MILCH ANIMALS [ S.L.36.32 1
SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 36.32
MILCH ANIMALS REGULATIONS
5th December, 1989
LEGAL NOTICE 151 of 1989.
Title.
Regulations.
2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise
requires-
Interpretation.
includes any officer of the department duly authorised by the
Director to act on his behalf;
"to fatten" means to keep from the weaning to the slaughtering
stage;
"to rear" means to breed and rear up to the slaughtering stage and
includes the selling of weaned animals;
"to keep" includes to rear, to fatten and to milk;
"animal" means a female animal or milker of the bovine, ovine or
caprine species and includes a male animal of the same species, and
male and female offspring thereof;
"government veterinary surgeon" means a veterinary surgeon in
the employment of the government;
"farm" includes any dairy farm, farmhouse, cowshed, raw milk
store and any place in which milch animals are kept.
Register of farms, 
etc.
3. (1) For the purposes of ensuring the prevention of spread
of disease amongst animals, the Director shall keep a register of
farms and of any person who works therein. 
(2) It shall be the duty of every person who keeps a farm, or
who works or is employed therein, to register himself and the farm
he works at, or keeps, with the Director, and no person shall keep
animals in, or work on, such farm unless he and the farm he works
in are so registered.
Validity of 
registration.
4. Any registration made under the preceding regulation shall
be valid up to the 31st day of December of the year in which it is
made, but may be renewed from year to year under such conditions
as the Director may prescribe.
Site-plan.
made by the keeper of such farm, and shall be accompanied by a
site-plan showing the place and its surrounding area within a
distance of two hundred metres from the perimeter of the farm.
Movements of 
animals.
6.  No person shall move or cause any animal to be moved
from a registered farm to any other place or to an abattoir, unless he
has previously obtained permission in writing from the Director to
2 [ S.L.36.32 MILCH ANIMALS
that effect.
Farm book. 7. Every keeper of a farm shall keep a farm book, in such
form as the Director shall require, in which shall be entered details
of the number and type of animals being kept in the farm and any
addition or reduction in their numbers, as well as any details of
identification, together with the relative dates.
Acquisition of 
livestock.
8. (1) No person registered as aforesaid in these Regulations,
shall acquire animals, for any purpose, from any person who is not
registered under regulation 3 of these Regulations.
(2) Any animal on a farm registered in accordance with
regulation 7 shall be identified by tattooing, or by freezebranding,
or by ear tagging, or by any other method to the satisfaction of the
Director.
Registration of 
births, etc.
9. (1) Any person who keeps bovines shall register all
relative births with the Director within ten days of birth.
(2) Any person who keeps ovines or caprines shall register all
animals that are being kept for breeding within three months of
their birth.
Report of deaths.  10. Immediately the death of a registered animal occurs, the
death shall either be reported to the Director, or certified by a
registered veterinary surgeon.
Artificial 
insemination.
11. (1) No person may carry out artificial insemination in
animals unless the Director is satisfied that such person is qualified
to carry out such insemination and is registered by the Director for
that purpose.
(2) For the purposes of this regulation, a person shall be
deemed to be qualified if he passes an oral and practical test in the
subject to the satisfaction of the Director.
Functions of the 
Director. 
12. (1) For the purposes of prevention of spread of disease,
the Director may -
( a ) by notice in the Gazette limit or prohibit the sale or
movement of animals, to or from any part of these
Islands;
( b ) require any person registered as aforesaid in these
Regulations to give all information concerning the
movements of animals to or from his farm, and all
relative sales and purchases; 
( c ) at any reasonable time enter any shed or other place
where he has reasonable grounds for supposing that
animals are kept, for the purpose of -
(i) inspecting the animals kept therein; or
(ii) subjecting the animals to any tests necessary for
the diagnosis of disease; or
(iii) taking samples of blood or other material from
animals for the purposes of diagnosis of disease;
or
(iv) marking of animals in such a way as he
MILCH ANIMALS [ S.L.36.32 3
considers expedient for the purpose of their
identification, or as provided in regulation 8(2);
or
(v) vaccinating the animals.
(2) It shall be the duty of any person registered as aforesaid in
these Regulations to provide all necessary assistance to the
Director for the proper discharge of his functions under sub-
regulation (1) of this regulation.
Certification of 
farm.
13. Where, after such investigation as he considers necessary,
the Director is satisfied that a farm is free from disease, he may
issue a certificate to the keeper of such farm to that effect and,
thereafter, such keeper shall not introduce into the farm any other
animal which is not certified by a government veterinary surgeon to
be free from disease.
Clean areas. 
area in Malta and Gozo have been certified by him to be free from
disease in accordance with the provisions of regulation 13, the
Director may issue a notice to that effect in the Gazette. 
(2)  Where such notice has been issued, no person shall
introduce into such area any animal unless such animal is certified
by a government veterinary surgeon to be free from disease.
Offences.
Cap. 36.
15. Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any of
the provisions of these Regulations, or with any direction given
thereunder, or who hinders or obstructs the Director from doing
anything that he may lawfully do under the provisions of these
Regulations, shall be guilty of an offence against Part II of the
Prevention of Disease Ordinance, and the provisions of Title III of
Part III of the said Ordinance shall apply.
