Animal Abuse

Introduction

Animals possess the same kinds of feelings and emotions as human beings, and without anesthesia, they are subjected to pain as well. Cruelty means inflicting pain and causing suffering. Some forms of cruelty include: Intentional cruelty or abuse when a person knowingly deprives the basic necessities for survival or maliciously tortures, maims or kills and animal; Neglect, when a person fails to provide proper basic necessities; Dog fighting, a game when 2 dogs are specifically bred or conditioned to fight in a pit for gambling or entertainment purposes and Animal hoarding whereby the caregiver houses a large accumulation of animals and unable to provide basic necessities with deteriorating condition of the animal environment. (HSUS)

Statistics show that the majority victims of abused victims are companion animals which consist of mainly dogs and cats. The bulk of abused victims weigh heavily on companion animals that consist mainly of dogs and cats, which leads to my emphasis on the cruelty to domesticated animals in this paper. (HSUS 2003 report of Animal Cruelty Cases)

Fortunately, various animal rights groups such as American Society for the Prevention of animals (ASPCA), American Humane Association (AHA) and the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) as well as many other grass roots organizations have sprouted throughout the United States in opposition to animal cruelty.

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In 1822 Richard Martin established the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Britain and Laws were created in 1849 and 1854 for protected animals. The movement spread to the United States, and Henry Bergh in New York established the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The ASPCA since its inception has become a role model for other similar organizations to follow. The organization has a legislative action center in which volunteers are asked to write their legislatures in order to rally for stricter penalties against animal cruelty. Volunteers are kept abreast on current issues related to animal cruelty. The society also keeps a listing of animal humane law enforcement officials and animal control agencies throughout the United States. (ASPCA Fight). The most widely recognized organizations are the American Society for the Prevention of Animals and the American Humane Association.

In 1877 the American Humane Association was organized to protect children and animals. The American Human Association is a network of people who prevent the abuse, exploitation and neglect of both animals and children. The organization educates people about animal issues through activities like "Be Kind to Animals Week" and "Tag" day. It also rescues animals during and after natural disasters and trains animal shelter professionals. The American Human Association is the only organization that has control over animals used in the television and movie industry. Finally, the AHA advocates for laws that are "animal friendly." (AHA)

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) advocates against killing animals to eat, use for entertainment or for the use of their animal skin or furs. The organization keeps a list of action alerts, urging people to rally against large companies like Gucci for killing animals for leather, ToysRUs that promotes circuses and petting zoos and cruel animal testing by pharmaceutical companies. Members lobby legislatures on tougher animal rights laws and launch writing campaigns urging companies to improve treatment to animals. (PETA)

Smaller grass-roots organizations like the Animal Cruelty Action line employ cruelty humane officers and police to report animal abuse. Case workers then contact prosecutors who are working on cruelty cases and gather information to strengthen the case against people charged with the crime.

In May, two teenager boys, aged 16 and 17, were jailed for two days and fined $500 for setting a black-and-white cat on fire in a Colorado parking lot. The cat was rushed to an animal hospital with 25 percent of his body covered in third-degree burns. About 10 percent of its body had first and second-degree burns. The cat had to undergo three surgeries and amputations, which it eventually lost its ears, tail and a leg. The cat, which was a stray, was later adopted. Due to the high profile of the case, a lawmaker was moved to lobby for harsher animal cruelty penalties. The boys told prosecutors that they set the cat on fire because they wanted to see his tail burn like those in the cartoons. They were sentenced to 18 months of probation. Animal cruelty is a misdemeanor in Colorado (Abused Cat).

Cruelty to animal laws first began in the Nineteenth Century. At first, laws were lumped together that also protected children and lunatics. At that time, the laws only enforced violence that was deemed "a public nuisance." In recent years, states throughout the U.S. have passed tougher animal cruelty laws. Most states have adopted animal cruelty laws that consider such actions a felony. States have also required that people who are convicted of animal cruelty charges undergo psychological evaluation and counseling. "Five states--Arizona, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, and Massachusetts--have introduced bills that mandate cross reporting between animal control officers and child protective services" (Cruelty and Family Abuse 14). Earlier this year, Nevada passed a law that requires the juvenile court to mandate counseling to children who have been found hurting animals. Parents must pay for the therapy. Two states, Minnesota and West Virginia, mandate that vets report cases of animal abuse that they notice or suspect. Idaho protects vets against civil and criminal cases that could arise if they report abuse and is then sued by the suspect. That state, however, doesn't require that the vets report abuse. In April, Arkansas was trying to pass a stricter animal abuse law whereby people convicted of abuse would have to pay a $10,000 fine and spend up to six years in jail. The current law treats animal abuse as a misdemeanor worth a $1,000 fine and up to a year in jail (Stricter Laws 8).

Many researchers have found that a history of animal violence indicates a high propensity for interpersonal violence. Although not all animal abusers become serial killers, most serial killers began their killing spree with animals. "One of the causes of aggression toward both animals and people is inability on the part of the aggressor to read the signals being given off by the other party. He or she (usually he) reacts violently because he misinterprets the intentions of the other person or animal. Understanding