On the day dedicated to the protection of animals, new facilities have been inaugurated at the Animal Welfare Gozo section.
The 4th of October is the feast of St. Francis the patron of animals – a day dedicated to animal protection, and to celebrate the occasion, the Ministry for Gozo devoted half a day of activities for school children with the aim to further increase awareness of animal protection.
The Minister for Gozo Justyne Caruana was present for the event and said that although a lot more is done to raise awareness about the protection of animals, unfortunately we still hear about abuse and abandonment of animals.
Dr Caruana explained that last year the Animal Welfare Gozo section- within the Ministry for Gozo – assisted over 420 abandoned animals across the island.
She added that the Ministry will continue with its investment to further strengthen the Animal Welfare section in Gozo.
“Having introduced a new ambulance to the section in June and invested in human resources and infrastructure, today we are inaugurating another facility for the animals, so that they will have more outside space to run while waiting to be adopted,” said Minister Caruana.
The process to improve pedestrian facilities are planned and when complete the project will house new and modern facilities where families can go and enjoy time and open spaces with their pets, the Minister said.
The canine unit of the Malta Police Force were present for today’s event, and there was also informative sections on farming and animal welfare.