Looking forward to Christmas but secretly worried that you may put on a few pounds? Take comfort in the fact that you are unlikely, if you do, to be treated like young Tobia, a 15-month-old English mastiff who lives in Milan.
Tobia, who currently weighs in at around 87 kilos [13 st.9lbs or 191.8 lbs] has been banned from using the lift by the administrator of his Milan condominium because he is “too heavy”. As Tobia lives with his owners on the fifth floor, this is hard for him indeed.
Tobia’s owners have complained to Aidaa, the Italian Association for the Defence of Animals and the Environment, which, having examined the case in its “Tribunal”, has confirmed that Tobia is a good dog who greets children enthusiastically and has never bothered any of the other residents in the apartment block. He is, however, a little lazy and five flights of stairs are a bit much for him.
As the maximum weight allowed in the condominium’s lift is 250 kilos and Tobia and his owners together weigh less than 220 kilos, Aidaa has ruled that the administrator must revoke the ban. Otherwise, says the organisation’s President, Lorenzo Croce, the Tribunal will accuse him of cruelty to animals and demand compensation of an amount sufficient to buy Tobia’s food for the next ten years. “Given his size”, he adds, “ this will not be a light economic undertaking”.
Do you think the administrator has a point or are you with Tobia?
