When there is violence going on in a household, the human inhabitants often aren't the only ones being harmed. Pets, too, are frequently targets of abuse.
In a 1997 study, researchers Ascione, Weber, and Wood surveyed 50 domestic violence shelters. The shelters reported that 85% of the abused women who sought refuge with them reported pet abuse in the home and 63% of the child residents mentioned pet abuse as a concern. Other studies have found that in 88% of homes where children are physically abused, pet abuse occurs as well.
There are many ways that pet abuse and domestic violence tie into each other.
Pet Abuse and Threats/Intimidation
Animals are often the first targets of abuse as violence escalates. The abuser starts out by smashing his or her fist into a wall and graduates into kicking the dog or throwing the cat across the room. Meanwhile, the human victim cowers and thinks, "That could have been me."
Sometimes the abuser makes explicit threats, injuring the pet and saying, "And I could do the same thing to you!"
Another time of great risk to pets in abusive households is during an episode of acute battering. At this time, the abuser lashes out physically at the primary victim as well as at anything the victim loves including children, pets, and property.
Pet Abuse and Control
Most domestic violence shelters aren't able to accept pets, and abuse victims may not be able to afford the cost of boarding or kenneling an animal. Giving the pet up is too painful, and leaving the pet with the abuser is unthinkable. This gives the abuser an added layer of control over his or her victim. Some abusers exploit this dilemma with more threats, such as, "If you go, I'll kill the cat," or "Go ahead, but I'm taking that mangy dog of yours to the pound."
In recent years, domestic violence shelters and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) have been working together to help find a solution to this barrier that keeps so many victims trapped in violent relationships. They have developed a program called Safe Havens for Animals, available in 47 states and the District of Columbia. Safe Havens for Animals provides temporary shelter for pets until the victim can make other arrangements.
The American Humane Society has also joined in the fight with its Pets and Women's Shelters (PAWS) program. This program educates domestic violence shelters on how to house pets on-site.
Legal Responses to Domestic Violence and Animal Abuse
It has only been in recent years that social service agencies, police officers, and prosecutors have recognized that animal abuse is a serious crime that deserves a serious response.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and the HSUS both remind authorities that animal control agencies investigating pet abuse may be the first contact with the legal system for domestic violence victims, and that officials responding to a domestic call should likewise assess and ensure the safety of pets in the home.
Once pet abuse has been identified as a component of a violent home, American Humane urges prosecutors to file charges on behalf of all violence victims, four-legged as well as two-legged. This paints a graphic picture to the judge and jury of just how unstable and dangerous the abuser is. American Humane also asks prosecutors not to dismiss animal cruelty charges as part of a plea bargain.
American Humane guidelines suggest that, once convicted of animal cruelty, the abuser should undergo a court ordered psychiatric evaluation and mandatory counseling along with any criminal penalties that might be imposed.
When the Abuse Victim Becomes the Abuser
Sadly, it is not always the primary abuser who harms the animals in a violent household. Sometimes the victim turns on a pet out of rage or frustration. This is especially true of child victims. In one survey, 32% of abused women reported that their child had deliberately hurt or killed a pet.
What makes this statistic even more unsettling is that animal torture, along with fire setting and bed wetting past the age of five, are part of what researcher Jim MacDonald termed the triad of sociopathy. He found that when these three traits appear together in children, they are highly predictive of future criminal behavior.
American Humane is very aware of this and encourages animal control officers who investigate animals abused by youths to hold a high index of suspicion that the youth him or herself has been the victim of abuse.
They encourage prosecutors who deal with child perpetrators of pet abuse to insist that the child get intensive counseling. In many cases, they also recommend involving the youthful offender in a program that provides closely supervised interactions with animals in the hopes that this will encourage the development of empathy and compassion for animals and, by extension, for other people.
Pet Abuse and Family Violence
Pet abuse has long been looked at as a slap-on-the-wrist offense. Only now are law enforcement agencies beginning to realize that, as if abusing an animal weren't bad enough by itself, the abuse of animals is often correlated with the abuse of people. First responders to abusive situations need to be aware of this link so that when they investigate an abuse complaint they can make sure they are helping all the victims involved.
Sources
Ascione, Frank R., Weber, Claudia V. and Wood, David S. (1997). The Abuse of Animals and Domestic Violence: A National Survey of Shelters for Women Who Are Battered. Originally published in Society and Animals. Currently appears on Andrew Vachss: The Zero. Accessed 7/8/10.
ASPCA.org. The Connection Between Domestic Violence and Animal Cruelty. Accessed 7/8/10.
The Humane Society of the United States. HSUS.org. Accessed 7/8/10.
PetAbuse.com. Cruelty Connections. Accessed 7/8/10.
Phillips, Allie. The Link for Prosecutors. Appearing on AmericanHumane.org. Accessed 7/8/10.
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