AnimalVoicesNews
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Source/Letters: <http://www.oregonlive.com/interactivity/>
Link:
<http://www.oregonlive.com/pets/index.ssf/2009/10/pet_talk_abuse_of_pe...
ked.html>
Note: I was unable to see this page; I could only c/p a blank page.
Really! That's what comes of having a computer from the last century. See
web site for links. Nicholas Kristof has long been my hero! Now he'll be
yours too!
OREGON PETS
Animals, animal shelter and adoption news and advice
Living Top Stories, Pets columnist »
Pet Talk: Abuse of pets linked to abuse in families
By Jacques Von Lunen, special to The Oregon...
October 20, 2009, 4:53AM
Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian
This year's Animal Law Conference at Lewis & Clark College explored the
links between animal law and other disciplines. Keynote speaker Nicholas
Kristof, author of the new book "Half the Sky," spoke on the connection
between animal welfare and social justice.
A news story last week about the sentencing of a Portland man stabbing his
ex-girlfriend's pet fish elicited numerous chuckling comments and made it
into the "weird crime" section of MSNBC and other national news outlets.
Of course, it's funny; it's just a silly fish story, right?
How about kittens set on fire, dogs starved and horses' eyes gouged out by
men who force their partners and children to watch? Still chuckling?
The message these abusers send their partners is the same, according to the
experts who compile such gruesome tales: "This is the power I have, and this
is what could happen to you if you leave."
Last weekend, several of these experts, along with some 240 law students and
professionals from all over the country, came to Lewis & Clark College to
attend the college's 17th annual Animal Law Conference, the longest-running
in the nation. This year's theme was the links between animal law and other
areas of the legal profession; many sessions dealt with the connection
between animal abuse and domestic violence.
This connection is still unclear for too many in law enforcement, Heidi
Moawad, Multnomah County deputy district attorney, said in the first session
on Saturday. It's clear to her: she's the one who prosecuted the fish case.
(Donald Earl Fite III, 27, was sentenced to two years of probation and a
psychological evaluation.)
Frank Ascione, executive director of the Institute for Human-Animal
Connection in the University of Denver's Graduate School for Social Work,
said at the conference that people who abuse animals often do so to punish
family members attached to the pet.
"It creates an atmosphere of fear," he said. "It's a way of illustrating the
power of the abuser, to show, 'I could do this to you.' "
Ascione became interested in the subject through teaching child psychology.
In the late 1990s, he conducted his first small study in a Utah women's
shelter. Out of the 38 women involved, 74 percent had pets, which matches
the national average for families with kids. More than half of the women
said their abusive partner had also hurt or killed the family pet.
His attention captured, Ascione widened the study in 2007 to interview 101
women who'd taken refuge in shelters. He also recruited a control group of
120 women with no abuse history.
The earlier findings were confirmed: 54 percent of the battered women
reported their partner had also hurt or killed their pet. Five percent of
the women not in shelters gave that answer.
To make sure the abused women weren't just painting their former partners in
a worse light, Ascione went into a men's prison and talked to inmates who'd
either been convicted of or had acknowledged domestic abuse. Fifty-five
percent said they had abused the family animal. The numbers matched.
Some might think that Utah isn't representative of the rest of the country,
let alone the world. Researchers in Australia noticed Ascione's study and
ran one of their own. The results were the same. A number of studies
conducted elsewhere in the United States also have backed up Ascione's
findings.
Oregon notes connection
The studies illustrate the importance of making professionals in the
domestic violence field aware of the connection to animal abuse. They can
show what kind of environment makes domestic abuse more likely and point to
early detection. Furthermore, most people, and many professionals, would
first rescue the woman and child and then worry about the pet, if at all.
But throughout last weekend's conference, speakers appealed to future judges
and prosecutors to consider a number of questions.
What if the two forms of abuse are inextricably linked? What if one factor
keeping women in abusive homes is that they don't want to leave a pet to
certain death? What if moving to a shelter without your belongings, without
your child's favorite toy, without your clothes, is hard enough -- will you
also leave your pet?
And what about the double dose of violence that children are exposed to:
against the mother and against the pet?
Oregon, by the way, was the first state to recognize this link, enacting ORS
167.320 in 2003. The statute provides for increased penalties if someone
charged with an animal cruelty misdemeanor has prior convictions for family
violence.
***Because of research by Ascione and others, more progress is in sight.
Tougher animal cruelty laws are on the books as legislatures see the
connection to crimes against humans. Animal cruelty offenses may soon be
tracked in the U.S. Department of Justice's National Incident-Based
Reporting System, which would allow researchers and law enforcement to
better see parallels in domestic and animal violence. Professionals from
various disciplines are talking.***
Few shelters are equipped to admit pets to the same living areas as families
-- questions of safety, allergies and hygiene preclude this -- but some
shelters either have arrangements with animal facilities or create kennels
next to their buildings. It gets really tough when a woman owns horses or
other farm animals. A shelter in Roseburg that accommodates such animals
gets calls for help from as far as the Midwest.
Ascione has made it easier for shelters to help pet owners by developing a
how-to guide. His fellow panelist Saturday has used that guide. Megan
Senatori, a lawyer in Madison, Wis., started Sheltering Animals of Abuse
Victims, which provides confidential emergency foster care.
In her presentation, she cited statistics to impress the importance of
cracking down on animal abuse: Animal abusers are five times more likely to
commit violent crimes such as rape and murder, four times as likely to
commit property crimes and three times as likely to commit drug-related
crimes.
As the conference's main day came to a close, its biggest marquee name put
the issue of animal abuse in a larger context. Nicholas Kristof, columnist
at The New York Times, best-selling author and Oregon native, gave the
keynote address, in which he talked about the need for compassion toward
animals in the context of social justice.
Earlier in the evening he spoke about the connection of a great part of his
work -- fighting injustice against women -- to animal abuse.
"There usually are concentric circles of compassion," he said. "In some
societies women are on the outward circles; animals are always on the outer
circle."
During his worldwide travels, he has observed that societies that treat
animals badly also treat women and minorities with disdain. These tend to be
places where "not a lot of stock is placed on empathy," he said, places
where displays of strength are deemed important.
What does Kristof think about a conference on animals when so many people
are living in abject poverty?
"It's a mistake to think that one can only worry about one thing," he said.
"Worrying about animals doesn't mean worrying less about women or the poor."
-- Jacques Von Lunen
Help for pets
If you are seeking shelter from domestic abuse but don't want to leave your
animals, here are some resources.
Portland area: The Oregon Humane Society will house pets for two weeks free
of charge. The request has to come from an agency or women's shelter, so if
you need this service, ask the shelter to call the humane society at
503-285-7722.
Oregon coast: My Sister's Place, a women's shelter in Newport, is
constructing animal facilities that will be available in late spring.
1-800-841-8325 or www.mysistersplace.us.
Columbia Gorge: Helping Hands Against Violence in Hood River will house you
and your pet. 541-386-4808 or helpinghandsoregon.com.
Southern Oregon: Battered Persons Advocacy in Roseburg will house your pet
and provide foster service on a nearby farm for larger animals.
541-673-7867.
Emergency pet shelters
Although still too few women's shelters provide for pets, the number is
growing.
The Oregonian - The Oregonian Business Center | Hillsboro Argus
© 2009 Oregon Live LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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Judy Reed
AnimalVoices
Speaking For Animals & Their Environment
Liberal, Progressive, Secular, Green, & Humane
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