The Link Versus the Mesh

The association between animal abuse and interpersonal violence is commonly referred to as “The Link.” Animal cruelty may precede, coincide with, or follow a broad range of antisocial behaviors, including domestic violence and elder and child abuse. Rather than the graduation or escalation hypothesis which proposes that animal cruelty precedes subsequent acts of human violence, a more accurate description of animal abuse may be one of generalized deviance. Although animal abuse and interpersonal violence are correlated with one another, it varies as to which is seen first in a setting where both are encountered.

Multiple forms of social deviance are potentially interrelated, at various ages; childhood animal abuse may relate to adult offending without those two variables being connected in a unique or distinctive way that can be identified with certainty in any given situation. Therefore, the nature of the relationship of animal cruelty and interpersonal violent offending is “general rather than specific” (Walters, 2014). It can be agreed that a “general mesh” of antisocial violence exists and is expressed in individual offenders to varying degrees (Levitt, 2016).

Animal Abuse and Its Relationship to Serial and Mass Murders

Sadistic serial killers appear to commit animal abuse commonly, at a rate approaching 90%, if all kinds of animal abuse, not just the sadistic hands-on variety, are considered (Levin, Arluke 2009). Perpetrators of mass shootings frequently have both domestic violence and animal abuse in their histories.

In school shootings, 43% of the perpetrators commit animal cruelty before massacres, and the cruelty is usually directed against anthropomorphized species (dogs and cats) in an up-close manner (Arluke & Madafis, 2014). In 1997, Luke Woodham, a sophomore at Pearl High School, in a suburb of Jackson, Michigan, opened fire on classmates with a hunting rifle, killing two girls and wounding seven other students. He also stabbed and bludgeoned his mother to death earlier that morning. Investigators later found Woodham’s description of torture and killing of the family dog “Sparkle” with an accomplice in his journal. He wrote about beating her inside a plastic bag and setting it on fire. He referred to this incident as his “first kill”; he wrote "I will never forget the howl she made. It sounded almost human. We laughed and hit her hard" (Sack, 1997).

In 1998, 15-year-old Kip Kinkel shot his parents to death before emptying three firearms at his classmates in Thurston High School, Springfield, Oregon, leaving 1 dead and 26 injured. His attacks on animals also illustrated the up close and personal variety of animal abuse; he allegedly decapitated cats, dissected live squirrels, blew up cows, set a live cat on fire, and put firecrackers in gophers and cats (Tallichet & Hensley, 2004). Albert DeSalvo (the “Boston strangler"), David Berkowitz (the "Son of Sam”), and Jeffrey Dahmer all reported animal torture as their first act of violence.

The desire to exercise power and control over the lives of others seems to be shared by sadistic serial killers and school shooters; both decide who lives and who dies. In so doing, they get to be the ones who regulate the degree of pain and suffering experienced by their victims. Some cases of animal cruelty and human-oriented violence are similarly motivated: compensating for the perpetrator’s feelings of powerlessness and vulnerability, imparting a sense of strength and superiority (Kellert & Felthouse, 1985).

Animal Abuse and Its Relationship to Domestic Violence

The connection between violence to people and animals is not only found in extreme examples. Everyday domestic violence is also associated with violence to animals. Threats to pets, or their actual harm, are commonly used to control domestic violence victims (Walker, 1984). In one study of women in a domestic violence shelter, 71% of pet-owning women reported their partners had threatened to kill or actually killed their pets (Ascione, 1998).

Youth participation in animal cruelty is a significant marker for the development of aggressive behavior (Merz-Perez). Among juveniles who were referred to an arson intervention group, those who were cruel to animals were more likely to repeat fire setting (Slavkin, 2001).

Animal Abuse as a Marker of Antisocial Behavior

The association between crimes of violence against people and animals provides an avenue to identifying violent actors in our communities. Abusers exercising power and control over any vulnerable being through violence and intimidation are flagging themselves as threats. Violence is not limited to crimes against people, and it does not have any single socioeconomic niche. Animal abuse laws exist in every jurisdiction, and suspected violations of these laws deserve investigation in and of their own right.

When a person dies in questioned circumstances, their body will be thoroughly examined by a medical examiner whose services are supplied by the state or other governmental office. When it comes to investigating the death or harm to animals in questioned circumstances, there is no equivalent office to turn to for investigative support. Veterinarians contributing to the investigation of allegations of animal cruelty are helping to protect both animal welfare and human safety. Indeed, animal care professionals, animal control officers, and humane law enforcement officers all have roles to play in the prevention, identification, and treatment of interpersonal violence.

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