Domestic abuse law to protect pets
Dogs eating raw meat is bad for your health
THREATENING or harming a pet to intimidate victims of domestic abuse is to be outlawed.
The form of control is included in the guidance for the new Domestic Abuse Bill, a move that has been welcomed by charities.
There is a strong link between animal abuse and domestic abuse, with perpetrators often threatening or inflicting harm on a pet to coerce their partners.
The Dog’s Trust found 95 per cent of domestic abuse professionals said they are aware of cases where survivors will not leave their home without knowing their pet would be safe.
The charity’s Amy Hyde, said: “Pets are often used as a tool by perpetrators as a means to coerce and control their partners in cases of domestic abuse.
“We know the devastating impact this can have on survivors of abuse, as well as on the welfare of dogs. The fear that the perpetrator may harm their pet is a huge barrier to people escaping.
“We are delighted that behaviour towards pets has been recognised within domestic abuse.”
The Dog’s Trust, which submitted evidence during the development of the bill – passed earlier this month and
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Women’s Aid has also welcomed the move. Spokeswoman Ruth Mason said: “It is incredibly common for perpetrators to use children and pets to manipulate attachments survivors have to both. Perpetrators spin that web of control around their partner, they attack what they care about most.”
Gemma, who only wants to be known by her first name, suffered abuse at the hands of her husband for three years, and found help for her dog Dusty through The Freedom Project.
She said: “I feared for my life. On one occasion he threw me through a glass door. He tried to drown me in the bath and I was punched repeatedly.
“Dusty also suffered. He was choked, hit with planks of wood and shot with BB guns. Losing Dusty would have destroyed me. He’s the one who I broke down to and the one who laid beside me every time I cried.”
PET owners are putting their health at risk by feeding raw meat to their dogs, according to a TV investigation.
Raw food can carry bacteria and superbugs, leading pet owners to become infected.
An E.coli outbreak in 2017 left one person dead after exposure to raw pet food, which was passed from the dogs to their owners.
The findings come in the BBC One show Food:truth Or Scare, hosted by Gloria Hunniford and Chris Bavin, pictured.
Daniella Dos Santos, president of theveterinary Association, tells the show: “Meat does carry lots of different types of bacteria
– E. coli, salmonella, listeria – that can cause health problems to the dogs and people as well. There is significant evidence there.”
She said that feeding such a diet to dogs is a “risk that isn’t worth taking”.
● Food: Truth Or Scare, BBC One, Monday, 10am
‘Dusty the dog also sufffered’