A dog found dead at the edge of the Għarb cliffs in Gozo on Sunday was under the care of a dog sitter, its owners are claiming.

Kim, a three-year-old German Shepherd, was last seen on August 25 and was reported missing in Għarb.

Two days later, he was found dead at the bottom of a steep part of the cliffs in Għarb.

Kim's owners, Edward and Diane Axisa, were abroad at the time and had left it with the pet sitter Doggy Day Care Gozo on August 19. 

The pet sitter - Cassie Gold - did not want to comment about the incident.

Times of Malta is informed it is the same dog sitter who was taking care of Ruby - a small black female Staffie - who was last seen on July 15 after she escaped the premises of the dog daycare centre. The family is offering a €5,000 reward for her safe return.

The death of Kim has rekindled the call for pet sitters to be regulated and licenced. Photo: Diane Axisa

“My family is in shock - today was originally the day I was supposed to pick up Kim and take him back home with us,” Edward told Times of Malta. 

He said that Gold called him on Friday afternoon to inform him that Kim was missing, and Axisa called his friends to search for the dog.

“I felt so helpless as I could do nothing to help my friends and other volunteers who went out of their way to look for Kim,” he said. 

He said a volunteer spotted Kim's body at the cliffside and Gold was called on site and she took him back to her property.

However, he called Animal Welfare to collect him and take him to the vet. 

"Kim was a very strong dog, I have no idea how he ended up at the cliff's edge," he said.

He said this is the second time the family used the pet-sitting service, and they had no issues the first time. 

Axisa said together with Ruby’s owners, they will be filing a police report on Monday. 

Dog sitter to speak with owners

Replying to questions sent by Times of Malta, Gold said she will be facing the owners on Monday to explain the events “as they unfolded.”

“I am simply in no state to discuss these terrible incidents. I have not slept for days, and I am feeling very threatened by the tone and words being used on social media about something that people know nothing about,” she added. 

Following the announcement of Kim’s death, animal lovers and activists took to social media to call out Gold and her company.

Many noted that the place where Kim's body was found is close to the place where Gold would take the dogs out to run, very close to the cliff's edge. 

Commissioner calls for immediate regulations

Animal Welfare Commissioner Alison Bezzina once again called for the immediate regulation of pet sitters following the death of Kim. 

She first called for the recommendation to regularise and license pet sitters, groomers and trainers in 2021.

In a statement, Bezzina said the absence of standardised regulations results in varying qualifications, practices and levels of accountability within the industry. 

"In light of recent events, addressing this gap and reinforcing standards for pet-sitting services is imperative," she said.

"The Commissioner of Animal Welfare urges the government to swiftly implement these regulations. Furthermore, it is imperative for concerned citizens to voice their opinions, leveraging collective influence to encourage the government to take necessary actions."

The animal shelter Association for Abandoned Animals (AAA) also called for the set-up of licences and regulations for pet sitters. 

Publishing photos of Kim and Ruby, AAA said the same pet sitter had cared for both dogs, and that a third dog had died under the same pet sitter’s care.

“It cannot be that everyone on our island can just one day wake up and decide to be whatever they want - a petsitter, a dog trainer, a breeder, a dog boarder, a dog school and even doing ‘therapy’ for humans with animals.”