Updated | Animal lovers concerned at suspected ‘systematic’ culling of strays

A woman who found a stray Springer dog in Siggiewi is accusing the Animal Welfare Department of putting the animal to death despite being assured that no decision would be taken about the dog’s well-being before she was informed.  

Sonja Casha wrote on Facebook that three weeks ago she picked a severely malnourished dog from Siggiewi and after keeping the dog overnight Animal Welfare officials called to pick it up. 

However, the dog was euthanised by an unnamed veterinary within hours of being picked up by Animal Welfare officials despite Casha telling the officials that she would take the dog in and pay all medical expenses. 

This has once again raised suspicions among animal lovers that stray animals are being euthanised to ease the pressure on the department. 

A spokesperson for animal rights junior minister Roderick Galdes provided MaltaToday with a summary of the medical report which says that the dog was put down because “the veterinarian found a body score of 1 out of 6, meaning that it was emaciated, malnourished, very dehydrated (9%) and the kidneys were found to be very small in size, which could indicate chronic kidney problems.”

Moreover, the report added, “there was generalised parasitic infestation of the skin, pale mucous membranes meaning that the dog was anaemic and the snap tests were found positive for Leishmania, with indication for Ehrlichia.”

However, Casha insists that the dog’s health did not warrant such drastic action. Moreover, the Triage policy, which sets guidelines on when strays should be euthanized, states that among others a dog must be unable to stand on its legs. 

“I wish we had taken a video of her prancing around our yard, playing with us and jumping up and down. She was not a dog that looked ‘critical’ at all,” Casha said. 

Moreover, the photo attached to the medical report shows the Springer standing on all fours. 

Speaking to MaltaToday, Casha said the decision to put the dog down was taken “hastily” and she called for greater transparency and clarity on how animals are put down. 

“Such events eat away at the trust people have in authorities. If I ever find a stray dog again, I will not call Animal Welfare,” she said. 

The summary report holds that the action taken by the unnamed veterinarian was in accordance with the Animal Welfare Triage approved by the Veterinary Surgeons Council on 24 September, 2015. 

The Triage was drawn up to establish the procedures to be followed by all private warranted veterinarians who provide emergency and follow up veterinary services to the Animal Welfare Promotion and Services Directorate.

Symptoms which allow veterinaries to euthanize dogs range from coma to body temperatures below 35 degrees Celsius. 

Other symptoms include locked jaws, profuse bleeding from more than one orifice and evident fractures which include cranial and spinal injuries. 

Roderick Galdes’ secretariat has so far failed to name the veterinarian who took the decision and how many stray dogs have been put down after being picked up by Animal Welfare officers over the past five years. 

Systematic euthanasia? 

Casha’s online posts drew plenty of attention and ire from animal lovers, who shared similar experiences. This compelled Galdes’ spokesperson to write a Facebook post on a popular Facebook page, Rubs Puppy Love, in which he hit out at “false information and baseless allegations against the Animal Welfare (AW) department”.

Giving an assurance that the department does not take decisions on whether dogs should be kept alive or put down, the spokesperson warned that while the department accepts constructive criticism, “it is reserving its right to take legal action against those who persist in spreading misinformation and unjustly tarnish the department’s reputation.”

This post drew hundreds of replies, with many asking for reassurances that the department is not culling strays because of a lack of resources. 

In her original post, Casha said that another dog which was in the van when the officers picked the Springer was also euthanised despite looking perfectly healthy. 

Dog owners who spoke to MaltaToday said stray dogs and cats picked up by Animal Welfare are “systematically put down”.

They said that authorities are taking advantage of legal and regulatory loopholes, and simply putting down animals without giving them time to recover, which was a cruel practice. 

A dog owner said that in other countries, such as the UK, authorities wait for seven days before deciding whether a dog is euthanised, giving time for the stray to be claimed or adopted. 

“Many dogs which were found in a far worse state than the euthanised Springer have recovered and lived a long healthy life. Every dog deserves a second chance” said one dog owner who volunteers with an animal rights organisation. 

According to law, rescued stray animals can only be killed if they are dangerous, sick or seriously injured to the point of no recovery. 

The Animal Welfare Act states that, except in cases of an emergency, which visibly indicate extreme pain conducive to death, “only a veterinary surgeon or other competent persons” (such as a vet’s assistant) shall be permitted to put down an animal.

The Triage guidelines state that animals suffering from the listed ailments “often die and extending their lives amounts to an extension of their misery and pain.” 

Casha went public with her story after Galdes’s secretariat failed to offer an explanation for two weeks. 

After writing a letter to the junior minister, Casha received a phone call from Galdes’ secretary informing her they would look into why the dog was put down. 

“That was two weeks ago and I haven’t heard anything else, so I am writing here in the hope of some answers,” Casha wrote earlier this week. 

Galdes however reacted when the story was reported on the Nationalist Party’s media, with Galdes taking to Facebook to deny any wrongdoing by the Animal Welfare Department. 

Accusing Netnews of using Facebook posts to attack the government, Galdes said Animal Welfare “has no power to decide whether dogs should be put down as is being alleged on Facebook but the responsibility lies solely with veterinaries who take a decision according to their examinations and the law.”

Casha was also given full access to the medical files, but Galdes insisted that Animal Welfare officials “carried out their job and assisted as required by taking the dog to veterinary.” 

Springer euthanised within hours 

Casha said that on the morning that Animal Welfare came to pick up the female Springer she told the officers “very clearly and more than once that we would pay any medical bills and that we were intending to keep her”.

“I emphasised to the female officer to please contact us before any decision was taken about her well-being. She reassured us and said that dogs are only ever put down if they were really badly injured, for example after being hit by a car,” Casha wrote on Facebook. 

However, when Casha’s partner called a day later to check about the dog, he was informed that the dog had been put down.

“The lady officer said the Springer was not chipped but she would be kept for seven days just in case her owner claimed her and we should call AW on Wednesday to check on her. We could not wait till Wednesday so my partner called the very next morning. The guy on the phone told us that she had already been put down!” Casha wrote on Facebook. 

“Of course we were shocked and upset. They didn’t even wait 24 hours and didn’t even bother calling us,” she added. 

Silent protest against ‘cruel animal welfare system’

On Tuesday evening, animal lovers and Valletta residents organised a silent protest against what they described as “murder by a cruel animal welfare system.” The protest was triggered by the death of a cat which lived in the streets of the capital city for nearly 18 years. 

The organisers said they are mulling legal action to change the Triage guidlines. The animal lovers insisted that animals should only be put down if the pain is irreversable. 

Masha, which lived on a utilities box in Melita Street, was euthanised last week. 

An incensed resident who spoke to MaltaToday said that the Animal Welfare’s initial justification for putting her down was that she was sick, but a woman who took Masha to the vet a few days before she was picked up was told that the cat was in good health and did not suffer from Feline Immunodeficiency Virus otherwise she would not have lived that long. Her weight was also optimal and the veterinary prescribed antibiotics for her liver and recommended a low salt diet.

“What muddies the waters of the Animal Welfare story even further is that, when pressured by concerned citizens who loved the cat, they started giving different versions of the story; that she was found elsewhere, but it wasn’t the same cat and that she was hit by a car.” 

The resident added that if this were true the department would not have come up with conflicting explanations.

Residents and animal lovers suspect that the cat was euthanised after being picked up by the department due to complaints by a nearby shop owner, who had previously complained about the cat. 

Moreover, the cat was microchipped and the registered owner is a man who runs a nearby pet shop. Yet, the man was not informed that the cat was picked up or that she was going to be euthanised. 

The department, later insisted that the cat was euthanised because she was diagnosed as being very weak, emaciated, dehydrated and suffered from  paralysis and haemorrhagic diarrhoea. 

Government sets up board to draw up report on Animal Welfare

In a statement issued on Thursday, environment minister Jose Herrera and parliamentary secretary for animal rights Roderick Galdes expressed their concern on the recent controversies surrounding the Animal Welfare department.

Reiterating government’s commitment to strengthen the people's trust in this “sensitive and important matter” they also announced the creation of an internal board which will draw up a report and give recommendations for improvements in the operation of the Animal Welfare department.