A special shelter for lost and injured animals on Thursday joined the tent city that has sprung up around L'Aquila since Monday's earthquake.
Volunteers from Rome's Animal Protection Department opened a tent to provide official medical treatment and shelter for animals left wounded or homeless during the quake and its aftermath.
On Wednesday, the Italian Association for the Protection of Animals (AIDAA) estimated that around 5,000 animals were still wandering the streets of affected areas, either abandoned by panicked owners or lost during the chaos.
The shelter, one of three initiatives set up to deal with animals in the aftermath, welcomed its first patient, a small terrier named Giorgina, minutes after opening.
Giorgina, one of a team of rescue dogs, injured her paw while searching for survivors in the days after the quake.
''In addition to Giorgina, we also have a cat with numerous fractures received after she fell from a considerable height during the tremors,'' said Paolo Tarantino, who is helping coordinate the work.
''Our goal is to create semi-permanent shelters that will care for those animals who have been left alone after the quake or whose owners are temporarily unable to care for them but who want them nearby''.
The shelter has been set up in San Vittorino, a village about 10 kilometres northeast of L'Aquila, where rescue operations are set to continue over the weekend.
The San Vittorino tent is the closest shelter to the quake site but two leading animal charities are also involved in rescue and protection efforts.
AIDAA has set up a donation centre in the town of Sulmona, about 100 kilometres south of L'Aquila, in order to collect food and blankets for pets and farm animals.
It has also set up a call centre for reporting homeless or injured animals.
The National Animal Protection Authority (ENPA) has opened another collection point and is coordinating the activity of vets from across the country who have volunteered to assist with emergency treatment.
Both charities have stressed that in addition to food, they urgently need cages and carriers in order to transport injured and rescued animals.
Although animal charities are focusing on pets, the alarm has also been sounded over livestock.
Farmers association Coldiretti said that animals were the biggest problem for farmers in the quake-affected area.
''Farmers with cattle and sheep have reported enormous damage, particularly in terms of stalls and shelter,'' explained Coldiretti's crisis spokesperson, Antonio Biso.
''The crop emergency is far less severe than the livestock crisis''.
In addition to temporary shelter for the animals, farmers are in urgent need of feed and hay.
''They also need volunteers,'' added Biso. ''Farmers simply don't have enough strength to deal adequately with their livestock on top of everything else''.
Agriculture Minister Luca Zaia, who has promised 40 million euros to assist quake-stricken farmers, travelled to the area on Wednesday to meet with local representatives and see the damage first-hand.
''Farming is in a truly distressing state,'' said Zaia. ''I am here to express my own support, as well as that of the government, through concrete actions.
''It is imperative we get these people back to the normality they deserve as soon as possible''.
The agriculture ministry and farmers associations have predicted Monday's earthquake will cost the sector over 100 million euros.
