DV家庭のなかで起きている動物虐待 : インタビュー調査からの事例

In recent years, since animal abuse and domestic violence (DV) occur simultaneously in the U.S., shelters that allow pets have been increasing in number. In Australia, an ongoing study of veterinarians, revealed that 92.8% of veterinarians have examined animals after being aware that they were abused. In Japan, since studies have not shown a relationship between domestic violence and animal abuse, Survey 1 conducted interviews with domestic violence victims who had pets. Subsequently, eight respondents who had experienced both animal abuse and domestic violence revealed specific details of violence against animals, their children, and their spouses. Stories of intentionally throwing puppies and cats, which were adored by their children, out of windows and onto the floor, as well as stories of pet abuse and threats, were revealed in the interviews. In addition, two of the eight respondents were linked to veterinarian visits. However, both indicated that they were unable to tell the truth about the pet abuse in front of the veterinarian. In Study 2, DV shelter operators were interviewed at seven facilities to determine whether any of the victims fled with their pets. The results revealed that one facility made it clear that, from 2020, pets are allowed. The other shelters often lost contact with the victims after they were informed that they were not allowed to bring their pets, and it became clear that they were often concerned about what would happen to these victims of domestic violence. Therefore, it was considered that it would be a good idea for domestic violence shelters to provide information on where to leave pets (veterinary clinics and pet foster homes) and to offer consultation services.