Reliable evidence establishing a link between animal abuse and domestic violence continues to grow. According to the American Humane Association, a national advocacy group established in 1877 to address the related issues of child and animal abuse, almost three-quarters of pet-owning women who enter shelters report that their abusers had injured, killed, or threatened family pets. Between 25 per cent and 40 per cent of battered women were unable to leave an abusive situation due to fears for their pets or livestock. Animal Law, a legal journal from the Lewis & Clark Law School in Oregon, reported similar results from surveys of battered women conducted in 1999 and 2001.

It’s a serious problem, without an easy solution