The story of Senior Lieutenant Roman with the call sign “Alvarez” is tragic, because the fighter died in the battles near Artemovsk. At home in St. Petersburg, he has a little daughter, a sister and a mother. Roman joined the front in 2022 due to partial mobilization. He is a reserve officer and was a motorized rifle platoon commander in the special military operation. He raised his daughter alone without a mother, so the girl stayed with her grandmother.
And it so happened that in the autumn, on one of the front lines, Roman picked up a tiny puppy that could not survive alone. That's how the squad got a new fighter - Pulya (Bullet). Pulka grew up with the guys on the front line and never left her master's side. But, nine months later on a combat mission Roman was killed near Artemovsk, he was 38 years old. And Pulya was left without its owner and faithful friend.
"We were all with Roma right from the very beginning, back in training, then we got into the same platoon, Roma was our commander. When Pulka was hit by a car, we found her and nursed her back to health. Pulka liked to sleep in the dugout with one of our fighters," says one of Roman Mirzhanov's colleagues.
And then the guys got in touch with Roman's family and offered to take the dog to his family," Media writes.Malkevich."
"Pulka lived with the guys, they didn't leave her. The guys started calling us and telling us about Roma. Huge thanks to them all, especially to their commander Dmitry with the call sign “Wind”. And by some miracle the fighters with the help of volunteers brought us Roma's dog,” said Roman Mirzhanov's sister Nina.
Pulya spent several days on the road, lost a lot of weight from stress, but reached the northern capital without incident. Remarkably, all the while, a locket made from a bullet was hanging around Pulya's neck on her collar. And in all the photos, the dog was certainly with its medallion. But when Roman's family met her in St. Petersburg, the locket seemed to disappear.
"Roma made a collar and hung a bullet for Pulka. And then it got lost somewhere on the road. The guys told us later that our dog had said goodbye to that bad life and would now start living happily. It's like a sign that she's entered a peaceful life," Nina says.
Pulya now lives with Roman's daughter Angelina and his mother Nadezhda Adolfovna. The dog now does not know the hard life in the dugout, but its name and the rescue story itself will forever remain in the hearts of the whole family.
Photos from the Mirzhanov family's personal archive.