Theraccoon of Kherson (Ukrainian:єнот з Херсона,romanized: yenot z Khersona) is araccoon that was stolen from the city ofKherson in November 2022 by Russian zookeeperOleg Zubkov [uk]. The theft occurred during theRussian retreat from Kherson during theRussian invasion of Ukraine, with Zubkov stating that he took the raccoon, along with several other animals, from Kherson tohis safari park inCrimea to protect them from the war. The animal became a subject of satiricalmemes in Ukraine while in Russia it became a reported source of morale and tool in pro-Russian propaganda, receiving thecall nameKherson in Russian media.[1][2]
On 11 November 2022,[3]Oleg Zubkov [ru], the zookeeper and director of theTaigan safari park in Russia-occupied Crimea published a video of himself grabbing raccoons from the zoo inKherson, under the title "We are in Kherson. Oleg Zubkov catches raccoons with BARE HANDS!!!". The video also shows people in Taigan uniforms loading other animals into trucks,[4] leading media observers to assume the people were transporting the animals to Taigan.[5] Zubkov later made the video unavailable, but was already reuploaded by social media users at that point.[4][3] The raccoon in particular came to wider attention whenRussian nationalist blogger and poetAnna Dolgareva [ru] bragged onTelegram about the theft that the "only good news" about Russia's recentloss of Kherson was that her friend had stolen the raccoon.[4]
A few days later, Zubkov stated in an interview that the animals from the Kherson Zoo were taken toRussian-occupied Crimea and placed in the Taigan safari park. According to him, twowolves, allama, adonkey, seven raccoons,peacocks,guinea fowls, andpheasants were brought in total.[6] He called his actions "rescuing" the animals[7] from the warzone and promised to return them when peace returned to Kherson.[3] He also said that he had been asked byVladimir Saldo, the head of theRussian occupation administration of Kherson Oblast, to evacuate the animals.[8]
On November 13,Oleksandr Todorchuk [uk], founder of the Ukrainian animal welfare organizationUAnimals, announced that the Russian command had stolen the raccoon from the Kherson Zoo, confirming the account that the animals had been taken to Crimea.[9][10] Dolgareva later denied that the theft had taken place. In turn, a screenshot of her original post went viral onTwitter, leading to numerous memes and jokes about the raccoon being created.[5]
The Ukrainian branch ofBBC News reported that the raccoon had become a symbol of war and "the absurdity of theRussian military", which isperceived to steal everything from washing machines to toilets to animals. Ukrainian social media users mocked pro-Russian users' celebration of the theft of the raccoon, joking that the goals of the Russian military in Ukraine had changed from taking the entire territory of the country to stealing a raccoon from a zoo. They referred to the abduction of the animal as the so-called "sacred goal of the Russianspecial military operation", proposed the creation of a medal for the taking of the raccoon, and created memes presenting scenarios in which Russian PresidentVladimir Putin reacts to the taking of the raccoon.[3][11] Some memes called for the raccoon's release, with parodies like "Saving Private Raccoon", a play onSaving Private Ryan.[12]
Serhii Bratchuk, spokesman for the Ukrainian military administration of theOdesa Oblast, sarcastically offered to exchange the raccoon for ten Russian prisoners of war.[3] A petition was created on the website of theOffice of the President of Ukraine proposing to exchange the raccoon forthe Odesa monument of Catherine the Great, receiving more than 6,500 signatures by 22 November 2022.[1]
General director ofUkrposhtaIhor Smilyanskyi [uk] said that Ukrposhta could issue a new stamp featuring the Kherson raccoon.[13]Kherson Oblast Council memberSerhii Khlan noted that the symbolic significance of the raccoon to Kherson could be compared to that of theKherson watermelon.[14]
On November 22, the Russian TV channelVesti reported on the taking of the raccoon, with the presenter claiming the raccoon was a symbol of Russian soldiers and their victories.[1] The piece also referred to the raccoon in positive terms, equating it to Russian soldiers and said that a name for it, Kherson, was chosen in an online poll.[2] Russian media claimed that the raccoon lives with Russian soldiers in the trenches, and that it loves to play "dirty tricks" and turn their living space "upside-down".[9]
Commentators have described the raccoon as having taken on a "mythological" meaning inRussian propaganda, as a symbol for the Russian military that aims to portray it as "fast and cunning" but "outwardly pleasant, not aggressive". A pro-RussianTelegram channel named after the raccoon was created within weeks of the theft, which frequently posted media related to the raccoon, including some aimed at children.[15]
In December 2022, a video was released showing Vladimir Saldo being bitten by the raccoon during an attempt to pet the animal on video.[16]
