Trading pets on Maltapark also subject to new welfare rules

Private traders selling dogs, cats and even snakes on popular listings website Maltapark.com are still bound by animal welfare rules to register the animals they are selling.

Anyone looking for a Burmese python or boa constrictor will find their ideal pet on the listings site, but as the government prepares to introduce strict rules on the sale of animals, even private online traders will be bound by the new laws.

Even dog pups being sold on Maltapark have to be registered at four months of age with the veterinarians' directorate, for microchipping. "Spot checks from the Animal Welfare Department have been made on breeders and traders in live animals, with a few people convicted and fined up to €1,000. Some cases are still pending," a spokesperson for the Parliamentary Secretariat for Animal Rights said.

The Animal Welfare Council, which advises the minister on measures and scientific investigations in the interest of animal well-being, will be proposing new rules to the government on the trade and registration of dangerous and exotic animals in Malta, such as snakes.

"Such traders remain bound by animal welfare rules, micro-chipping rules, VAT and consumer rules," the government spokesperson said.

New legal notices will oblige every person and trader working directly with live animals to provide specific animal enclosures for animals that ensure regulated size, temperature, lighting, ventilation and cleanliness, and keep a tab on all animals traded or hatched.

The rules will come into force on 2 April 2014, and traders selling reptiles and amphibians must now apply for a separate, specific licence.

The licence will not be given to anyone convicted of cruelty to animals or of any crime against public order which carries a prison term of over six months.

Records of animal suppliers, including particular animal markings and means of identification, will have to be kept diligently by shop owners. Pet-store owners will also have to keep tabs on the births, diseases and deaths of their animals, including the spawning and hatching of fish and amphibian eggs. If mortalities exceed 10% of the animals kept in stock, a vet must certify the cases. All records concerning live animals and pest control will be kept for at least three years.

Inspections by the Director for Veterinary Services will also ensure that a pet shop meets the minimum requirements. If the standards are not met, the director will issue corrective measures and, in extreme cases, can revoke the shop's licence and prohibit its operation.