The foundation Clean Futures Fund assists the canine fauna that roams the restricted zone of Chernobyl clarified that they were not responsible for the coloration of the dogs seen.
Berlin, October 29 (DeutsheWelle).- Three dogs con blue fur bright They were spotted hanging around in the vicinity of the Chernobyl exclusion zonein Ukrainethe place of nuclear disaster that occurred in 1986.
The animals were discovered last October 6 for the program Chernobyl dogsfrom the non-profit organization Clean Futures Fundwhich for years has captured, sterilized and released the dogs that were left abandoned after the accident.
“We came across three dogs that seemed to be almost completely covered in a blue substance,” he says in an email sent to DW Jennifer Betz, veterinary director of the program.
“We tried several times to catch them, but they are extremely fearful of people and we have to shoot darts with sedatives at them to catch them. Unfortunately, this time we couldn’t catch them,” he added.
They rule out speculation about mutations
The striking blue color generated endless speculation about possible genetic mutations linked to Chernobyl radiation. However, experts rule out that possibility.
“We are not saying at all that it is related to radiation from Chernobyl,” Betz said.
According to the veterinarian, the dogs probably rolled in a viscous substance that got stuck to their fur: “We suspect that this substance came from an old portable toilet that was in the same place as the dogs,” she explains.
They deny having dyed the animals
The organization also had to come out to clarify rumors that accused them of having dyed the animals to attract attention.
During the sterilization campaign, veterinarians use a temporary marker – it erases in two or three days – of green, red, blue or purple on the dogs’ heads, to be able to identify those that had already been operated on.
“The color is only applied to the top of the head and is completely different from the dogs we found, which were covered in blue, from head to toe,” Betz detailed.
Three completely blue dogs were found in Chernobyl during a day of capture and sterilization by the “Dogs of Chernobyl” organization. The caregivers perform veterinary tests and laboratory analyzes to identify if the phenomenon represents a… pic.twitter.com/aXOIdlKdPl
— World Alert (@TuiteroSismico) October 28, 2025
“We don’t have time to do things like that”
On his Instagram account, Clean Futures Fund reiterated his rejection of these accusations: “To those who comment that we are falsifying these photos or that we are spraying or dyeing these dogs on purpose, or that we deliberately captured them to dye them in order to make money or spread false information, I don’t know what to tell you, except that we don’t have time to do things like that nor do we need to do them,” he stressed.
“We have been trying to find them again for days to capture them for the sole purpose of sterilizing them and possibly cleaning out anything they have gotten into,” he added.
Although Betz acknowledges in the email that they have not yet been able to confirm their suspicions about the causes of the color of these dogs, the expert estimates that the substance does not represent a danger: “The dogs seem healthy, like all the others we have encountered during our stay in Chernobyl. I suppose that, as long as they do not lick most of the substance from their fur, it will not do them any harm,” she said.
A similar case in Russia
The scientific environment IFLScience Remember that this is not the first time dogs with bright blue fur have appeared.
In 2021, in Dzerzhinsk (Russia), residents found a similar herd near an abandoned chemical plant.
“In this case, it is suspected that the dogs rolled in copper sulfate, a pale blue chemical used in manufacturing,” the specialized media noted.
A group of dogs with blue fur was seen near the Chernobyl nuclear plant. The Dogs of Chernobyl organization released images and warns that the animals did not have that color weeks ago. A phenomenon never before recorded in the area. pic.twitter.com/P8kPMPG9MP
— InformaES
(@InformaESV) October 29, 2025
The wildlife that returned to Chernobyl
After the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, more than 120,000 people were emergency evacuated, leaving behind not only their home, but also their pets.
But despite the high levels of radiation, dogs and other animals managed to survive and procreate against all odds.
Today, along with foxes, wolves, wild boars, raccoons and birds, dogs have colonized an environment that was once considered uninhabitable, surprisingly adapting to the radioactive zone.
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