gozo spca newsletter volume 18, issue 2 nov 2014 gozo spca ... · gozo spca newsletter volume 18,...

Gozo SPCA Newsletter Volume 18, Issue 2 Nov 2014

Published by Gozo SPCA, by The Playing Field, Main Gate Street, Victoria, VCT 1341, Gozo, Malta. Voluntary organisation VO/0069

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GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER Volume 18, Issue 2 Nov 2014

Free to

Members.e13

1 Euro where sold.

NEWS FROM THE REHOMING CENTRE

by Val Gregory, Centre Manager

supporters, Heidi rescued her and a few weeks later she gave birth to 6 delightful puppies.

Heidi managed to keep them in her garage but as soon as they started to walk about she real-

ised that they could get out to the main road so she asked the Gozo SPCA if we could take them

in. They came to us with their Mum called Sheila at 4 weeks of age. Within days without adver-

tising them we had got them all booked for re-homing. Sheila their mother was also re-homed

after being neutered. We called the Puppies Sue, Sally, Sam, Sid, Steve & Stan.

Another lot of puppies that were taking in with their mother were Daphne, a Fox Terrier with

Puppies Deanna (now called Lucky), Dana (now called Zelda) and Daisy, we had also picked up

Foxie and Flossie another pair of Fox Terrier X puppies, so we had 6 black & white dogs running

around upstairs.

Our neutering campaign has continued with 121 Male

Cats and 241 Female Cats - these are both owned and

feral. Our thanks go to Sonia Haines, Jan Wright, David

McDonagh and Sunny Ta Golina for all their help with

the feral cats.

Many thanks to all the children that helped during the

summer holidays; too many to name, and all the holi-

day makers who gave up their time to walk the dogs.

During the first 8 months of 2014 we have re-

homed 54 dogs, 3 Cats and 61 Kittens. We

also released (after neutering) 4 Cats and 4

Kittens. 7 Dogs and 1 Kitten were also re-

claimed during this time.

There are always the stories that break your

heart and some that make you smile and

Sheila’s story was one of the latter.

Sheila was beautiful Labrador Cross who was

found tied to a skip in Mgarr where one of our Sheila’s Pups enjoying their breakfast upstairs at the Centre

Breakfast time for the black and white pups!


Published by Gozo SPCA, By The Playing Field, Main Gate Street, Victoria, VCT 1341, Gozo, Malta. Voluntary Organisation, VO/0069

GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER

REHOMING SUCCESSES!!

Over the past few months, Gozo SPCA has had a phenomenal success rate finding loving homes for dogs, cats, puppies and kittens.

Here are some photos of the dogs and puppies, many of whom only had a short stay at the centre.

April Coxie Foxie

Russell Amy Carol Brownie

Lois Foxy & Flossie Daphne Puppy Dino

Dora Little George Gidi Linda

Rover



GOZO SPCA CALENDAR

2015

Gozo SPCA 2015 calendar

now available - priced at € 3

each, or 4 for €10, they can

be purchased from our cen-

tre, from our stall at the car

boot sales, The Gallery,

Xlendi, and Pricebusters,

Victoria. In Malta, they are

available from Petlove pet

shop. Also available by post

within the Maltese Islands,

p&p 50c for 1, € 1 for 2 or

more.

Many readers will remember Flossie, half Dalmatian,

half Pointer and long term resident of Gozo SPCA and

very special Sponsor Dog for Ann and Roger Jesty of East

Sussex. Flossie found her 'forever' home in UK with Mike

and Maggie Bishopp, then after a couple of years they

decided to settle permanently in their apartment in

Gharb, so back to Gozo Flossie came, along with her

inseparable companion Henry the Labrador. During a

short holiday in Gozo Ann and Roger were delighted to

finally meet Flossie 'in the flesh', needless to say,

Flossie behaved beautifully with her long-time sponsors.

Percy - Rehomed

Max - Rehomed



GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER

As the magazine goes to print, the car boot sales

are in full swing, with 3 a month for much of Sep-

tember to May. Although each car boot sale isn’t

as busy as it used to be when there was only one

a month, in total we are raising more money per

month, which means we need more items to sell.

It also means we need more people to help on the

stall, especially to help unload and then pack up

at the end of the event, so if you are willing to

v o l u n t e e r , p l e a s e g e t i n t o u c h .

Flag week, our big fund raising event of the year,

was split into two this, year, with Gozo Channel

kindly giving us permission to collect over two 3

day weekends, rather than the previous week long

collection. The first was held in late March, the

second in early September. As happens every

year, the generosity of so many people was amaz-

ing, allowing us to collect close to € 9,000 in to-

tal. We are very grateful for the continued sup-

port of Gozo Channel and their staff.

After not producing a calendar for 2013 or 2014,

we have resumed for 2015. However, although we

are getting lots of great feedback on the calendar

that Annabel MacDonald both took the photos for

and produced, this has to turn into sales to make

it worthwhile. They are priced at € 3 each, or 4

for € 10, and are available from our car boot sale

stall, from our centre, and also from The Gallery,

X lendi , and Pr icebusters , V i ctor ia .

The SMS donation numbers we started last sum-

mer have proved to be a big success, providing a

cost effective way for people to make small/

medium sized donations, both during our flag

week collections and during the year. They have

also proven a convenient way for people to pay

for ID tags for their pets. In the first year, over €

2,100 was donated, of which 90% goes to Gozo

SPCA. We also now have a paypal account, which

will hopefully prove as successful.

In early Summer 2012, Philip and Thalia, who run

The Gallery in Xlendi, offered to sell 2nd hand

books on behalf of Gozo SPCA. At first we thought

we would be providing books for them to sell, but

in fact residents and holiday makers are not only

buying books there, but donating even more than

they buy, and so its us who go to The Gallery to

collect books for selling at the car boot sales. Not

only that but in the first 2 and a bit years, a total of

€ 3,600 has been raised for Gozo SPCA !

Fundraising Report by Mark Thorogood

Philip from The Gallery with Linnie who he’s owned for 11

years. Linnie is an ex-Gozo SPCA dog.



GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER

Fundraising Report by Mark Thorogood

Thank you to Tracy and Elena of Furry Tails in Malta, who

have been raising funds for a number of sanctuaries, in-

cluding Gozo SPCA.

Thank you to St Andrews Dive Centre in Xlendi, all the

staff and customers, for raising € 177.04 for the animals

at Gozo SPCA. Thank you also to Galea Vets in Victoria,

Gozo, and their customers, who donated € 106.73 to us,

from our collection box at the surgery.

Thank you to Claudia in Germany for her generous finan-

cial support in our neutering campaigns for cats

Thanks to all the people who donate treats, food and

bedding for our animals. There are so many people who

help in this way, and we are extremely grateful to every

one of you!

If you would like to make a donation, there are several

ways to do so:

1. Transfer to our HSBC account

Account Number: 071089122001

HSBC Bank Account: SPCA (GOZO) Sort Code: 44-071

IBAN Code: MT43MMEB44716000000071089122001

Swift Code: MMEBMTMT

2. Paypal

[email protected]

3. SMS

To send us a donation, please send an SMS to one of the

following numbers - your account will be debited with

the amount listed. This only works from Malta SIM

cards, and with some Melita contracts, customers can-

not donate without topping up their credit.

€1.16 - 50616116

€2.33 - 50617375

€4.66 - 50618061

€6.99 - 50618904

€11.65 - 50619204

4. By cheque, payable to Gozo SPCA

Gozo SPCA,

By The Playing Field

Victoria

VCT 1341

Need a name disk for

your dog or cat?

For just € 3 incl p&p within Maltese Islands, we will engrave

your pet's name and a telephone number on the disc of your

choice - pick a size, shape and colour from Gozo SPCA web-

site:

http://www.spca-gozo.org/gozo%20spca_merchandise1.htm

Email your order to [email protected]

Total cost for overseas € 4 or £ 3.50 for one, and only €/£ 3 for

any additional ones sent in the same envelope .

All proceeds to Gozo SPCA

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.spca-gozo.org/gozo%20spca_merchandise1.htm




Sheila and Her Pups

As Val mentioned in the Centre Report (Page 1), Sheila and her pups were

all rehomed. What a lovely end to such a sad story. How could anyone tie

a dog to a skip?

Mum Sheila

Pup Sid

Stan

Steve

Sue

Borg Cardona and Pink Panther

In August, our long term supporters from Borg Cardona in Malta visited the Centre. Borg Cardona supply our

food for the animals in our care. Along with them came the Pink Panther TV Crew who filmed us at Gozo

SPCA. Pink Panther airs on One TV on a Saturday evening.



http://www.glassboxbar.com Michelangelo Refalo Square, Marsalforn, Gozo

Open 4pm - late. Closed Monday.

Update about Animal Welfare

Some very good news is the announcement that

Animal Welfare will be setting up a base in Gozo,

this does not mean the end of Gozo SPCA as we

both fulfil different roles.

We will always take in puppies that have been

found without a mother unless there is no space

available, in which case we will try and find

space at a sanctuary in Malta

Animal Welfare is there for the protection of all

animals

Gozo SPCA is there for the protection of small

animals

Animal Welfare will pick up all animals injured by

accidents

Gozo SPCA will no longer need to perform this

role

Animal welfare will NOT pick up stray animals

Gozo SPCA will pick up stray animals when space

permits

All cases of mistreatment of animals should be

reported to Animal Welfare

Gozo SPCA will no longer deal with mistreatment

cases

Animal Welfare plan to have space for cats

Gozo SPCA can only take in kittens

Animal Welfare will also check stray dogs for mi-

cro chips.

Purdy—Rehomed Scamp—Rehomed

Toby–Rehomed Pip –Rehomed

Update about Animal Welfare



could take me home – Wow a dream come true but

as we walked up the road from the Centre there

was a lot of cars and loads of noise and it scared

me so I thought I would go back to the Centre.

When we got there, Jane said she would take me

in her car so that was alright.

It took me a while to get used to living in a flat -

all those stairs - I had never seen them before! I

was still very nervous about eating and going out so

Val came round and we went out together and I

realised everything was OK and so now I am in my

‘forever home’!! I have got Cliff trained to take me

out and bring me back when I want to go and he

lets me sleep on the settee.”

Centre Manager Note: I must personally thank

Cliff for his patience and understanding of

Wally and for adopting one of the most loveable

dogs we have had at the Centre.

“My name is Wally. It wasn’t always Wally, when I

was born in Xewkija I was just known as “Dog”. I

first got to know humans when in November 2009

I was rounded up with all my pals and taken to the

Vet where I was operated on and something was

put into my neck. The next 3 years were spent

playing with all my friends in the yard until one day

me and my mate were near the front gate when a

very large bang scared me and I ran out of the

yard behind my mate and then crash! I was thrown

up in the air and I felt very bad.

The next thing I remember is being picked up by

Peter and put into a kennel at the Centre. The

next day I was taken to the vets and he found

that I had fractured my back leg, Dr Frank oper-

ated and put a pin in my leg but because I didn’t

get to the Vet straight away, there was no skin

left to stitch so my leg was put in a plaster cast

and bandaged up.

I then had to go back to the Vets every 2 days to

have my leg examined and redressed I was very

good and didn’t chew my dressing until it started

to heal and then did it itch! So there I was with a

bucket on my head; very uncomfortable I might

tell you. I kept walking into things because I

couldn’t see them!

After several more weeks the wound was healing

well so Dr Frank said I could take off the bucket

and it was OK for me to lick it as that would help

it heal. I was still a bit nervous about using my leg

but gradually I would put it down and got used to

it.

I stayed at the Centre for 2 years. I enjoyed all

the walks with the volunteers and the company of

the other dogs but what I really wanted was a nice

home where I could retire and spend the rest of

my days in comfort. I thought that day would

never come but one day Cliff came to the Centre

and spoke to Val the Manager and asked if he

This is me when I arrived

at The Centre. Dr Frank

the Vet operated on me

and here I am wearing

my blue bandage. I was-

n’t able to join the other

guys in The Centre, so I

spent my days in the

front kennel.

Don’t I look daft???????????

To prevent me from

chewing my bandage

(which was quite tasty), I

had to wear this Buster

Collar. The other dogs

really laughed at me, but

the volunteers thought I

looked cute. Bah!!!!!

Here I am in my new

home. I really love it and

will always be ever so

grateful to Cliff who got

me a new bed and every-

thing (though I do prefer

sleeping on the sofa,

when I’m allowed). Love

and Licks from Wally xx

Psst……….It’s me, Wally!



GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER

For all the very latest news from Gozo,

GozoNews.com is a great resource for any-

one living or holidaying here. With

weather, ferry times, and news about Gozo

as well as classifieds and letters, the site is

updated with all the latest info about hap-

penings on this little island. Since 2006, the

team at GozoNews.com have done an ex-

cellent job of editing and running the site.

The site has played an important role in

publicising Gozo SPCA’s news, both good

and bad, which really helps to raise our

profile here and abroad. Each week, the

site features one of our animals in need of a

home and this has played an important part

in our successful rehoming activities:

http://gozonews.com/category/adopt-a-pet

GozoNews.com

MEMBERSHIP Please note that Gozo SPCA Membership fees are Single €9.00, Family €12.00 and

Life Membership €108.00

Self-catering Seaview accommodation at

Ghajnsielem Gozo. All inclusive! No car required.

Completely private & tranquil in a great location

near the sea to discover Gozo.

Very sunny terraced house with amazing seaviews.

Spacious seaview terraces(2), balconies(2) & roof

garden. A/C, internet PC, FREE Wi-Fi & bicycles.

T. +35677303322 E. [email protected] I.

www.romanticgozo.com Donation to Gozo SPCA

with every booking.

tel:%2B356%2077303322


http://www.romanticgozo.com/



Gozo SPCA would like to thank Meats &

Eats gourmet butcher in Sliema, and their

customers, for raising € 145 for Gozo

SPCA. This was raised in just three

months. They are continuing to collect

money on our behalf, so please look out

for our collection box in their shop.



Are you on Facebook? Since we started the Gozo SPCA fan page in February 2010, we’ve had loads of support! If you’re

on there, please join us by “liking” The Gozo SPCA Fan page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gozo

-SPCA/305737508971

We post up to date news and events there :)



GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER

What Can I Do? Can You Help Me? What does the Gozo SPCA Do?

By Val Gregory

We are asked these questions every week and I will try and explain what we can do and how we come to the deci-

sions we take.

Gozo SPCA has been given a Government Employee, Peter Camilleri, who is paid by the Government to open the

Centre 6 mornings a week to feed and clean the animals. All the other work he does is paid for by Gozo SPCA and

most of you know how much other work he does. He takes emergency calls 24 hours a day for injured animals. He

traps and arranges neutering of Feral Cats, assists in releasing trapped animals and works 6 evenings a week feed-

ing and cleaning and putting the animals to bed. He is supported by volunteers who walk the dogs and clean-up

after the animals 7 evenings a week.

We have very limited space at the Centre and after many years of overcrowding and along with the introduction

of new Animal Welfare laws for Animal Shelters, we are limited in the number of dogs and puppies we can take

in. We have 4 kennels and an outside space upstairs where we keep the small dogs and puppies and we should

have no more than 6 dogs there. Downstairs, we have 5 kennels and an outside space and we should have no more

than 4 large dogs here as we must keep a kennel free for emergencies such as road traffic accidents or a very ill

dog.

We will always take in puppies that have been found without a mother as they cannot look after themselves. We

will always take in an injured dog if space permits; if not we will ask Animal Welfare in Malta to help as they have

more facilities there.

If we are full and dogs are found roaming the streets but are not at critical risk we have to leave them there until

a space becomes available after checking for a micro-chip.

Since 2004 we have spent over €12,000.00 on maintenance

costs, over €58,000.00 on animal food and over €10,000.00 on

cleaning costs. I know people say that we have a lot of money



What Can I Do? Can You Help Me? What does the Gozo SPCA Do?

(Continued)

in the bank and yes, it is true, but since the recession a couple of years ago, we have lost two of our biggest spon-

sors in Blue Cross UK and The Shuman Trust thus we have had to transfer over €20,000.00 to our current account

from the savings account. If we continue at the same rate, it will not be too long before we would be unable to

shelter as many animals as we do now.

We have 2 vans which are getting old and the repair bills soon mount up. One or both will need to be replaced

soon.

We have continued to neuter owned and feral cats and the figures are amazing as you can see from below:

2009 64 Male & 101 Female Cats 13 - Male & 17 Female Dogs COST € 4,184.50

2010 114 Male & 227 Female Cats - 6 Male & 16 Female Dogs COST € 11,726.50

2011 123 Male & 282 Female Cats – 11 Male & 15 Female Dogs COST € 14,703.00

2012 190 Male & 368 Female Cats – 6 Male & 6 Female Dogs COST € 19,906.00

2013 199 Male & 455 Female Cats COST € 22,180.00

Dogs Trust Malta started to pay for all the neutering costs of our dogs from the middle of 2012 but they are leav-

ing the Island at the beginning of 2015 so that funding will go.

Since 2004 we have re-homed 622 Dogs, 62 Cats and 526 Kittens.

Where possible all dogs that are re-homed are vaccinated, de-flead, wormed, neutered and from 2009, micro-

chipped. Medical bills since 2003 are over €165,000.00. I hope this helps you to understand how we use your valu-

able donations, and where this money goes.



GOZO SPCA

NEWSLETTER

Looking for A Loving home…..

If you’d like to give a loving home to one of our ani-

mals, then pay us a visit at the centre between 4 and

5pm.

Alternatively call Gozo SPCA on 2155 3769.

We have a high rehoming rate, so check at the centre to

see who is available if you’re looking to adopt one of

our dogs or kittens. Tonic is a special girl who needs a calm, gentle

owner.

Terri is a lovely dog and will make an excellent

companion.

Buster is a sweet little kitten who came into the

Centre in November.

Kitten Bunty is a tabby female looking for her

forever home.



Chairman Joe Camilleri 2155 5626

Treasurer,

Membership &

Centre Man-

ager

Val Gregory 2156 6727

Secretary Jane Bower 2156 4671

Fundraiser Mark Thorogood 2156 3697

Member Marion Sayers 79595991

Webmaster Karin Brayshaw 2155 2159

Editor Hilary Rogers 2156 4547

Gozo SPCA Committee

With many thanks to one of our members who kindly sponsors the printing of

this Newsletter

Volunteers

Do you have a little bit of time that

you could give to the SPCA?

We would welcome more volun-

teers no matter how much or how

little time you can spare us - we

will be able to find a job for you. In

return you will have a lot of fun

and make some new friends of both

the human and the animal variety.

Just pick up the phone and speak

to Val at the Centre. Tel: 21553769.

© All photographs in this newsletter are

copyright of Gozo SPCA and Annabel Mac-Donald. The Editor and Gozo SPCA Committee accept no responsibility for the services or claims made by advertisers in this Newsletter.

Small Coin Boxes:

Thanks to everyone who regularly

contributes. Every bit makes a dif-

ference.

Letter from the Ed…….

Phew! I can’t keep up……… It seems that as soon as a “guest” arrives at

the centre, he or she is rehomed almost immediately. A lot of the suc-

cess stems from facebook activities on our page and RUBS Puppy Love.

Well done to Mark and Val who keep this up to date and engage with

users on a daily basis. It’s a time-consuming task, so hats-off to you guys.

The good news about our Wally getting a loving home was brilliant; good

to know he’s settled in well and is thriving :)

If you have anything to contribute to the next issue of the magazine,

please send your photos/articles to [email protected].

Till next time…..ED!

gozo spca newsletter volume 18, issue 2 nov 2014 gozo spca ... · gozo spca newsletter volume 18,...

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