Dangerous animals that are in Malta illegally will have to be relocated at the expense of their owner, or sold with any proceeds pocketed by the Animal Welfare Fund.

A dangerous animal is considered illegal if it is not being kept in a licensed zoo and its owner did not register it with the Veterinary Director by May 5, as stipulated by new regulations.

The owners of these animals, ranging from bears to scorpions, could be ordered to relocate them to a suitable destination, abroad if necessary, at their own expense.

This relocation will be monitored by the director, who has the authority to otherwise take custody of the animal and dispose of it through sale or public auction.

Any proceeds will go towards the Animal Welfare Fund, which finances animal NGOs projects, a spokesman for the Parliamentary Secretariat for Animal Rights told this newspaper.

The spokesman was contacted after an announcement in Parliament that there were 134 dangerous animals registered with the Veterinary Regulation Directorate in 15 localities in Malta.

According to the new regulations that came into force in February and which do not apply to licensed zoos (of which there are five in Malta), dangerous animals that are being kept in private collections had to be registered by May 5. These animals have to be kept in suitable sites, as authorised by the director.

The enforcement of these regulations means that Malta finally has a list of dangerous animals that can no longer be imported for private collections but only by licensed zoos.

When contacted, Animal Welfare Commissioner Emanuel Buhagiar explained that animals on this list that were already in Malta before the introduction of these regulations cannot be confiscated as they were imported when no such regulations existed.

The Parliamentary Secretariat was asked who would cater for confiscated animals, since past incidents have shown that quarantine facilities were inadequate, and smuggled birds that were kept there ended up dying.

The reply was that the quarantine facilities in Luqa had never been earmarked for these confiscated animals.

The facilities catering for the auctions of confiscated animals had to depend on the species.

“It has to be appreciated that the list of dangerous animals is quite varied and one cannot generalise on how such proceedings will be carried out. This depends on a number of factors, including the species and animal’s age. Such procedures will have to be carried out under the authorisation of the director, who will ensure the smooth relocation of the dangerous animals,” the spokesman added.