Breast cancer is the most common form among dogs but chances of succumbing to this life-threatening disease can be greatly reduced through neutering, according to vet Geoffrey Schembri Adami.

Although Malta lacks statistical data on the incidence of cancer in animals, he said, experience had taught him that two of three cases of dog cancer cases were mammary cancer.

Dr Schembri Adami and other vets believe the rate of canine cancer in Malta is not alarming. Their remarks come after concerns that cancer was on the rise following an article featuring Pooch, a part-Labrador who died from this illness before the medicinal dog treats that could have lengthened his life arrived from the US.

However, just as in the case of humans, as dogs’ life expectancy is now longer, vets are witnessing an increasing number of cancer cases which they believe is mainly linked to the animal’s age.

Victor Vassallo, who has been practising as a vet for over 20 years, agreed that, as pets live longer, vets were likely to see more cancer cases. He too agreed “breast” cancer was the more common form.

He said cancer treatment for animals was still limited in Malta. Dogs suffering from the disease were treated with pills or injections but there were no facilities for radiotherapy.

His colleague, Lino Vella, agreed Malta was still “not adventurous enough” when it came to treating animal cancer and one of the main factors was cost.

Dr Vella said throughout his 40 years’ experience he had noticed an increased awareness among owners that their pets could have cancer. This meant more pets could be saved.

He also noticed a higher rate of mammary cancer that was especially prevalent in bitches which experienced phantom pregnancies – which meant they produced milk but did not have puppies.

All three vets agreed that any cancer fears linked to the new microchipping of dogs, voiced in blogs and websites, were generally unfounded. Earlier this month the law for the compulsory microchip tagging of dogs came into force. The government announced that vets would offer the service.

Microchips have been available in Malta since 1999 and a database of those microchipped is run by Malta Veterinary Association.

Dr Schembri Adami said throughout his eight years as a vet he never saw a case of a microchip having caused cancer. Although this was not impossible, given that it was a foreign body implanted into an animal, the most he had seen was a small, benign nodule forming around the chip as the body isolated it for protection.

Dr Vassallo said concerns were “exaggerated” while Dr Vella said so long as the microchip was good quality all would be fine.