Estonians erect statue, give home to beloved stray dog

Zorik was never the tail-wagging or hand-licking type. But that didn’t stop the freespirited vagabond dog from winning many hearts.

When the black- andwhite mutt, long a presence in a Tallinn neighborhood, was taken from the Estonian capital to the countryside earlier this year to live out his days in the safe and restful surroundings of a family’s back yard, he was missed so much that the residents immortalized him with a statue.

“People donated for the monument. They wanted it and they still follow his fate even though he is already old and frail,” said Heiki Valner, an animal rescue volunteer who thought up the idea of the statue of Zorik and organized the fundraising.

Donations were collected and a local artist was commissioned to create the likeness of Zorik, with his upright ears and shaggy hair around his muzzle, along with a cat nestled against him.

The statue, now standing in front of a shopping center, is meant as a tribute both to Zorik and his animal companions, and to all strays. Zorik once had a dog companion who was killed in a car accident. He then took up with stray cats and was seen with them often, even while sleeping.

Residents say that Zorik first appeared as a pup about 12 years ago in a coal storage area in a nearby port, and had been a fixture ever since in Kalamaja, a working-class district that is transforming into a magnet for hipsters.

In a society where the divide between ethnic Estonians and ethnic Russians is acutely felt, Zorik managed to bridge the divide, winning over Russianspeaking old women who fed him, as well as Estonian hipsters, including a group now opening a cafe named “Zorik.”