A Ukrainian cat named Stepan has delighted his million-plus Instagram followers with news of his safe escape from the war zone, after his account had fallen silent for more than two weeks.
The tabby social media influencer, aged 13 and renowned for his poses with props including cocktails, cream cakes and disco lights, fled with his owners to France after their home town of Kharkiv came under bombardment from the Russian military.
“We’re all right now,” a post on his Instagram account announced after a 1,490-mile journey that was assisted by the World Influencers and Bloggers Association. Stepan’s fame also extends to a YouTube channel, accounts on TikTok and Twitter and an advertisement for the luxury Italian fashion house Valentino, which paid him to pose with a $2,800 handbag.
On February 24 he and his owners were woken by explosions at their home in an apartment block in North Saltivka, a residential district of Kharkiv, the post on Instagram states.
“The windows trembled. I jumped up and understood that something terrible was happening! The attack and shelling of Kharkiv . . . We realised that the war had come to our house,” it adds.
Advertisement
The family spent two nights sheltering in their basement and were without electricity for a week before fleeing to the western city of Lviv. From there they headed to the Polish border and waited nine hours to cross on foot.
Rescued off the streets as a kitten, Stepan’s favourite pursuits are cited by his owner, identified only as Hannah, as eating raw beef and sleeping.
He rose to international prominence during the pandemic as viewers related to videos of his “parties” while alone at home.
One, which shows him sitting with a glass of wine and listening to the Stevie Wonder song I Just Called to Say I Love You, gained more than 27 million views.
Positive influence
Stepan’s escape from Ukraine was assisted by the World Influencers and Bloggers Association, which last year declared him one of the top animal social media stars or “petfluencers”. The group represents prominent influencers on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook and YouTube whose work helps to promote good causes. Collectively they have more than 200 million followers. Global events have shown the value of influencers, Maria Grazhina Chaplin, the CEO, said at an awards ceremony last year.
