Kupata, is a very good boi from the town of Batumi in Georgia. He is a street dog who has found his life’s purpose by helping kids safely cross the street.
Kupata (which translates to “sausage” in English) is a street dog that became a local celebrity in Batumi.
Kupata’s rise to international stardom came after a Batumi resident, Beqa Tsinadze, recorded a video of a the dog appearing from the streets and barking at cars to stop, so children can safely cross the street in 2020.
The video was then uploaded on an Instagram account dedicated to the dog, ran by Tsinadze.
Talking to BoredPanda, Tsinadze reveals that Kupata basically does this everyday, so it’s actually his full-time job!
A local resident even told The Dodo how dedicated the dog is with his job. “Kupata gets angry when a car crosses by every time,” the resident said.
“He takes his job very seriously. And sometimes he waits for children for one hour, to make sure that they feel safe in the park and they cross the street safely.”
Prior to the 2020 video of Kupata going viral, Tsinadze reveals that Kupata has been helping children cross the street since 2018.
Tsinadze also reveals that Kupata is a street dog that came from somewhere five years ago, when he was just a puppy. And since then, he’s been living in the staircase of the building where Tsinadze lives.
“People have been caring for him. Everybody loves Kupata,” Tsinadze tells BoredPanda.
He also adds, “He has 3 best friends, the woman named Nona, who feeds him, also one little girl, and Beka, who cares for him as well. Kupata grew up with kids, he loves playing with them. There is a park next to his place, so he is always playing with kids in that park.”
Besides Kupata’s obvious love for chilren, Tsinadze said, “He hates drunk people and always barks at them. He loves sleeping a lot and he also enjoys eating sausages.”
And since he is loved and well-fed by the residents, one of the butchers who regularly gives him sausages named him Kupata, after the Georgian meat dish Kupati.
Thanks to Kupata’s service to the children of Batumi and upon hearing the good deed he does, the Adjara Tourism Department honored him by presenting him his very own doghouse.
The doghouse he received also came with a star that reads his name and “People’s Choice” on it.
Furthermore, PeakD reported that his doghouse sits near a butcher that regularly gives him his favorite sausages.
In a deleted Facebook post, the Department of Tourism and Resorts of Adjara wrote, “The popular Kupata now has his own home. He was only aiming to help kids safely cross the streets, but it amounted to so much more. The employees of the Department bought him a home with the words: People’s Choice. That is something he certainly well deserves.”
Additionally, a mural was also created at the Memed Abashidze Street in Batumi to immortalize the heroic crossing-guard dog.
Here he is, with his very own mural and the person who created his mural, George Gamez:
Kupata’s dedication and heroic act has had a huge impact in his community. As a matter of fact, in 2020, Batumi City Hall launched the ‘Kupata Program’ which helps stray dogs get adopted.
According to Caucasus Plus, the Batumi Mayor at that time, Lasha Komakhidze, revealed, “We will allocate 60 GEL [$22] monthly for individuals who will adopt registered stray dogs in the city or, if a dog is unregistered, registers and then adopts them.”
Sadly, the streets in Batumi feel a little emptier today as they lost their crossing-guard dog in October 2023, according to several reports. And the good boy crossed the streets of heaven just before his 10th birthday.
Hopefully, Kupata is now helping other furry friends cross the streets of heaven himself!