Dogs will not be sent to Italian kennel, animal commissioner says after visit

Updated 10.15pm

A group of 20 bully-type dogs will not be sent to a kennel in Italy, the Animal Welfare Commissioner said late on Monday, following a visit to the site in Naples.

The visit followed concern raised by animal rights group Vuci Għall-Annimali, which on Saturday said the dogs were being transferred to Dog Town SRL, a kennel located in the province of Caserta in the Campania region. The transfer was planned to take place on Wednesday.

“The destination where these animals are being sent is Dog’s Town SRL. If this is the case, this is somewhat worrying." The NGO said their contacts in Italy had sent them media reports describing the location as a "concentration camp" for dogs.

The activists also criticised what they described as a lack of transparency surrounding the transfer, saying this had led them to “assume the worst”.

“We would not assume the worst if transparency came first,” they said, adding that the public had a right to know the dogs’ destination and the conditions they would be subjected to.

“What we are asking is that we are in a position (along with our Italian partners) to verify the conditions that these animals will be in before they leave the island,” the group added. It also offered to carry out an on-site inspection with its Italian counterparts.

Speaking to Times of Malta on Monday morning, Animal Welfare Commissioner Fleur Abela said she was already in Italy and would visit the facility in person.

In a post on Facebook on Monday evening, the Office of the Commissioner for Animal Welfare said Abela had also spoken to Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries Alicia Bugeja Said.

During her visit, Abela was accompanied by MSPCA's general manager Mary Cassar Torregiani.

"While the shelter administration provided assurances and documentation relating to permits and licensing, the Office of the Commissioner, acting prudently and in the best interests of animal welfare, formally advised that the planned operation scheduled for Wednesday, December 17, 2025, should not proceed.

"This recommendation was immediately communicated to the Office of the Parliamentary Secretary, which acted in full alignment with the Commissioner’s findings and called for the cancellation of the proposed transfer being handled by the Animal Welfare Directorate."

Bugeja Said backed the office's decision in a separate Facebook post.

'Recent posts contain inaccurate claims'

On Sunday, Abela posted on social media that she would be visiting Dog’s Town SRL on Monday and sought to clarify some of the public concerns.

“Recent posts regarding 20 dogs contain inaccurate claims – it is not a kill shelter – with claims escalating in personal threats,” she said. The commissioner added that she would be pursuing legal action in response to the threats.

The Animal Welfare Commissioner's statement on social media. Photo: Fleur Abela Facebook

She said the decision to send the dogs to Italy had been taken before she took office. Despite this, she said she would personally assess the facility.

According to the kennel’s website, Dog's Town SRL has been operating for 10 years and currently houses around 600 dogs. It describes itself as a 16,000 square metre multipurpose facility designed to house, care for and assist animals in line with legal requirements.

The facility also handles stray dog sheltering, pet boarding, animal transport, capture, teleanesthesia, and care of exotic and wild animals.

However, Caserta News last year reported that Gabriella Caramanica, National Secretary of the Animalist Ecological Revolution party, raised concerns about the kennel. She alleged witnessing “surreal scenes”, including the premature sterilisation of puppies, some of which died from infections caused by dirty cages.

“They routinely sterilised the puppies at two or three months. Many of them died due to the premature interventions and perhaps due to infections, undoubtedly caused by the filth in the cages where they were placed after the surgery,” she claimed.

Times of Malta was unable to independently verify these claims.