Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1519405
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 21 APRIL 2024 7 INTERVIEW The following are excerpts from the interview. The full interview can be found on maltatoday.com.mt as well as our Facebook and Spotify pages. Scan this QR code to see the full interview. What is the reason behind the bully breed 'problem'? If I had to simplify the issue, it is down to demand not equalling sup- ply. We have a lot of bully breed dogs and puppies, and yet people do not want to adopt them. You have peo- ple who get bully breed puppies, but when they grow up, have the biggest chance of being abandoned... People get fed up with them as they fail to re- alise how strong and energetic, they are. Normally it's not a question of the dogs being aggressive, but their high energy levels. To even take them out for a walk is a challenge. The situation takes a turn to the worse when you realise how small the number of peo- ple interested in adopting mixed bully breeds is. What will a ban on the breed solve? What I am arguing is that when we have sanctuaries and shelters which are filled with abandoned dogs, al- lowing the widespread breeding of these dogs will only contribute to the problem. Yes, with the prohibition we will deny people the chance to enjoy a bully breed puppy for around six months, but we would be solving a very big problem. But wouldn't another breed start being a prob- lem when bully breeds are banned? Historically we never had a problem of this size. Yes, I agree, we did have issues with other breeds in the past, but at this level, where sanctuaries have stopped taking in bully breeds because they are stuck with them, we never had such a big problem. You reiterated your views against big cat cub petting in zoos in your 2023 annual report. Why? The reason I made that recommenda- tion is because the only reason why cubs are allowed to be handled by people is so that they can get used to human interaction before they are sold and shipped off to their new own- ers. I am totally against it. We do not know where they are shipped off to, we have no visibility as to where they end up. A lot of them are sent to Libya, but then we do not know where they end up. Should zoos be banned all together? The zoos we have right now cannot just be closed in a split second, be- cause where would you put the an- imals? But yes, we cannot continue adding wild animals in captivity, not because zoo owners are torturing or not caring for them, a lot of them actu- ally do their best to care for them, but you can never replicate their natural environment where they live. A tiger's territory is the size of half of Malta, how can you replace that? You can never replicate that in an enclosure. PHOTOS: JAMES BIANCHI / MALTA TODAY