Pets…The Silent Victims of Domestic Violence
by Diona Savoy-McDaniels
Pets depend on people for their care and safety. Ironically, they remain loyal to people no matter how they are treated. That is particularly significant within the context of domestic violence where pets are often used as mechanisms to control the entire family.
Abusers are savvy to various ways they can maintain control at home. In particular abusers will threaten to harm or destroy anything they so choose. Animals are particularly vulnerable as they have no voice and remain loyal despite their treatment.
Dr. Bruce Perry is an American psychiatrist, currently the senior fellow of the Child Trauma Academy in Houston, Texas and an adjunct professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois. He is an internationally Red Rover recognized authority on children in crisis. He has addressed the issue of domestic violence as it impacts children. He’s pointed out that one of the methods abusers use to manipulate the family is to abuse a beloved pet in front of them. This is an effective message to demonstrate what could also happen to them if they fail to comply with the abuser’s demands. Also, they may comply, with the hope of protecting the pet from further harm.
Looking closer at this flawed parenting model, children are being taught the mixed messages of love and abuse as an acceptable pattern of behavior in the family. They might even display that abusive behavior as they grow in an effort to impress the controlling parent. It is human nature to seek approval and validation from the person in charge, often without considering the risks to the unfortunate recipients of those control strategies.
Using pets as targets of their wrath, abuse may be directed at animals in a way that the abuser’s behavior goes unnoticed to those outside the family. Social workers should take note of what they might observe in a family. The probability of pets achieving old age is less likely in an abusive family. If pets are frequently seen with injuries and rarely reach maturity, it could be an indicator of abuse in the home. Also, abusers might prefer an assertive dog and train them to respond with aggression, to bolster their own ego.
A particularly gruesome event in Goshen County two decades ago highlights the rage of abusers when they lose control of a partner. A Basset hound, named Dexter, belonged to a woman who was dating a man in Goshen County. The woman had decided to leave that relationship. Angered by her rejection, 20-year-old Travis Wilson subsequently went to her home when he knew she would be gone for a period of time, attending class. Once there, he dismembered Dexter and left the dog ablaze in her driveway for her to see when she returned that day. While he admitted to killing Dexter, he denied mutilating and burning the body. Wilson was convicted and sentenced to 8 months in jail on two separate counts of animal cruelty and one count of police interference.
The heinous nature of that atrocity received national attention, and during a subsequent legislative session in 2003 the Dexter Bill was approved to better protect pets in Wyoming. House Bill 113 increased penalties for a second animal cruelty offense to a high misdemeanor punishable by not more than one year in jail, a fine of up to $2,500, or both. Third or subsequent offenses would be a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of $5,000, or both.
Gradually the courts are becoming more aware of the extended risk of abuse to animals as well as humans when domestic violence is embedded in the family dynamic. The Domestic Violence Protection Act in Wyoming now includes the option of listing animals on petitions when going to court to secure Protection Orders for themselves, their children and now, their animals.
Aiming to harm or destroy that which is held precious is an effective mechanism of control in domestic violence; this could be anything from a cherished family heirloom to a beloved household pet. It could be argued the most insidious, silent, and effective methods of control are emotional, psychological, and mental abuse as all the damage is internal. In the absence of any physical evidence the public is often inclined to disregard the presence of domestic violence. It is the silence of people that often harms animals in ways they forever regret. Thus, the depth of domestic violence may result in silent complicity from human victims for their own survival...sometimes to the detriment of beloved animals.
Diona Savoy-McDaniels was a journalist for several years and newspaper editor for various newspapers in southeast Wyoming. She worked at the Goshen County Task Force on Family Violence and Sexual Assault in Torrington, WY for 31 years, Executive Director for 25. She holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts degrees from the University of Wyoming. She has been an animal lover and advocate her entire life. Now retired, she is a substitute teacher and is active with Goshen Community Theatre, plays handbells with WyoRing, and sings barbershop. A mother and grandmother, she is always promoting the love of animals, music, and theatre...her combined passions.
