“I think at some point in our career, we as vets have come across at least one case where we’ve suspected that an animal has been subject to neglect and/or abuse. Often it could be that we think the case is not ‘severe’ enough to report or there are other (human) factors which play a part in our decision making whether to report or not.
…If we – on top of considering the obvious unreasonable suffering of the animal – knew, that signs of animal abuse could be an indicator of much deeper problems in the home of the caretaker, would our decision be different?
…This book provides critical overviews of existing research and examines the latest evidence. It addresses the underlying ethical issues and considers the implications for legal policy and the work of key professionals (including veterinary surgeons). It comprises work by international experts from seven countries and features research by up-and-coming scholars as well as accomplished researchers. It also looks into the link between animal abuse and abuse/neglect of the elderly and has a chapter regarding the abuse of wildlife.
…The introduction asks Does Animal Abuse Really Benefit us? Later in the book we get some answers to why animal abuse can ‘benefit’ humans as a vent for anger, depression and frustration when a human is caught in an abusive relationship as a child, adolescent or adult. But it also suggests that in a home environment, where abuse and violence might be happening frequently, children growing up in such homes fail to learn to respect animals and later on in life could also develop this attitude into having low respect for fellow humans. Adults who have been subject to physical, sexual and mental abuse in childhood (whether there was animal abuse in the home or not) are more likely to develop the same patterns in adulthood. This might not come as such as surprise, but in this book we actually get some explanations to why this happens.
…The book is divided into 8 parts – each having a short introduction with chapters written by various authors to illustrate research and other investigation into the subject.
As vets, we need to know as much as we can about our patients and learn to recognise any signs of abuse and/or neglect early on. But we must also appreciate the human implications of animal neglect and abuse in order to help the animal presented to us in the most effective and ‘holistic’ way. In homeopathy we aim to treat the individual rather than the symptom. If we knowingly treat an animal without looking into its past and more importantly into its present situation, then we’re treating the ‘symptoms’ shown on the surface without addressing the real problem. If we can help individual family members (especially children) in a joint venture with other healthcare professionals and authorities, then we’re helping in a truly ‘holistic way’.
…With references to statistics and calculations, parts of this book could be a challenge to some readers. However, chapters can be easily understood without them and the book offers a great deal of helpful information for professionals in understanding the dynamics of a violent home environment and why people do what they do.
Read it and be all the wiser!” Book review by Malene Jørgensen, CandMedVet, VetMFHom, MRCVS, appeared in BAHVS (British Association of Homeopathic Veterinary Surgeons)

Excerpts from a review essay titled ‘The Elephant in the Room: Three New Books on Animal Ethics and Animal Theology’ by Scott Cowdell, who reviewed The Link Between Animal Abuse and Human Violence, and two other books by Andrew Linzey, Creatures of the Same God: Explorations in Animal Theology (Lantern Books, New York); and Why Animal Suffering Matters: Philosophy, Theology, and Practical Ethics (Oxford University Press)

“Andrew Linzey is the world’s first ‘animal theologian’ … He charts his own vocational commitment to animal welfare and the reform of Western theological imagination – as a conscientiously vegetarian theological student, then through decades of writing and activism as an academic clergyman, most recently as founder of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.

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The association between human and animal suffering underpins the last of these books (The Link Between Animal Abuse and Human Violence), comprising proceedings of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics’ first international conference, held at Keble College in 2007. Philosophers, ethicists, legal scholars, law enforcement officers, scientists and theologians all contribute. Many abusers of women, children and the elderly, also most serial killers and violent serial rapists, typically demonstrate a history of animal abuse, with the worst offenders beginning with childhood abuse of animals. Abused children witnessing animal abuse often grow up to emulate it. Animal abuse also accompanies human abuse, when pets are hurt or killed to terrorize and punish children, or threatened to extort money from vulnerable elders. I was saddened to learn that many women delay escaping an abusive partner for the safety of a shelter for fear of leaving a threatened pet behind.
… Statistics are amassed, with case studies from law enforcement’s chamber of horrors, leaving little doubt that there is a common pathology at work. The book canvasses options for legal reform, mandatory reporting of animal abuse by veterinarians, and law enforcement more intentionally pursuing animal abusers because it is likely in so doing to uncover and prevent human violence. A number of contributors, Linzey included, consider the pathology of violence towards wild animals, including the desensitization to suffering typically fostered among aficionados of English fox hunting and American deer hunting. They discuss the infamous dolphin drive hunts of Japan, with highly sentient creatures hounded, terrorised, gaffed and speared in a bloody maelstrom, all for the traditional right to eat cetacean meat (though it is increasingly unpopular, being mercury-laden), and English hunt advocates scorning reports of foxes (also unlucky domestic dogs and cats) torn apart by dog packs in the countryside – even in people’s yards, in front of children.

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As for nature’s cruelty, maybe God creating by evolutionary means allows animal pain, yet God feels every bit of it personally and redeems it through the suffering of Christ, with God’s new creation revealing the healing and restoration of every traumatised creature. But even if nature’s created ‘goodness’ accommodates the natural suffering of animals, Linzey’s insistence on minimising animal suffering and death is hard to discount, as is his ‘eschatological vegetarianism’. Here is a challenge at once theological, political and personal.” Associate Professor Scott Cowdell is a Research Fellow in Public and Contextual Theology at Charles Sturt University, and Canon Theologian of Canberra-Goulburn Diocese. He is a Founding Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics

“Scholars of psychology, philosophy, social sciences, law, and other fields look at the existing research; emotional development and emotional abuse; children, family violence, and animals; animal abuse and serial murder; ethical perspectives on relations between humans and animals; law enforcement, offenders, and sentencing policy; prevention and professional obligations; and the abuse of wild animals. Specific topics include a lifespan perspective on human aggression and animal abuse, empathy as an indicator of emotional development, the role of animals in public child welfare work, developmental animal cruelty and its correlates in sexual homicide offenders and sex offenders, the structure of evil, laws and policy to address the link of family violence, the role of veterinarians and other animal welfare workers in reporting suspected child abuse, and hunting as a morally suspect activity.” Reference & Research Book News

A review of the book also appears in Humane Education

http://humane-education.org.za/view/blog/childhood-development-impaired-by-animal-abuse/

“This substantial book addresses a significant issue for many academics and practitioners— the link between bad things human animals do to non-human animals and bad things human animals do to each other. Edited by theologian Andrew Linzey, and featuring chapters by some distinguished academics including some who have been concerned with these issues over an extended period (e.g., Arluke, Ascione, Flynn, and Levin), it represents a significant statement by those concerned with demonstrating and exploring the ‘link’.” Anthrozoös

“This publication is perhaps the most important in its field to date. It will be of interest to academics studying these issues, and to health care or other professionals who work with the abused and their abusers. These include law enforcement officers, RSPCA inspectors, lawyers, psychologists, child workers, doctors and, of course, veterinarians.
… Veterinarians are likely to find the section on the obligations of professionals of greatest interest. New Zealand veterinarian Ian Robertson – who is also a barrister, and teaches animal law in England and elsewhere – describes the “moral dilemma” veterinarians face when presented with a case of suspected abuse. The veterinarian is caught between reporting the case to the authorities and respecting client confidentiality. Although the relevant RCVS Guide to Professional Conduct annex clearly specifies that such cases should be reported to the RSPCA or other appropriate authority, Robertson argues that adding to this duty the weight of legal obligation would increase both the protection afforded to veterinarians, and compliance with this moral and professional duty.
… In the US, a sizeable minority of states already legally require veterinarians to report such cases, and a larger number have enacted legislation protecting veterinarians from liability or prosecution as a result of such reporting, or participating in cruelty investigations. Similar reporting obligations exist in parts of Canada.
Robertson identifies a group of related issues that should also be addressed to ensure human-animal violence is effectively tackled, including the training and assessment of veterinarians and veterinary nurses, clinical record-keeping protocols, and cross-reporting and information sharing between agencies.
… Written and edited to the highest standards, this book provides an essential reference for all those interested in studying this important emerging field. It is a field no veterinarian should be unaware of. For other readers, it provides a fascinating – albeit sometimes disturbing – insight into one of the darker realms of human psychopathology.” Veterinary Times

“Would we care more about animal suffering if we knew about the damage it can do to our children? The latest research suggests that animal abuse has a knock-on effect that puts children at risk of being affected by potentially disabling disorders that include impaired learning ability and depression.
… Recent thinking on the connection between animal abuse and child abuse is revealed in a new book, titled The Link between Animal Abuse and Human Violence, comprising cutting-edge research by 36 international academics in fields as varied as the social sciences, criminology, developmental psychology, human rights, applied childhood studies, behavioural science and child welfare. The volume is edited by Professor Andrew Linzey, director of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics and a member of the university’s faculty of theology.
… A piece of research brought to light in this book is the domino effect of animal abuse and cruelty. It starts when we, as adults, disrespect, neglect, abuse or harm an animal. By doing so, we are unknowingly guiding children on to a slippery slope that can ultimately affect their mental health. The process begins with desensitisation or loss of feeling, whereby children become able to witness the neglect, hurting, harming or killing of an animal and yet remain indifferent.
… The second step is when children become accustomed to the pain and suffering they witness and become habituated. Habituation to neglect and cruelty means that it has become a routine part of their lives.
… Importantly, desensitisation directly opposes the crucial development in early childhood of empathy. Understanding the nature of empathy is critical to our understanding of how animal cruelty affects children. Empathy is the ability to feel with another person. It is the precursor to sympathy and sympathetic behaviour. Social workers and psychologists regard empathy as an indicator of healthy emotional development in children and adults. It is believed to be the vital ‘ingredient’ upon which socially competent, cohesive, integrated, cooperative, sustainable and peaceful communities are built.
… In contrast, lack of empathy leads to dehumanisation because it stunts children's emotional development so that their potential as emotionally mature adults is not realised.
… What becomes clear from The Link between Animal Abuse and Human Violence is that scientists now suggest that animal abuse, because of its potential to damage emotional development, is a form of child abuse that can lead to lifelong disability, including impaired ability to learn, inability to build or maintain satisfactory social relationships, inappropriate behaviour and/or feelings and depression.
… Furthermore, research shows that adults who are underdeveloped emotionally resort more readily to violence to resolve problems.
…If we accept, then, that abusive and oppressive treatment of animals is injurious to children and is a destabilising force within communities and society at large, where do we look for an urgent and sustainable solution to man’s notorious inhumanity to non-human life?” Louise van der Merwe, The Teacher, Johannesberg, South Africa