The Connection Between
Animal Abuse and Human Violence
動物虐待和人類暴力的相關性
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
執行總結
Animal cruelty is linked directly or indirectly with every type of violent
crime and even with most non-violent crime.
虐待動物和每一種暴力犯罪，甚至和大多數非暴力犯罪都有直接或間接的關係。
Human beings would benefit enormously if fighting animal
cruelty (investigating, prosecuting) were taken seriously. Many human lives
would be saved and much human suffering would be prevented.
Violent individuals are 「made」 and not born. Children are
born with a love of animals, but the home environment plays a major role in
determining a child』s prosocial or antisocial personality and behavior. Child
abuse, neglect, abandonment, and witnessing domestic violence are major factors
in creating violent individuals.
Enuresis, arson, and animal cruelty in children are early
identifying factors related to future violence. Early intervention may be
effective in changing the pathological path a child is taking.
兒童的遺尿、縱火、虐待動物為未來暴力確定了最初的鋪墊。早期干預可能有效地避免孩子滑入這條變態之路。
The majority of juvenile crime offenders and school
shooters were involved in animal cruelty. Most violent crimes are committed by
young people under the age of 30. A majority of prison inmates were involved in
animal cruelty at some time in their early lives.
Dog fighting involves crimes such as drugs, guns, illegal
gambling, pet theft, murder, and gang violence. 30 – 35 fatal dog attacks take
place annually by dogs trained for fighting.
Serial killers are closely linked to animal cruelty, so
much so that it is exceedingly rare to find one who did not begin his or her
career with animal abuse.
Domestic violence (child abuse, spouse battering, and elder abuse) is closely
associated with animal cruelty. Perpetrators use animal cruelty to control
women and children in abusive situations. Battered women often remain in
abusive situations out of fear for their pet. Animal cruelty is 11x more likely
in domestic violence households than in non d.v. households.
Stopping domestic violence is a key to reducing our
violent culture. Nearly all violent criminals and violent psychiatric patients
were abused as children, and nearly all started committing animal cruelty at an
early age.
For people who care about animals, the question never
arises. Animals are living, breathing, sentient beings that cohabit the Earth,
that feel joy, love, and happiness, but also suffer and feel pain just as human
beings do. Cruelty is incompatible with a caring, moral society where empathy
is a venerable quality.對關注動物的人來說，他們根本不會提出這樣的問題。動物是鮮活的有呼吸有感情的生命，和我們在地球上一起生活，和我們人類一樣，能感受快樂，愛與幸福，也能感受或遭遇痛苦。在這個充滿關懷，崇尚道德的社會，同情是一個可貴的品質，殘忍是與這個社會不相容的。
For those who don』t care about animals, there are still
many reasons to be concerned, reasons in their own self-interest. There is a
close connection between animal cruelty and most forms of violent and
nonviolent crime. Those who are committing or have committed animal abuse are
far more likely to be associated with assault, rape, murder and serial murder,
arson, domestic violence, and pedophilia, than are nonanimal abusers. Children
who begin their young years abusing other living beings are at higher risk of
future criminal behavior.對那些對動物莫不關心的人來說，出自各自的興趣，他們依然有一些理由關注這個問題。動物虐待和大多數形式的暴力非暴力犯罪緊密相聯。那些正在虐待虐待動物的人，或者虐待過動物的人，比那些未虐待動物的人，更有可能會牽扯進毆打、強姦、謀殺、連環謀殺、縱火、家庭暴力、戀童癖這些行為中。幼年時有過虐待其他生命的少年，未來犯罪的幾率更高。
None of this is conjecture; it is borne out by countless
studies and statistics. So why should we care about cruelty?
Fighting animal cruelty would:
n save many human lives
n prevent much human suffering
n prevent much animal suffering
n help to protect children
n help to protect women, children, and elders from
domestic violence
n lead to far less human violence overall
Studies done by the Department of Justice, the FBI, the Association of
Chiefs of Police, and many commissioned university professors under contract to
these organizations show that animal cruelty is: - a predictor of future human
violence; - an identifier of likely suspects; - an
indicator of on-going child, spouse, or elder abuse; - and a felony for the
most egregious cruelty incidences in all 50 states.
Some psychologists and geneticists
might contend that there are 「bad genes」 that predispose a newborn to a life of
violence. While genetics may certainly play some role, 「nature versus nurture」
is a far more powerful influence. A child』s parents are the biggest influences
and role models in his or her life. Children brought up with love and understanding,
respect, and pro-social values taught at home and elsewhere are on a path to
becoming valued and responsible adults that will repeat such a positive
upbringing with their own children.
In contrast, a child brought up in an
abusive home, undergoing neglect, abandonment, sexual, or physical abuse, or
witnessing abuse of his or her mother, learns that violence is a normal way of life,
and will very likely repeat that cycle when (and if) they become an adult.
Along the way, the child may take out his or her anger and frustration on
others weaker than they are, likely starting with animals and often becoming a school
bully and a future child or spouse abuser. They may also become involved in
violent or non-violent crime.
As statistics from federal and state
prisons and criminal psychiatric facilities show: Nearly all violent
individuals were abused as children, and over 70% of them began their violent
careers with animal cruelty.
If violent offenders are made and not born, why can』t we figure out what
makes them and break the cycle?
如果暴力犯罪不是天生而是後天養成的，我們為什麼不找到這些犯罪根源並根除它們？
Decades of study by learned
institutions, journals, national science associations, psychology and psychiatric
organizations, university professors, and other professional associations all
lead to one conclusion:
Domestic violence is the single most
important factor that creates violent individuals and perpetuates the cycle of
violence.
家庭暴力是產生暴力犯罪暴力並製造暴力循環的唯一的最重要的因素。
Combatting domestic violence much more
aggressively than society has done in the past would be of enormous benefit to
society, and animal cruelty is the way most violent individuals begin.
The degree of
violence each year is staggering. The Table below shows yearly averages for
several types of violent crimes in the US, averaged over about a 20-year
period. Fortunately, violent crime has decreased somewhat after the start of
the new century, but remains hugely costly in both human terms and societal terms,
representing lost lives, lost productivity, and an enormous drain on resources.
The estimated cost of child abuse alone is $124 billion per year [1] while the
cost of all violent crime exceeds $450 billion [2]. *
Legally, animal cruelty is defined as
「Socially Unacceptable Behavior That Intentionally Causes Unnecessary Pain,
Suffering, or Distress To and / or Death of an Animal.」
Most Common Forms of Abuse: Excessive
punishment; Chaining; Abandonment; Failure to provide sustenance.
Pathological Cruelty To Animals:
Beating; Torturing; Burning; Scalding; Freezing, Skinning; Bone Breaking;
Whipping; Amputation; Electric Prodding; Mutilation; Freezing; Killing;
Crushing; Fighting.
Some crimes: misdemeanor in 50 states,
other crimes now a felony in all 50 states as of 2014.
While school shootings grab the most
attention, school violence is more widespread and encompasses more types of
crimes. For instance, in 2012 there were over 749,000 non-fatal violent
victimizations among students ages 12-18. At the same time, 9% of teachers
reported being threatened by a student and 5% reported being physically
attacked. An average of 25 student deaths take place in schools every year, as
shown in the chart below. Teachers, principals, and other school staff are also
victims. Most school homicides are carried out with guns, others with knives
and clubs. In 2013, nearly 18% of high school students carried a weapon to
school.
Eric Harris, Dylan Klebold
(shot 36, killed 13). Boasted of mutilating animals for fun.
Evan Ramsey (shot 4, killed 2). Stoned dogs.
43-50%的校園槍手從虐待動物開始暴力行為。
Brenda Spencer（向12人開槍，殺死2人）。將貓丟入火中。
Kip Kinkle（向24人開槍，殺死2人）。每天虐待3隻動物。
Eric Harris, Dylan Klebold （向36人射擊，打死13）。以虐待動物為樂，並作為吹噓的談資。
Evan Ramsey（射擊4，殺死2）。用石頭砸狗。
Bullying and
Suicide
The tragedy of child suicide is very
much connected with bullying.
4400 suicides of young people take
place per year. For every suicide that takes place, there are at least 100
suicide attempts.
Over 14% of high school students have
considered suicide and nearly 7% have attempted it.
A European study found that at least
half of child suicides are related to bullying.
校園欺凌和自殺
孩子自殺的悲劇和校園欺凌緊密相聯。
每年發生4400起少年自殺事件。每一期成功自殺事件背後，隱藏著至少100起未遂自殺事件。
超過14％的高中生曾考慮自殺，近7％曾嘗試它。
歐洲的某個研究發現，兒童自殺至少有一半都與校園欺凌有關。
Beautiful People
lost to Suicide due to Bullying
因校園欺凌而死的美麗生命
Bullying and
Animal Cruelty
校園欺凌和動物虐待
Cruelty to animals is often an
indicator of either a bully or a victim displaying anger against the bullying.
Bullies are often associated with animal cruelty.
75% of school shooters were either
bullies (Kinkle, Johnson) or victims of bullies (Carneal, Woodham, Harris and Klebold).
Half the school shooters were torturing animals and bragged about it.
動物虐待往往要麼校園欺凌的風向標，要麼是反欺凌的受害者的風向標。校園惡霸往往與虐待動物有關。
75％的校園槍手要麼是惡霸（Kinkle, Johnson）或欺凌的受害者（Carneal, Woodham, Harris and Klebold）。有一半的校園槍手虐待動物並引以為豪。
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Child Abuse;
Spouse Battering; Elder Abuse
家庭暴力 虐待兒童，虐待配偶，虐待老人
It is an astonishing fact that prior to
1962, there was no officially recognized notion of child abuse (or spouse or
elder abuse either for that matter). The medical
establishment refused to believe that parents would harm their children.
Children entering clinics or hospitals with broken bones, black
eyes, bruises covering their bodies were simply accident-prone. One doctor, C.
Henry Kempe, refused to believe that all those
injuries could be accidents and sent a questionnaire to hospitals around the
country, summarizing the findings in the first-ever study of battered children.
His work literally sparked a revolution, a long overdue awakening that child abuse
was not only taking place but was widespread. Abuse took several forms:
physical, sexual, psychological, abandonment, neglect. (Sexual abuse wasn』t
「recognized」 until the 1980』s.)
令人吃驚的是，直到1962年，虐待兒童（配偶，老人）都沒有一個官方認可的概念。醫療機構拒絕相信父母會傷害孩子。因為打斷骨頭、打腫眼睛、全身瘀青創傷而就診的兒童都只不過當成意外事件。一個叫C. Henry Kempe的醫生拒絕承認這些傷害僅僅是意外，給全國的醫院寄來一份調查問卷，總結了他對受虐兒童首次研究的發現。從某種意義上說，他的工作引發了一場革命。促使人們遲來的覺醒：兒童虐待不僅發生，而且範圍甚廣。虐待形式包括：身體虐待，性虐待，精神虐待，遺棄，漠視。（性虐待直到上世紀80年代才得以認可）
Home: A Criminal
Training Ground. Exhaustive studies show the connection between child
abuse and criminal behavior. 「Parental conflict and harsh, erratic discipline
have been shown to contribute to juvenile crime. Abused children are at high
risk of becoming involved in crime. Households that
provide safety, emotional warmth, and guidance foster the development of
noncriminal young people even in neighborhoods at high
risk for crime」 [11].
There are over 2.7 million cases of
child abuse per year with 160,000 serious injuries and 2000 deaths [12]. Many
of the children killed in their homes are under the age
of 3; 80% are under the age of 4. Every 5 hours a child is abused to death, and
the number is growing.
Families involved in child abuse are
generally involved in other types of domestic violence including spouse abuse
and often in criminal activities including assaults
as well [12].
涉嫌兒童虐待的家庭一般來說也涉嫌其他家暴，包括虐待配偶，當然，還有暴力襲擊這樣的犯罪行為。
Child Abuse and
Animal Abuse. It doesn』t take much of a leap of imagination that
parents brutalizing children wouldn』t hesitate to do the same to the household
pets. In fact, abuse of the family pet is a major way that brutal parents
control the child (or the spouse) to enact silence (about the abuse), create
desired behavior, and create a household atmosphere of fear.
The connection
between child abuse and animal abuse is 70-80%.
In one study, 23 families were studied
where animal abuse was known to be going on. 83% also had children in the
household in danger of abuse or neglect [13]. In
another study, 53 families were investigated where child abuse was known to be
going on (physical, sexual, or neglect). Animal cruelty was also occurring in
60% of these families, and in 88% of the families where the child abuse was
specifically physical abuse. To make it worse, in 1/3 of these families, the
children were participating in the animal cruelty, following the example of the
parents [14].
The chart above demonstrates the
never-ending cycle of abuse. Abused boys and girls are 7 to 9 times more likely
to become animal abusers themselves and are statistically likely to abuse their
own children in the future.
The connection between child and animal
abuse is so strong that the FBI officially considers animal cruelty by a child
as a likely indicator of ongoing domestic violence to the child and/or the
spouse. In 1987, cruelty to animals was outlined as a separate of category of Conduct
Disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders by the
American Psychiatric Association. It is a symptom of a disturbed family and a
child at risk of a future life of crime. Ironically, it is the family pet,
demonstrating loyalty and unconditional love, that could save the children from
that antisocial future.
Just as child abuse wasn』t recognized until the
1960s, the abuse of women wasn』t recognized until the 1970s [16]. Until then:
? Spousal abuse was not investigated
? The medical profession treating injured women
would not report the incident to law enforcement
? Police would not arrest women batterers (「a man』s
home is his castle」)
? Prosecutors and judges would not take woman
battering seriously (which continues to this day to some degree)
如同上世紀60年代人們才認同兒童虐待，70年代才認同婦女虐待。在此之前：
l 配偶虐待不會接受調查
l 治療受虐婦女的醫生不會將事件申報給執法機構
l 警察不會逮捕打女人的男人（「家是男人的城堡」）
l 檢察官和法官也不會認真理會被虐婦女（某種意義上說直至今天已是如此）
In 1975, Dr. Lenore Walker began publishing the
1st of 13 books on battered women, and eventually became known as the Mother of
the Battered Woman Syndrome. By focusing attention on the issue, she was able
to spark a revolution much like Kempe』s over child abuse.
According to the National Family Violence Survey
for 1990, there were 11.6 million victims of violent acts by a partner and 3.4 million
cases of severe violence. 31% of female homicides in 1993 were attributed to
intimate partners. Only 6.7% of assaults by an intimate partner are reported
[18]. Also, as many as 710,000 women are stalked every year by a present or
former intimate partner, a crime which terrorizes the victim [19].
The link between domestic violence and animal
abuse is as strong as it is with child abuse. For women seeking shelter in safe
houses, 71% reported that their partner had threatened, abused, or killed their
pet [20-21]. Nationally, 70 to 83% of battered women reported that their
partner had abused or killed the family pet [20].
More than 50% of battered women stay in abusive
situations out of fear for their pets. Batterers nearly always threaten, harm,
or kill pets as a fear-based control of the woman.
Animal cruelty is 11x more likely in domestic violence households than non-DV households. Therefore, animal cruelty is a strong indicator of ongoing domestic violence, both women and children.
Child abuse, spouse abuse, and animal abuse are interlinked.
兒童虐待，配偶虐待和動物虐待密切相關。
Existence of any one of them can be a strong indicator of the others.
任何一種虐待都是可能存在其他虐待的重要參考指標。
Batterers are overwhelmingly likely to have been abused themselves as children. The cycle repeats endlessly unless there is intervention.
施暴者很大可能在童年受過虐待。如果沒有干預中斷，這種循環會不斷傳遞
A majority of violent individuals generally share
a common history of brutal parental treatment and cruelty to animals. 44% of
women in shelters reported being forced to participate in illegal acts upon
threats to their pets. Threatening the pet is an act of psychological terror to
the woman. Only in recent years have DV professionals recognized that by not
allowing the woman』s pets along with them into safety, they were turning away
many potential victims seeking shelter [22-23].
There is much less information available about
elder abuse than the other forms of domestic violence, but what there is
continues the trend seen with child and woman abuse. About 1 in 20 elders is abused
in some way, amounting to between 1 and 2 million annually. Like child sexual
abuse, elder abuse wasn』t recognized as a significant problem until the 1980s
[16].
A wealth of information about violent individuals
and their early lives is available from the perpetrators or their victims
themselves. Sources of information include:
State Prisons. Federal Prisons.
Psychiatric Hospitals and Psychiatric Clinics.
Battered Women』s Shelters. Abused Child Clinics.
Social Services; Domestic Violence Organizations.
Interviews with Murderers, especially Serial
Killers.
Studies of Satanic Groups and Cults.
(See Lockwood and Ascione [7])
關於暴力犯罪人和他們早期生活的大量信息，來自於實施人自己和受害人。這些信息包括：
州監獄。聯邦監獄。
精神病醫院和心理診所。
受虐婦女庇護所。受虐兒童診所。
社會服務;家庭暴力救助機構。
殺人犯採訪，尤其是連環殺手。
撒旦組和邪教的研究。
（見洛克伍德和阿希奧尼[7]）
It』s clear that a large portion of violent
criminals began their careers with animal cruelty. In fact, one study showed
that 75% of prison inmates charged with violent crimes had an early record of
animal cruelty, arson, and enuresis [7, pg 80]. It』s also clear that a large majority
suffered domestic violence in their youth: physical abuse, sexual abuse,
neglect, or combinations of these. What is crucial is the treatment, good or
bad, that very young children undergo before the age of three [8]. Domestic
violence is the breeding ground for future violent and non-violent crimes.
The same correlation of violent
individuals and animal cruelty is seen around the world, literally in every
country. A few examples:
Canada - 70% began with animal cruelty
South Africa - 63% began with animal
cruelty
Australia - 95% for combined murder,
rape, assault, theft, and drugs.
South Pacific - 62% for assaults, 90% for violence, property, and drug crimes, 100% for sexual homicides.
United States - 63% for violent crimes
overall, 70% for combined violence, theft, drugs, and
disorderly conduct.
Statistics on the link between animal
abuse and the crimes of 1st and 2nd degree homicide and manslaughter
are much harder to find than statistics on serial killers, but since the
overall correlation with all violence is close to 70%, it seems likely that a
close link
According to the FBI, there are at least 33,000
violent street gangs, motorcycle gangs, and prison gangs with 1.4 million
members. Animal abuse is a strong indicator of elder abuse in homes with elder
citizens. The reverse is also true: elder abuse is a strong predictor of animal
abuse. Elders often remain silent in spite of personal abuse for fear of retaliation
against their pet, often their only friend and companion. Gangs are responsible
for a majority of violent crimes in many jurisdictions.
Cruelty: attending and sponsoring animal fighting
has become closely associated with gangs. Such fights, like all dog fighting, can
be associated with drugs, gambling, weapons, and murder. Fights are also a
desensitization training ground for children, teaching them violence and
cruelty and a lack of compassion at a very impressionable age. In Chicago, 20%
of 2nd to 8th grade children reported attending a dog fight [24].
Serial killers are the monsters in our
midst. While 20,000+ homicides are committed every year, most have motives and
clues which leads to their investigation and
possible solution.
Serial killers have no motive other
than the pleasure of the terror and torture they inflict and the pleasure of
the eventual kill. They almost never know the victim beforehand and may kill
over months or decades. Estimates are that 1 in 5 homicides may be due to serial killers, and the FBI
estimates there are at least 30-50 and possibly up to 500 operating at any one
time [25].
While not all serial killers started
out with animal abuse, a large majority did, just as a large majority were
abused or neglected as young children. In fact, it』s unusual to find a serial
killer who didn』t start out life with these patterns, though the early life of many
of them hasn』t been explored in such detail. Animal cruelty as a trait is often
ignored by official law enforcement, even though some form of animal abuse is
now a felony in all 50 states and animal cruelty has been elevated to a major
category in the FBI』s Uniform Crime Report [27].
The United States, with 5% of the
world』s population, produces 75% of the world』s serial killers [25]. As already
mentioned, the FBI estimates there may be 500 serial killers at large. Law
enforcement (society) spends hundreds of millions of dollars trying to
apprehend them and almost nothing on prevention.
Childhood abuse and
animal cruelty are major identifying factors of serial killers.
兒童虐待和動物虐待是確認連環殺手的主要參考。
If police, prosecutors, judges,
social services, teachers, child welfare, and guidance counselors paid
attention to the predictive factors, many lives could be saved and many killers
/ rapists stopped before they start.
Summarizing the Evidence: There』s a strong correlation
between animal cruelty and:
Juvenile Violence Violence in Schools
Child Abusers Domestic Violence
Rapists Pedophiles
Aggravated Assault Bullies
Gang Violence Elder Abuse
Sexual Murderers Serial
Killers
Violent Psychiatric Patients
證據總結：虐待動物和下列行為就有很強的相關性：
青少年暴力 校園暴力
虐待兒童 家庭暴力
強姦 戀童癖
嚴重襲擊 欺凌
黑幫暴力 虐待老人 強姦殺人 連環殺手 暴力精神病
Nearly all violent
individuals were abused as children.
幾乎所有暴力行為人都有兒童時被虐待經歷
Multiple studies have shown that the biggest
factors in continuing the never-ending cycle of violence in society are: domestic
violence including child abuse, poverty, and absent fathers. Of these, the one
with the greatest impact is child abuse, and animal cruelty accompanies it
every step of the way.
「Child abuse,
spouse abuse, and animal abuse are three fields which are linked; existence of
one can be a strong indicator of the others…. Many violent criminals share a
common history of brutal parental treatment and cruelty to animals」 [20]. We
saw earlier the statistic that 88% of families in one study in which physical
abuse was going on had animal abuse as well [14]; other studies put the number
as at least 60-75%. Children who witness domestic violence and /or animal abuse
are at risk of becoming violent and abusers themselves. 「Cruelty to animals
allows children to become desensitized to heartless violence or to learn to
enjoy the administration of pain and suffering」 [28].
It would be impossible to overemphasize this
point: child abuse is the single biggest reason that violence continues year
after year, decade after decade, and animal abuse goes hand in hand with it.
Every 5 hours a child is killed by abuse or neglect, and 80% of them are under the
age of 4 [8]. In Ghosts From The Nursery, the authors point out that during
gestation and the first 3 years of life, the brain is undergoing dramatic
growth and transformation. Abuse of babies and toddlers alters their brain
chemistry, and it can create irreparable emotional damage. 「Prenatal
development and the first 2-3 years of life are the times when the genetic,
organic, and neurochemical foundations for impulse control are being created.
It is also the time when the capacities for rational thinking and sensitivity
to other people are being rooted–or not–in the child』s personality」 [8, pg 66].
Portions of the brain such as the prefrontal cortex connected to empathy and compassion
are stunted in development by early child abuse.
And all this before they learn to talk.
有一點無論怎麼強調都不為過：兒童虐待是暴力年年不斷代代相傳的的最大單一原因。而動物虐待也通過它代代相傳。每5個小時就有一名兒童因虐待或漠視而死，其中80%的兒童不到4歲。在Ghosts From The Nursery一書中，作者指出，在母體和最初的3年，人的大腦會迅速成長和蛻變。虐待嬰幼兒會改變他們的大腦化學結構，並造成無法挽回的情感創傷。」產前和最初2-3年是控制衝動的基因，器官以及神經化學基礎的建立時期，同時也是理性思維和對待他人的感性情感在兒童個性中根植或無法根植的時期。大腦的某些部分，如連接到同情和憐憫的前額葉皮層，因早期虐待兒童導致發育不良。
而這一切，都是在他們學會說話之前發生的。
「What happens to turn children into vicious
killers? How can a child grow into an adult who enjoys torture and killing? It
is the brain that mediates this metamorphosis from baby to killer, and it is
the environment that shapes the entire process」 [8, pg 165]. By the age of 5,
the game is all over – the seeds of future violence have already been planted.
It is society』s good fortune that not all abused children become violent
criminals, but many of them do. The fraction of nonabused children who become
violent adults is far smaller.
Programs which intervene at an early stage, which
teach good parenting practices, which give help to overwhelmed new parents with
advice and support, which ensure good care and nurturing to babies and
toddlers, have a good chance of preventing this paradigm, but as the Ghosts..
authors point out, programs aimed at prevention are chronically underfunded and
don』t last long. Like it or not, society would rather incarcerate offending
individuals and in effect perpetuate the violence phenomenon than prevent it
from happening in the first place. 「Garnering the committed political support necessary
to turn the tide for even one generation of our children continues to elude us」
[8, pg 285].
Taking animal cruelty seriously can prevent
future assaults, rapes, murders, and spouse, child, and elder abuse.
預防
嚴肅對待處理動物虐待可預防未來的襲擊，強姦，謀殺以及對配偶，兒童和老人的虐待。
INTERVENTION.
Juveniles, adolescents, and adults who are
abusing animals are on a path toward human violence. Identifying them early can
save many human lives and much suffering.
Animal cruelty is an identifier of those who may
have committed violent crimes. On average, as much as 70% of those guilty of
violence have been involved in animal abuse.
