Fine for walking your dog without leash

Hi pevi,

the fine will probably be 23,29 € !

Cheers
Ricky

Until now nobody was complaining about my dog being unleashed.

btw, the fine for a dog without microchip is 300,- and as I have heard the same fine applies if ID-tag on the collar is missing ...

Not only do the dogs in my neighborhood walk without a leash...they walk without their owners. Arrr...that's one thing that burns me up...My "lovely" neighbors dont want their dogs messing in their yard so they let them out to do their business on everyone elses property. Not only that...they have no concern  for their dogs safety. I would love to be the one to give them a fine..... and take their dog away. They dont deserve to be owners!!

BTW...It's OK to walk your dog without a leash in the open fields isnt it???

mgrima68 wrote:

BTW...It's OK to walk your dog without a leash in the open fields isnt it???

legally no. A dog is supposed to be on the lead whenever in a public place.

matm911 wrote:

btw, the fine for a dog without microchip is 300,- and as I have heard the same fine applies if ID-tag on the collar is missing ...

the animal welfare act doesn't specify the level of fine for not having an ID tag on the collar, but the wording implies its the same as for not being chipped

I do not know about Malta law in this case but usually the main risk you face is not a direct fine but in case something bad happens that affects your dog (even if your dog was the victim), not using a leash is the perfect excuse for anyone to make you liable

Thank you all for your responses. I have read the law, which covers this and it says that the dog has to be under control all the time ( I think some might argue that this does not necessarily means a leash, at least my partner does:).
Our dog has just arrived to Malta on Saturday and he is micro chipped, but has no ID tag on his collar, never had, and no one mentioned it while checking his paperwork on the airport or while we submitted his paperwork before his arrival.

Can someone recommend a vet in Gzira, Sliema area to update the owner information on his micro chip and regular check ups. Thanks
Evi

Animal Welfare Act

"(4) The owner or keeper of a dog shall ensure that the dog
wears a tag or a badge bearing the owner's or keeper's telephone
number and it shall be worn at all times when the dog is in a public
place."

Gozo SPCA produce tags for € 3 each - you can contact them on [email protected]

Yesterday a dog crapped on the car park in front of our apartment. Unfortunately for the owner, Lynnder was on the front balcony and saw it. She gave him a right but polite piece of her mind.
He skulked off but returned with a bag and cleared it up!!

FYI, the fine is still 23.29 EUR . I have just got fined by some kind of local guards ( no uniform,no badge, no signs on their car) basically in front of our building. I have one week to pay the fine otherwise is going to double.

Did they check if your dog was chipped and wearing an ID tag ?

No, they have not even looked at the dog (he was sitting at my feet while I dealt with the guards:)). I was walking him with my daughter, we were on the pavement, he was walking in from of us ( he is well trained, so was not running around, barking or otherwise misbehaving) and actually the pavement is so narrow in our street that is impossible to walk the dog by my side while holding my daughter's hand as well.  Anyway he has been in Malta for 3 months and this is our first fine, so I am not complaining, but I still think that it is very cruel to keep dogs on leash all the time.

Personally I think it is cruel to keep any animal, especially if there are not the facilities for it.

redmik wrote:

Personally I think it is cruel to keep any animal, especially if there are not the facilities for it.

do you think its cruel to have a dog as a pet whatever the circumstances ?

No and we used to have rescued dogs until personal circumstances prevented us after the last died. No longer having a garden is also something that is not a good thing for a dog being happy either.
I put emphasis on the animal's welfare not my own needs.

PS. Don't get me started about keeping animals in cages, fish in tanks etc. (Unless temporary medical/safety concerns.)

Or, for that matter about the anti-shark measures in Australia. Simple rule, it's the shark's environment - don't go in it unless you're prepared to take the possible consequences.

I misunderstood your statement "Personally I think it is cruel to keep any animal" then :-)

georgeingozo wrote:

I misunderstood your statement "Personally I think it is cruel to keep any animal" then :-)

Sorry. I think the point I was trying to express was that an animal has needs and if they cannot be met, then one should not keep one. It is then cruel imo.
Lynnder really misses her dogs, particularly the last who died some years ago. We used to have a garden* and an allotment and have always lived in the countryside. Plenty of room and areas for living with a dog. We no longer have a suitable garden and Lynnder has mobility issues so we decided no more dogs as we would not be able to care for their needs properly, particularly their freedom of movement. For similar reasons we will not have a dog on Gozo but as you know Lynn wants to help at the SPCA when we return.
9 weeks to go!!

*We actually do have a garden but not suitable for a dog, it's more an outdoor living area now.

redmik wrote:

I think the point I was trying to express was that an animal has needs and if they cannot be met, then one should not keep one. It is then cruel imo.

completely agree

redmik wrote:

Or, for that matter about the anti-shark measures in Australia. Simple rule, it's the shark's environment - don't go in it unless you're prepared to take the possible consequences.

If I replace the word shark with jellyfish, does it still hold true :-)

looks like its a bad year for jelly fish (well, a good year from their point of view) - bays are teaming with them

georgeingozo wrote:

If I replace the word shark with jellyfish, does it still hold true :-) looks like its a bad year for jelly fish (well, a good year from their point of view) - bays are teaming with them

I think so and I have read some articles with interest.
I read gozonews.com each morning.
Shame we are missing the Notte Gozitana and the Hill Climbing etc But soon! :-)

Qawra Bugibba Mellieha Paceville and Sliema are full of sharks....lol two legged ones.....

i just had an argument with a dog owner for simply telling him to put a leash on his big dog he answered me with foul languige and wanted to fight with me i have an idea where he lives but i do not know his name can someone tell me who is in charge for this kind of matter cause i want to report him,tanks

you can report him to any animal welfare officer - that means, by law, any police officer, traffic warden or animal welfare department officer - in reality, none are likely to care

where were you ? on a public road ?

yes i was in a public road near my house and i already went to the police but they want his name that i do not know or exactly where he lives that i do not know so tomorrow i will try  to find out where he lives

what the police should do is check if the dog is chipped - € 300 if not - but the police don't have chip readers !

do you know if any one else have chip readers, like wardens maybe?

Mario sciberras wrote:

do you know if any one else have chip readers, like wardens maybe?

AFAIK, only vets, animal welfare dept officers and sanctuaries

Hey mario, why are you worrying about a dog walking without a leash. Is the dog dangerous? If not just let it be. Please dont turn malta into a shit hole like australia. Here all people are worried about is someone elses bussiness.

danno wrote:

Hey mario, why are you worrying about a dog walking without a leash. Is the dog dangerous? If not just let it be. Please dont turn malta into a shit hole like australia. Here all people are worried about is someone elses bussiness.

And you are not, of course?

I paid the fine within a week as I was told to do. I told to couple of Maltese people what had happened ( I was not complaining, our dog has lots of local fans who inquire about him regularly:)). The reaction I got in every case: You paid!? You should not have paid! This is Malta! Never pay a fine. And they gave me tips how to contest a fine:)

pevi wrote:

The reaction I got in every case: You paid!? You should not have paid! This is Malta! Never pay a fine. And they gave me tips how to contest a fine:)

Well, I can understand that. The Malta legal system moves so slowly, I doubt if it would have been enforced.


Two recent cases, 6 years before a youth (at the time of offence) was taken to Court and another in which a man was cleared of an offence 9 years after the event.
This is a hotly debated situation on Malta.

Hey mick whats that suppose to mean?

danno wrote:

Hey mick whats that suppose to mean?

I'll bite. You wrote............

Here all people are worried about is someone elses bussiness.

Which is what you were criticising Mario for doing when you also wrote...................

Hey mario, why are you worrying about a dog walking without a leash. Is the dog dangerous? If not just let it be.

Glass houses and all that.

Where did i write that you will bite? Sorry but your making no sense!

And when i said people are worried about what someone else is doing, i was referring to the people over here.

I know more about the lifestyle in malta. More than what most people on the forum do. I was just implying, that by becoming dobbers it would not solve the problem.