Direct Correlation Between Domestic Violence

Direct Correlation Between Domestic Violence and Animal Cruelty

The objective of this paper is to investigate the relationship between domestic violence and animal cruelty. Unfortunately, there is mounting evidence that the relationship is more prominent than not in today's society. Research shows there are direct correlations between these behaviors on many levels. This paper will explore this relationship and take a look at the research to support this thesis. It is logical to assume that animals are part of both the natural environment and the intimate home environments of human beings. In both contexts, the well being of animals is inextricably connected to the well being of their human counterparts and companions.

The Correlation

Until recently there has been a lack of attention toward animal abuse and very little study made into the relationship between domestic violence and pet cruelty. Indeed it has been discovered, the bond between women and their companion animals makes it possible for batterers to coerce, intimidate, and control women by abusing their pets. The batterer finds great pleasure in knowing they have hurt the victim through hurting something they love. Elizabeth Strand writes, "the link between animal abuse and woman battering completes the circle of abuse, more commonly called the tangled web of abuse, which must be addressed by social workers in order to intervene effectively and prevent family violence" (par. 6). This link between the two behaviors is commonly referred to as "Link (R)" (American Humane, par. 1) by Animal Rescue professionals like the Humane Society. This emergence of animal cruelty has set into action changes in state law. Due to the number of cases recently with evidence so overwhelming, 41 states and the District of Columbia currently have felony-level convictions for serious acts of animal abuse.

Strands explains:

Researchers found pet abuse or neglect in 60% of the families sampled. In most of the cases in which the pet abuse involved either inflicting pain on the animal or causing an inhumane death, one or both of the parents were the perpetrators; children were the sole pet abusers in only 14% of such cases. In addition, the rate of pet abuse was 88% among the 21 families in which there had been child physical abuse (as opposed to sexual abuse or neglect) (par. 10).

The findings show that 34.8% of 89 abused boys, but only 4.9% of 453 nonabused boys, had been cruel to animals. Likewise, 27.5% of 182 abused girls, compared to 3.3% of 426 nonabused girls, had been cruel to animals (Strand, pars. 11-12).

Furthermore, Jim Getz writes "A study by the Massachusetts SPCA showed that people who abuse animals are five times more likely to abuse people and four times more likely to damage property" (par. 4). As a result, animal cruelty for police organizations is on the rise. For Granite City, Illinois more than fifty peace officers have a role in mitigating animal cruelty on a day-to-day basis. Workshops are arranged for their further training in recognizing such behavior but over time the officers have also found direct relationships with other crime such drug dealing and grand theft auto. Other such animal cruelty like cock and dog fighting are also on the rise for the Midwest Region (Getz, par. 2). Laura McCloskey also found a direct relationship, weak in theory but however present between firesetters and people who are cruel to animals. She states, "youths who are both firesetters and cruel to animals are especially at risk of delinquency. Firesetting and animal cruelty have been linked conceptually because of their covert nature and empirical evidence indicating an overlap between these two behaviors" (page 6). She further elaborates that the tendency toward such behavior will over time lead to other delinquencies. It is believed such behavior is learned and can be found in paternal influence but also is a symptom of other pyschiactric problems that need diagnosis and attention. McCloskey writes, "These findings lend support to the belief that firesetters and youths who commit animal cruelty may need to be treated as multiproblem youths even if not clinically diagnosed. Finally, it is apparent that firesetting is a statistically significant predictor for juvenile delinquency" (page 7). Her studies show the foundation of most criminal behaviors can be found in early childhood development and start with common act of "acting out" and then lead to more severe acts such as animal cruelty. With each action, the level of violence intensifies as the repercussions become greater. These behaviors are really a cry for help and should not be ignored.