The animal shelter in Għammieri is expected to double in size by the end of this year, but the real solution to the number of abandoned dogs is to regulate breeding, according to Alicia Bugeja Said.
“The project will increase shelter capacity by 100 per cent, and it will complement another rehoming centre in Ta’ Qali, which was one of the election manifesto’s pledges,” the parliamentary secretary for fisheries and animal welfare told Times of Malta.
During the electoral campaign the Labour Party promised a “modern rehoming centre” to house abandoned animals and animals whose owners cannot take care of them anymore.
The Ta’ Qali centre is also expected to provide shelter for horses.
Bugeja Said was reacting to a story published in Times of Malta on Tuesday, which quoted an animal welfare commissioner report highlighting that abandoned dogs are not being rescued unless they are injured, because there is no space left at the animal shelter in Għammieri.
Bigger and older dogs, and those that are flea-infested, are more likely to remain abandoned. So are those that are not pure breeds because they are less likely to be adopted and the department cannot afford to have too many dogs occupying pens for a long time.
While Bugeja Said admitted that while the expansion of Għammieri and the opening of the Ta’ Qali rehoming centre will increase capacity and mitigate the problem of shelter overcrowding, the real solution lies in regulating unbridled breeding.
“Unregulated breeding is the source of the problem. We must reduce the number of dogs that are being bred and sold,” she said.
“Rather than simply creating more space for stray animals, we should look into this solution.”
Over the past months, the authorities have confiscated several dogs that were found in poor health in private homes of breeders.
Animal Welfare Commissioner Alison Bezzina and animal rights activists have repeatedly urged people to adopt dogs and cats from animal shelters, instead of buying puppies from breeders.
Animal breeders have, on the other hand, argued that a few bad breeders should not reflect on the rest who do their job diligently.