towards taking care of this problem starts with outreach and raising awareness of our collective responsibility for those we have tamed. Thanks to the Furry Home project, it has become possible, through joint effort, to nurture a culture of ethical treatment of animals in our children and teenagers, Darya Cherepanova, an expert with ZapSibNeftekhim’s Department of Government Relations and Socio-Economic Projects, commented.