Malta SPCA says temporary ban on bully dog breeding must consider other factors

The Society for the Protection of Animals has said a petition by various animal rights charities and NGOs to stop the importation of bully dog breeds should take into consideration the possible side-effects of such a ban in isolation.

The MSPCA said it agreed with a temporary ban, supported by a number of NGOs, but not in isolation.

“Let us think about long-term consequences before imposing quick fixes. Let us have a more holistic approach to finding a solution instead of imposing legislation without considering other factors and possibly making the situation worse,” the MSPCA said.

Following the seizure of 27 bully breed dogs found in horrible conditions and rescued by Animal Welfare, the NGOs Vuċi għall-Annimali, Association for Abandoned Animals, Gozo SPCA, Noah’s Ark Dog Sanctuary and The Island Sanctuary are calling for a temporary ban of the breeding and importation of all bully breed dogs as also proposed by The Commissioner for Animal Welfare, until the situation has adequately improved.

One of 10 dogs being cared for by the MSPCA

The MSPCA is currently caring for 10 bully-type cross-breeds received from the Animal Welfare Department after taking action against the pitiful state they were kept in. “They are currently undergoing rehabilitation and are available for adoption. Through their rehabilitation process, we will assess their behaviour and temperament to identify the most suitable adopters.”

Bully breeds are in high demand by breed fanciers, but trends and associations with the criminal underworld are also driving demand and leading to substandard conditions for such dogs, which are bred without regard for their welfare or breeding ethics.

“While we agree that a factual moratorium on breeding bully-type breeds and crosses could interrupt the constant inflow of bully-type cross bred dogs in rescue, we are conscious that the reality of a ban on breeding and importation could have adverse effects on current and future efforts to improve their welfare without really reducing the inflow,” the MSPCA said.

The MSPCA added breed-specific bans in the UK had not tackled demand and instead shifted the problem on the next breed the criminal underworld and irresponsible owners might weaponise.

“We have seen in the past in Malta how problematic bans on importation can be, as many pitbull-type dogs still crossed our borders when we had such laws banning them. In the absence of genetic records, a ban would need to use alternatives to define what dogs are banned from breeding or importation,” the organisation said.

“History has shown that this targets unintended dogs, possibly placing their owners in trouble without justification and placing the dogs at risk of abandonment through no fault of their own.”

The European Bully Kennel Club (EBKC) has attempted to drive ethical standards in breeding by keeping a record of owners and breeders of bully breeds in Malta and worldwide that includes genetic profiling, as well as address significant welfare issues of bully dogs bred with extreme physical characteristics such as Boston Terriers, English Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, Boxers and Bull Mastiffs.

“A ban would place such responsible breeders and owners of bully breeds in the line of fire for registering their commitment to being part of the solution, while breeders of the criminal underworld remain unidentified, unregulated and pushed further underground with disastrous consequences for the dogs still stuck in this system,” the organisation said.

“While we push for even more comprehensive measures to regulate breeding, we welcome the cooperation of kennels clubs with the Animal Welfare Department to facilitate the enforcement on unethical breeding operations and animal abuse as we understand that responsible breeders are the long-term solution. A ban stands to erase these efforts and cooperation.”

The MSPCA has proposed breeder definitions and regulations to be broadened to include all owners of intact pets, including a canine CODIS database of all intact dogs to close the wide open gaps in current regulations that allow breeding activity of all dogs to carry on with no regulation whatsoever.

“Inevitably, neutering has to be part of the solution to reduce the instances of unplanned matings when owners are incapable of preventing this,” the MSPCAi said, adding that over €2.5 million has been spent since 2009 from charitable donations towards dog neutering.