New legislation regulating pet groomers, breeders, walkers and boarding is expected by the end of next month, Parliamentary Secretary for Animal Rights Alicia Bugeja Said has announced.

Bugeja Said was speaking six months after a public consultation on the issue was held.

“A number of submissions were made from that consultation. We have concluded our drafts and, soon, they will be put to cabinet,” the junior minister said.

Once approved by the cabinet, the changes will be announced in a legal notice, meaning they will not have to go through parliament.

The changes will come in the “coming weeks or months”, she said but later clarified that the legislation will be published by the end of May.

In 2021, the Animal Welfare Commission appealed for legislation to regulate the sector and, a year after, the Malta SPCA made similar calls.   

Earlier this month, Animal Welfare Commissioner Alison Bezzina criticised the “agonising” delays in introducing new rules.

In her annual report, Bezzina said eight of her 18 recommendations remain pending, including the regulations on groomers and breeders.

“The delay in executing much-needed changes is agonising, knowing that every moment lost could potentially impact the lives of vulnerable animals,” she said.

In Wednesday’s parliamentary sitting, PN animal rights spokesperson Janice Chetcuti also mentioned the delays.

Asked why the reforms needed three years before implementation, Bugeja Said replied: “As a government, we implement reforms that require discussions with stakeholders, my work began two years ago and, since then, my work has not stopped in the interest of animal welfare,” she said.

Bugeja Said was speaking on the fringes of a press conference where she announced that those who adopted a pet from the Animal Welfare Department have now begun receiving a voucher to spend at a vet of their choice.

Currently, around 90 dogs are at Animal Welfare kennels in Marsa, waiting for a home, she said. 

Animal Welfare Department director Joseph John Vella said that rescued pets are first taken to a vet before being rehabilitated at the kennels.   

The €70 voucher not only encourages responsible adoptio n but also encourages owners to build a relationship with a vet, Vella said.

“Pets belong with families and should be treated as part of it,” he said.