Oksana Oleksandrivna Malaya (, born 4 November 1983), better known as Oxana Malaya, is a Ukrainian woman internationally known for her dog-imitating behavior. Malaya has been the subject of documentaries, interviews and tabloid headlines as a feral child "raised by dogs".
Biography
Malaya was born in the village of Nova Blahovishchenka in Hornostaivka Raion, Kherson Oblast, of the Ukrainian SSR. According to doctors and medical records, she was a normal child at birth, but was later neglected by her drunk father at age three, and she lived surrounded by dogs. When Malaya was found by authorities, she was seven and a half years old, but she could not talk, lacked many basic skills, and physically behaved like a dog. She was running around on all fours, barking, slept on the floor, and she ate and took care of her hygiene like a dog.
In a Channel 4 documentary, and in the Portuguese SIC channel documentary, her doctors stated that it is unlikely that she will ever be completely rehabilitated into "normal" society. In 2001, Russian TV channel NTV made a documentary about her life. There have been multiple articles about her in the press.
In 2013, Malaya gave an interview on national Ukrainian TV, on the talk-show Hovoryt Ukraina, where she talked about herself and answered questions. During the show, Malaya said that she wants to be treated like a normal human being, and is offended when others call her a "dog-girl".