Malta’s only pet crematorium is juggling a long waiting list as its service resumes after three months of inactivity.

Volunteers at The Island Sanctuary said they were “doing their best” to deal with 150 animal remains awaiting cremation in freezers.

They had been unable to make use of the incinerator since November because of safety measures taken due to an unstable wall at the entrance to the Delimara sanctuary.

The Lands Authority had placed large concrete blocks along the wall preventing tankers from entering and supplying gas to power the incinerator.

At the end of February, the wall was repaired and the concrete blocks were removed, thus allowing the cremation service to resume.

Pet owners have expressed their frustration at the delays and having to pay to keep their pet’s remains in storage.

“It’s already painful that I lost my baby girl and I have to wait so long for cremation,” one user complained on the sanctuary’s Facebook page.

I’m paying €60 a month at my vet clinic to keep my pet frozen

“I’m paying €60 a month at my vet clinic to keep my pet frozen,” another wrote.

Sanctuary volunteer Claire Gafà said that while cremation services had resumed, it would take time to deal with the waiting list.

“Our team is made up entirely of volunteers and taking care of our living dogs is always the priority,” she said.

She said that it took around seven hours for remains to be fully cremated and the incinerator must be allowed to cool overnight before it could be used again.

Typically, the sanctuary carried out an average of three cremations a week but, given the backlog, the trained volunteers are trying to run the incinerator at least five times a week.

“There can’t be any mistakes, we treat this very seriously. That’s why it always depends on the volunteers available,” Ms Gafà said.

Island Sanctuary has been offering the cremation service since 2018.