The MSPCA said today that the introduction of dog racing in Malta would be “unacceptable.”

The organization said it was completely opposed to the proposal to introduce the ‘sport’ at the Marsa race track. It was referring to the recent announcement about the transfer of land to the Marsa Race Track Consortium and the proposal to use the upgraded track for dog racing.

While race track conditions desperately needed to be improved to protect racing horses from preventable injuries, the proposal stretched its scope far beyond this without any considerations for the animal welfare issues newly introduced by it, the MSPCA said.

“The MSPCA would like to highlight that overseeing a sport that wages animals against each other for prize money and gambling, the newly set up authority should also have representation by animal welfare NGOs and vets, who are uniquely suited to ensure profit and greed do not trump animal welfare.”

Racing dogs routinely suffer in the dog racing industry. From terrible injuries and deaths on the track, through abandonment of retired and uncompetitive dogs, to isolating, unpleasant housing conditions, dog racing has for many years been losing popularity with both people and world leaders because of its animal cruelty credentials, it said.

“Dogs should be recognised as companion animal, not become object for betting enthusiasts. We are shocked that Malta’s government would so bluntly affirm its regressionist tendencies by introducing a new abhorrent blood sport to Malta. The Society questions how the government is anticipating coping with these new demands, when their animal welfare department was already underfunded, understaffed, and undertrained as it is, and the police have yet to close in on the dog fighting circles.”

Christian Pace, MSPCA Behaviour & Outreach Manager, said “There are no shortage of animal welfare problems to tackle in Malta already. Stray cats, stray dogs, dog fighting, chained dogs, abuse, hoarding and abandonment; take your pick and roll up your sleeves. The last thing Malta needs is a new dog sport that is known for its high injury, mortality and abandonment rates to put pressure on an already strained system.”

The MSPCA said it is totally against the this project, which uses public land to introduce new animal welfare issues to Malta, when it has been “actively picking up slack for the government’s inaction to solve animal welfare issues at their root and has for years been searching for land to develop a new shelter, with governments having failed to make good on their pledge to help.”