Chonkush Ovtsadykov was born in 1876. He had two siblings. He participated in the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-05. During the war one day he was out scouting along with 11 other Cossacks. Having gathered intelligence on the whereabouts of the Japanese, his squad stopped for a rest. When Chonkush was cooking a meal, the Cossacks who were on the lookout informed the rest of the resting squad about the approaching Japanese soldiers. The Cossacks decided to confront the Japanese. Since he did not take his sword with him, Chonkush used his whip to fight the enemy. All the Japanese surrendered. For his bravery Chonkush was awarded the St George’s cross. The commander of his corps gave Chonkush a 5 Ruble coin for his excellent performance with a whip.