A Girl and Her Dog: A Survival Story and the Artwork It Inspired |

(Last Updated On June 4, 2022)

Now here’s something unique. In July of 2014 a three-year-old little girl named Karina Chikitova became hopelessly lost in the Siberian taiga for nearly two weeks with only her little dog to keep her company! The story of how such a small girl managed to survive those eleven harrowing days and nights borders on the miraculous, but she owes much to her canine companion Naida, who not only helped keep her warm during the near-freezing temperatures of the taiga nights but eventually led villagers back to her when the dog sensed she was in danger. Truly amazing! She has been nicknamed the Mowgli girl because of her survival skills in the wild. You can read all the details of this story here and elsewhere on the web. And because of this story, Russian artist Nicholay Chochchasov was inspired to create a sculptural tribute to the pair called Girl and Dog, which is now installed at the airport in Yakutsk, the capital of the Sakha Republic, where the little girl and her favorite pet reside.