Three dead Pharoah hounds –Klieb tal-Fenek – were found floating in the sea off Marsalforn tied at the neck in another “savage” act of animal cruelty after the discovery a dog buried alive three weeks ago.
Yesterday’s grim find, of what at first was thought to be the body of a person, was reported to the police at about noon.
When civil protection divers and rescuers went on site, they found three dogs tied by the neck with a nylon rope.
One theory is that a weight was attached to the dogs but for some reason this was dislodged and they floated to the surface, sources said.
The dogs are believed to have been at sea for one or two days. It is not known whether they were still alive when they were thrown into the water.
They were lifted from the sea by personnel from the Civil Protection Department, put on board a patrol boat and handed to the police at about 4 p.m.
The Gozo SPCA strongly condemned the incident. “We cannot see any reason for this despicable act,” spokesman Betty Berry said.
She said the organisation was working closely with the police and the civil protection department on this “savage case of cruelty”.
The Gozo SPCA appealed to the public to contact them if they had any information that could throw light on the case.
Animal Welfare officer Janice Chetcuti described the incident as an act of “indescribable cruelty”.
The news comes a week after Star, a mixed-breed dog, succumbed to its injuries after being shot in the head with 40 lead pellets, tied and buried alive in a field in Birżebbuġa.
Star’s case had caused a wave of sympathy and spurred a national protest that saw hundreds of people taking part in a demonstration against animal cruelty.
Since 2007, eight persons have been handed suspended jail terms for animal cruelty. There was one conviction in 2009, three in 2010 and four this year.
On January 9, 2007, in a farm close to Xewkija, a farmer was met with the horrific sight of his three Pharoah hounds hanging lifeless from a steel beam in his yard.
The dogs had been strung up by their necks with a thin cord keeping them suspended just inches from the ground.