NCJ Number
165907
Date Published
1995
Length
23 pages
Annotation
Following an analysis of existing research and policy issues relevant to understanding the relationship between domestic violence and animal maltreatment, this report presents the results of a small-scale descriptive study of the prevalence of this relationship in a shelter sample of battered women; implications are drawn for future research and for the well-being of women and children who are experiencing family violence.
Abstract
Thirty-eight women seeking in-house services at a shelter for battered partners in northern Utah agreed to be interviewed by shelter staff about their experiences with maltreatment of pets. The interview used an early version of the Battered Partners Shelter Survey - Pet Maltreatment Assessment. Seventy- four percent of the women reported current pet ownership or pet ownership in the 12 months prior to the women's entry into the shelter. Of these women, 68 percent owned more than one pet. Seventy-one percent of the women with pets reported that their male partner had threatened to hurt or kill and/or had actually hurt or killed one or more of their pets. Twenty-two women had children, and 32 percent of these women reported that one of their children had hurt or killed a pet or pets. 44 references