26-year-old Ukrainian soldier Stanislav Panchenko has come home after nearly seven years in captivity, bringing with him his cat Myshko who had lived for more than four and a half years alongside prisoners in penal colony No. 32 in Makiivk

As part of a prisoner exchange on 14 August, 26-year-old serviceman Stanislav Panchenko has come back from captivity along with his four-legged friend – a cat named Myshko.

Source: Novyny Donbasu; Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne

Details: Myshko had lived for more than four and a half years in penal colony No. 32 in occupied Makiivka in Donetsk Oblast alongside Ukrainian POWs.

Another man who had cared for Myshko has been behind bars for over seven years and is still awaiting release.

“I couldn’t leave Myshko behind — in the colony, he would have faced the fate of a stray. By then, he was, you could say, our family cat,” Stanislav shared.

Stanislav Panchenko was born in Poltava Oblast. He has served in the Armed Forces of Ukraine since 2017 and was captured in Donetsk Oblast in January 2019.

His mother, Valentyna Panchenko, said that Stanislav was initially held in a Donetsk pre-trial detention centre and was later transferred to penal colony No. 32 in Makiivka after a “sentence” had been handed down.

He was sentenced to 17 years in prison on fabricated charges of “seizing power”.

 Stanislav and Myshko in hospital**Photo: Novyny Donbasu

Stanislav explained that the animal had been brought to the Makiivka barracks by their “quartermaster” – a prisoner responsible for maintenance work in the colony. The kitten was very small, but the prisoners nursed it back to health.

At first, the men thought it was a female cat and named her Myshka, but later discovered it was a male so he was renamed Myshko.

The soldiers made a special bag for the cat, marked “Cat Home” and “Myshko wants to go to Poltava”.

Stanislav spent almost seven years behind bars, and when he was released, he took the cat with him.

 Myshko’s bag**Photo: Novyny Donbasu

“We decided that whoever was freed first would take the cat with them. So in winter, we ordered a special bag with reinforced walls and a base so Myshko could be transported comfortably from prisoners working in the sewing workshop. The guards confiscated it three times, but fortunately we were always able to get it back,” the serviceman said.

Stanislav said Myshko is very clever and affectionate. During the journey from occupied Donetsk, he sat quietly in the bag and did not make a sound.

"When we were finally exchanged, we were being transported in ambulances. I warned the staff just in case that I had a cat in the bag. They were very surprised: ‘A cat? Alive?!’ I said: ‘Yes, alive. He’s also from penal colony No. 32.’

I opened the bag to show them. When we were settled in hospital, I warned the staff again," he recounted.

Myshko now lives with Stanislav and is gaining weight.

“I hope that my fellow unfortunate friend, with whom I raised Myshko, will also soon be part of an exchange,” the defender added.

Background:

On 14 August 2025, 84 Ukrainians were released from captivity, including 51 civilians.Among those freed were three civilian women who had been held for over six years, as well as three doctors captured in Donetsk seven years ago.

Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!

From Ukrainska Pravda via this RSS feed