Web resource:	http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/animalwelfare/20070129sherley.pdf
Type:	Journal Article
Title:	Why doctors should care about animal cruelty
Other Titles:	Australian family physician
Authors:	Sherley, Miranda
Keywords:	Animal abuse;Perpetrators;Health;Screening;Drug and alcohol misuse
Year:	2007
Publisher:	Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
Citation:	36 (1/2), January/February 2007
Notes:	General Overview: This Australian article examines the links between animal cruelty and other abusive behaviour, such as domestic violence and child abuse. It calls on medical practitioners to respond responsibly to this issue by taking reports of cruelty to animals seriously. Objective: The article set out to increase awareness of the medical profession about the links between animal cruelty and other forms of violence, and issues this may raise for medical practitioners. Discussion: The article defines cruelty to animals and explains some of the causes of this behaviour. It details statistics linking cruelty to animals to various abusive behaviour and crimes. It discusses abuser personality traits, such as low empathy and callous disregard. The article argues that cruelty to animals serves as a criterion for a diagnosis of conduct disorder and antisocial and personality disorder, antisocial personality traits and poly-substance abuse. Perpetrators of crimes such as adult and juvenile sex offenders, high school shootings, property offences, drug offences and public disorder offences all display higher levels of cruelty to animals than other individuals. Women who are abused by their partners report much higher levels of cruelty against their pets, including actual harm to and killing of them. The author argues that the existence of cruelty to animals is an indicator of mental health problems, domestic violence and antisocial behaviour and looks at the obligations of medical practitioners to pay attention to incidences they become aware of. Conclusion: The article concludes that the outstanding reasons for paying attention to cruelty to animals include that it may be a marker of poor mental health and of the existence of domestic violence and other abuse
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/12264
ISSN:	0300-8495
Appears in Collections:	Journal Articles

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