I was dismayed to read the ill-judged comments about animal welfare NGOs from Dr Joe Brincat in his column (The Sunday Times, October 15).

Although the Gozo SPCA bears the same name as the Malta SPCA, we are in fact entirely separate and completely independent, receiving no government funding. However we work closely with many Malta animal welfare groups, in particular the SPCA.

The people there, who work so tirelessly to save animals, many of them voluntarily, must be deeply hurt by Dr Brincat's remarks, which are no doubt so easily penned in the comfort of his office. Has Dr Brincat ever deigned to spend some time (no, I don't mean a five-minute visit) at Malta SPCA's over-stretched and desperately over-stocked home?

Recently I needed to call the Malta SPCA at 10 p.m., while we were dealing with our own emergency in Gozo. I called the manager on her mobile phone, only to find that she was dealing with her own emergency - she was busy whelping a stray bitch at their centre. We are all at full stretch all the time, but that does not mean that dogs or cats are condemned to death if they are not rehomed within in a few days, as the writer claims.

Dr Brincat is stepping right out of line when says that to be 'put to sleep' is a euphemism for the gas chamber. How dare he say such a thing? If Malta SPCA follows the same practice as we do in Gozo, animals are only put to sleep if they are carrying an infectious disease, are too severely injured to treat, are too savage to handle (very rare) or, are unable to survive through extreme youth or old age.

Extreme youth applies to newborn kittens or puppies, maybe a few hours old and usually dumped in boxes or plastic bags, in a skip or by the roadside. We have tried to rear some of these kittens and puppies but have usually only succeeded when we have a foster mother to take them on. The very old animals are the saddest cases - how can somebody throw a pet out when it reaches the end of its life?

Quite recently an elderly dog, which might have been a Yorkshire terrier, was found in a parked refuse collection truck. It was almost hairless, toothless, blind, deaf and screaming with fear. What could we do but take it to the vet to be painlessly put to sleep by injection? This was done as gently as possible.

Yes - the SPCA kills animals when the owners have not the courage to take them to the vet themselves. All of us have a duty to our pets to end their lives decently when the time comes. Why should the SPCA be left to pick them up off the street - let's be honest, we are not talking about just one or two - and then be labelled 'the animal killers'?

Today Gozo SPCA volunteers took seven of the rescue centre strays to the blessing of the animals at St Anthony's Church, Ghajnsielem (a bit of divine intervention never goes amiss when we are rehoming our strays!). Of those animals, only one has been at the centre for less than four months. These animals are neutered, vaccinated, regularly health checked and most important, each and every one of them is loved by the adults and children who come each day to take them for a walk.

Dr Brincat rubbishes the fact that we neuter these animals. Again he shows an incredible ignorance of animal welfare. There are already far too many unwanted animals around. Does he really think that it is a good idea to allow all the mixed breed dogs and cats that make up the bulk of our inmates to breed indiscriminately?

Does he know that an unneutered feral female cat will only have an average lifespan of three years? Has he ever seen the bitches that get used for puppy farming and are then thrown out at the end of their useful (i.e., cash cow) lives? Which is the better off - the loved neutered family pet living as a member of the family in a comfortable home, or the dog fighting for supremacy in the pack of males that is usually found around the local bitch 'on heat'? All of which, I might add, are left roaming in the street by their totally irresponsible owners. Then off to the skip go another lot of unwanted puppies... and so it goes on.

Maybe one day, when all dogs have to be micro-chipped, wear ID discs on their collars, and are not allowed to roam the streets, we will be 'out of business'. OK, for the moment I will dream on and we will struggle on, in our inadequate, undersized, badly located premises, trying to work miracles.

Come and take a look some time, Dr Brincat. Our telephone number is 2155-3769, spend a day with us and learn something about animal care.

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