Attacks on family pets a domestic violence weapon

Inflicting or threatening violence against the family pet is another way to control or manipulate partners, a new study finds.

Violence or threats of violence can be used as a weapon by perpetrators of intimate partner violence, a new study finds.

Fears for the safety of family pets can prevent or delay family ­violence victims leaving perpetrators or cause them to return.

Perpetrators, predominantly males, can take advantage of the love of a family pet to manipulate and control intimate partners by threatening or inflicting violence against the animals, an Australian Institute of Family Studies paper concludes.

The AIFS study calls for more crisis accommodation that supports pets, as well as factoring them into safety planning for fleeing families.

While dogs and cats are the most targeted pets for violence, it can also extend to other family animals such as fish, birds and horses. Violence towards pets can include threats or actual physical or sexual abuse, verbal abuse or deliberate neglect.

AIFS researcher Kylie Butler said harming or threatening to harm family pets could lead to extreme emotional stress for family members.

“Pets can be a significant source of joy, friendship, comfort and support, especially in times of crisis, so threats or harm to family animals can be incredibly distressing,” she said.

“Perpetrators can use this to manipulate and control victims – even, in some cases, making the victim feel responsible for the ­violence, as though their behaviours or close connection with the animal caused the violence.

“Many victim-survivors report staying with a perpetrator longer, not leaving at all, or returning out of fear for the animal’s safety – ­especially if the pet has to be left behind.”

The report, “Violence against family animals in the context of intimate partner violence”, notes that seven in 10 Australian households have a pet, and when set alongside the fact one in four women had experienced some form of abuse by a current or former partner, pets are often part of the mix.

“Further, research suggests that family animals can be victims of violence as part of a larger pattern of intimate partner violence and that violence against family animals may be an indicator of frequent or severe forms of IPV,” it says.

“Violence against family animals is often carried out in front of the victim-survivor and sometimes in front of children as well.”

Ms Butler said practitioners, including social workers, psychologists and others who worked with women and children in crisis, needed to factor family animals into safety planning.

There was also a need for more animal-inclusive services and shelters.