Published on: 2026-05-12
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
The wildlife rescue department of the Moscow Zoo and the ecological control department of the Moscow Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection https://www.mos.ru/eco/ have already helped more than a thousand animals. Among the department’s functions is assisting representatives of wildlife found in the urban environment. Veterinarians, zoologists from the specialized department of the Moscow Zoo, and inspectors from the ecological control department of the Moscow Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection respond to requests from concerned citizens on-site where animals are discovered, examining and conducting necessary procedures.These are, for example, hedgehogs, squirrels, foxes, wild boars, moose, beavers, as well as various types of birds that have fallen into trouble.
“Specialists from the Moscow Zoo’s animal rescue department helped more than a thousand animals over 10 months of work. Another approximately 60 individuals were seized from unsuitable living conditions without the necessary documents and transported to the rare species breeding center and other branches of the Moscow Zoo,” said the Minister of the Moscow Government, head of the Department of Culture.
How the animal rescue department works
Dispatchers operate around the clock, receiving requests from caring citizens, processing them, and forwarding them to specialists for dispatch and rescue of wards. Veterinarians and zoologists examine the animal, carry out necessary procedures, and if no rehabilitation is required, release it into its natural habitat. Requests can be left by phone at: 112 and +7 495 777-77-77.
If after the examination of animals during the specialists’ departure it is decided that additional studies and rehabilitation are necessary, the animals and birds are transported to the zoo. There is modern surgical and diagnostic equipment there, including computed tomography devices, X-ray, endoscopy, and ultrasound examinations. Thanks to specialized dental equipment, animals have their teeth treated without being moved to the veterinary building. Monitoring of the condition during anesthesia is carried out using oxygen concentrators and artificial lung ventilation devices.About 750 rescued animals are currently undergoing rehabilitation.
Rescue stories: moose, foxes, beavers and chommga
The wildlife rescue department receives requests about moose that are found near urban development. This year there have been six outings, as a result of which the animals were returned to their natural habitat.
So, in February, two moose entered the territory of the social house “Yaroslavsky”, which was under reconstruction at that moment. To minimize stress for the animals, specialists made an unconventional decision: builders dismantled part of the fence, creating a safe corridor for the moose. This allowed both moose to return to the territory of the national park “Losiny Ostrov.”
In March, the wildlife rescue department received a report about a bird found by a city resident under a car in a parking lot near the Moscow Ring Road. The animal was in a weakened condition. Veterinarians determined that this bird belongs to the representatives of the Red Book of the city of Moscow — the pochomga. After examination, zoologists established that it required a course of treatment and transported it to the zoo. After successful rehabilitation, the pochomga was released into the Tsaritsyno Ponds, where a nesting group of these birds already lives.
At the end of April, an application was received from a kindergarten in the Fili-Davydkovo district. A fox with offspring settled in a burrow under a playground. Zoologists who arrived on the scene caught the animals, provided them with assistance, placed them in a carrier, and transported them to a specially prepared area in the forest of the Troitsky district. A burrow was built for the animals, covered with branches, and food was laid out.
In April, zoologists also received an application about the capture of a beaver in a weakened state in the territory of Serebryany Bor. Upon examination of the animal, shallow wounds were found. He was transported to the zoo, underwent necessary examinations, and a course of treatment was prescribed. After the recovery period, the beaver was returned to its natural environment.
Before injuries: lions and lemur
Specialists from the rescue department of the Moscow Zoo and inspectors from the ecological control department of the capital’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection cooperate with natural resource agencies (Rosprirodnadzor and the prosecutor’s office) to help animals kept in unsuitable conditions and without necessary documents. In almost a year, employees have rescued about 60 animals. As a rule, they are also confiscated from owners.
So, in March specialists confiscated two adult African lions. The male and female were kept in inappropriate conditions and without the necessary documents by a resident of the non-commercial gardening partnership “Kruiz.” The confiscation procedure was initiated by the capital’s interdistrict environmental prosecutor’s office. Specialists preliminarily inspected the place where the animals were kept, anesthetized the lions, carried out primary diagnostics, and transported them to the rare animal breeding center of the Moscow Zoo. There, the animals underwent quarantine, and now they are under the supervision of veterinary doctors.Individual diets are being developed for lions.
“Protection of animals placed in inappropriate living conditions is very important work. I thank all my colleagues from city services for their incredible professionalism. Thanks to our promptness, two wonderful representatives of the feline species will find worthy, comfortable living conditions,” emphasized Svetlana Akulova, General Director of the Moscow Zoo.
At the beginning of April, specialists from the rescue department of the Moscow Zoo and inspectors from the Environmental Control Department of the capital’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection seized a male cat lemur who lived in improper conditions at the anti-cafe “Lemur Cafe ‘Vasya’.” These animals are listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which are threatened with extinction as a species endangered with extinction.
CapitalDepartment of Natural Resources and Environmental ProtectionTogether with the Basmanny interdistrict prosecutor’s office, the conditions of keeping a rare animal were inspected. At the scene, veterinarians examined it, placed it in a transport cage, and transported it to the Moscow Zoo. The lemur was settled in a temporary, non-exhibition enclosure where it is now undergoing adaptation.
Svetlana Akulova said that upon arrival, the animal was offered appetizing fruits and vegetables, an individual diet plan corresponding to the species’ needs was developed for it, fully satisfying the dietary requirements of these animals. The lemur easily crossed the road and immediately began to explore its multi-level enclosure with curiosity.
Today the Moscow Zoo is a dynamically developing space where scientific work is conducted, international conferences are held, educational programs are implemented, and a unique atmosphere is created daily for residents and tourists to get acquainted with the world of wildlife.
At the beginning of 2025, the Moscow Zoo set a world record for the number of animal species represented: it housed 1,253 species. By 2026, the number exceeded 1,280.
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