Despite efforts to control a canine threat in the eastern part of the island, no vicious dogs were found, a government spokesman said.

A special team combed Baħar Iċ-Ċagħaq, San Ġwann, Ta' l-Ibraġ, Swieqi, Pembroke and St Julians this week but reported no aggressive behaviour.

The team was composed of two police dog handlers, government workers, members of the SPCA and volunteers with the Civil Protection Department, among others.

Throughout the operation, the team noted several dogs in singles or pairs. They followed the animals but these all returned to private dwellings. On one occasion, the owner of a large dog was informed not to let it out unattended. The government spokesman said the team members carried special equipment to facilitate their task.

The authorities are suspecting that the rogue pack is composed of domestic dogs whose careless owners allowed them to roam the streets at night.

This tallies with residents' concerns that the dogs reported to have mauled a number of cats and smaller dogs are domestic as opposed to earlier official statements that the same dogs escaped from an illegal animal shelter situated on the coast.