SPCA (Gozo)

I would like to try to correct an erroneous assumption that many people have about the SPCA (Gozo).

The society has been in existence for over 25 years and in that time it has done its utmost to ease the suffering of animals in Gozo, bearing in mind the woefully inadequate premises available and an entirely voluntary workforce.

In the society's early days, the police kept a register of strays and the SPCA in Malta periodically came to Gozo to pick them up. This was an unsatisfactory procedure as, inevitably, the animals collected were frequently owned and just happened to be the easiest ones to catch! Strays do not often sit around on a convenient street corner waiting to be caught.

During the 1980s the SPCA (Gozo) took over the strays collection itself, using police vehicles, while using their own cars for collection of abandoned puppies and kittens and injured animals. This was a far from ideal solution, so, finally, in 1989 the society in Gozo acquired its own strays van.

From that time until 1999, the society did its best to re-home as many animals as possible in Gozo. Those that were too ill, old or savage to re-home were painlessly put to sleep. With no premises suitable to house more than four or five dogs, the rest went to SPCA (Malta).

However, in 1999 Malta SPCA ceased to be able to take our stray and unwanted animals and Gozo SPCA was left to try to solve its own problems.

The society has, for over 20 years, been actively seeking larger and more suitable premises, somewhere which could provide long-term accommodation for strays, as well as the unwanted animals which are brought in on a regular basis. Every attempt to move to a better property has been thwarted. Without these new premises we can only care for those animals in greatest need - puppies, kittens and injured animals take priority. We cannot pick up strays if we have nowhere to keep them. Our current animal clinic is frequently overflowing with animals - far too many for the space available.

It is important to note that the SPCA (Gozo) is a completely separate organisation from the one in Malta. It is funded entirely by donations and membership fees. We receive no government finance whatsoever.

The society is committed to a vigorous programme of spaying and neutering and during the past few years, much of the money raised has been utilised to assist with the costs of neutering owned pets as well as paying the entire costs of neutering a large number of feral cats and dogs. This scheme is becoming increasingly well known and the benefits are much appreciated, especially in the tourist resorts where stray animals tend to proliferate.

The Society is proud to say that, even though it is still manned entirely voluntarily, it has, for the past 15 years, maintained a 24-hour emergency help line - something no other animal organisation can offer.

To summarise, SPCA (Gozo) has the will, the manpower and the finance available to equip our much-needed new premises. For the animals' sake let us hope that we soon succeed in acquiring our much needed larger premises.