Sonya
Restaurant Cat
Sonya’s Story
Sonya, the beloved cat and “chief supervisor” of a grill eatery in Mykolaiv, is a source of inspiration for her dedicated team of waitresses. In 2024, Sonya was severely injured, requiring expensive medical care that equaled a month’s worth of the waitresses’ wages.
When individual donors from Alaska2Ukraine learned that the waitresses were pooling their tips to pay for Sonya’s vet bills, they stepped in and covered all the expenses. Thanks to their generosity, Sonya received the necessary care, though she did lose a leg.
Despite her injury, Sonya continues to thrive and still enjoys her favorite pastime of hunting birds in the restaurant garden. As of August 2025, she remains on active duty as the restaurant’s cherished feline empress, and her staff is forever grateful for her recovery.
Quick Facts
Callsign:
HOPTASTIC
Occupation:
Apex Predator
Status:
Donor-assisted Cat of Interest
More Photos of Restaurant Sonya
Help Provide Lifesaving Medical Care for Cats
The sad fact is that most badly injured pets don’t survive in wartime Ukraine. We can’t help every cat like Sonya. We can help with less expensive but still vitally important basic medical care for many cats.
Spay/neuter operations, vaccinations, antiparasitics, and so forth don’t cost a lot, and for many of us, a monthly donation of five or ten dollars isn’t something we’d miss. For the Ukrainian cats who are supervised by people like Sonya’s team of waitresses, that five or ten dollars a month can make the difference between getting the care they need, and having to go without. Consider helping these cats!