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Snapshots: Pets in crisis

How bonds between animals and humans can keep people going through the worst of times.

Zeina Shahla is pictured looking at the camera over her right shoulder as she smiles widely. She wears a white blouse with black patterns over the shoulders. She has sunglasses on her head.

Journalist, independent researcher, and TNH Humanitarian Reporting Fellow from Syria

Two orange and white cats sleep on top of the edge of a sofa while cuddling each other. Courtesy of Safana
Zeina Shahla is pictured looking at the camera over her right shoulder as she smiles widely. She wears a white blouse with black patterns over the shoulders. She has sunglasses on her head.

Journalist, independent researcher, and TNH Humanitarian Reporting Fellow from Syria

    DAMASCUS

    Nowhere are the special bonds between animals and humans more evident than in times of crisis. This occasional series, featuring pets and their owners from conflict and disaster zones around the world, begins with a woman who says "unconditional love" from her cats has helped to support her psychologically through years of war.

    Life in Syria is not easy. Since 2011, the country’s long civil war has created many hardships for its citizens. Some people, however, have managed to find a measure of normalcy in a very special relationship: with their pets. Safana, a musician and mother, is one such person. She lives now in Damascus with her husband, her child, and seven cats – the first of which she got a year before the war broke out. She spoke to The New Humanitarian about what her feline friends mean to her:

    Videos edited by Ciara Lee. Text edited by Patrick Gathara.

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