Animal cruelty victim given Star quality

Star, the dog who sparked Malta’s biggest animal rights protest, was immortalised through a monument that was unveiled yesterday.

The monument, at the San Franġisk Animal Hospital in Ta’ Qali, serves as a reminder of the atrocious cruelty act that shocked the country on May 19 when the mixed breed was found buried alive in a Birżebbuġa field.

Animal Welfare officers had gone to a field to investigate a report of three ill-treated dogs. There they heard the sound of muffled whimpering that led them to a wooden plank held in place by part of a tree trunk. When they lifted the plank they spotted the nose of a buried dog poking out of the soil. As they dug out the dog they noticed it had been shot in the head, its snout tied shut and all four legs bound together.

Star, named by the animal welfare officers, was taken to the animal hospital where over 40 lead pellets were removed from its head. It succumbed to its injuries on June 6, a day after hundreds of people turned up in Sliema for the biggest protest against animal cruelty ever held here.

The monument, by Gianni Pace, was unveiled during an open day at the animal hospital held to mark the first anniversary since the hospital opened its doors.

Rural Affairs Minister George Pullicino said that throughout the year the hospital saw 14,000 animals. Most were taken there in the early hours of the morning, highlighting the importance of having a 24-hour service for animals.

Between January and September, the animal ambulance took about 1,500 wounded animals to the hospital. In its second year of operation, the ambulance service received 6,750 calls for help, most of which being genuine cases.