October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and this year, the topic is particularly pertinent in Centre County, where two men have been convicted of killing their spouses.
This year, awareness outreach is taking on a new angle, which focuses on how this type of violence can often start with pets.
Pets may not be something you immediately think of when talking about domestic violence, but experts said it’s happening in our community and can be a sign of spouse or child abuse.
“To abuse a pet sends a very strong message that you are next,” Anne Ard, Executive Director of the Centre County Women’s Resource Center, said.
The Women’s Resource Center is partnering with Centre County PAWS and Pets Come First to help educate the public about the signs of domestic abuse.
“Seventy-one percent of pet owners who have experienced domestic violence have also had their pets abused,” Ard said. “We see it all the time with people who are hesitant to come into shelter because they’re not sure what they’re going to do with their pets and they’re terrified to leave their pets alone with the abuser or people who are only ready to leave when they have found a safe alternative for their pets.”
It’s a sad reality in this community and it’s one Christine Faust said is particularly difficult for animals.
“They’re scared, they’ve lost their owner, they’ve lost their home, they’ve lost both owners,” Faust, Director of Development for PAWS, said. “We have had animals, so far dogs only, surrendered to PAWS who have come to us as a result of their owners having to go to safe spots. We’ve had two in the last couple of weeks.”
Faust does not believe the dogs surrendered to PAWS have been abused in any way, but Ard said unfortunately, that’s not always the case.
“Vets or people who kennel animals may be seeing some incidents of pet abuse that could be alerting them, they could be red flags that may indicate there could be something else wrong in that family, in that home,” Ard said.
The Women’s Resource Center does have a special fund dedicated to helping victims find their pets a safe place to stay so they can leave a dangerous situation.
The center will host an event on Thursday at noon at the Centre County Courthouse to kick off this month’s domestic violence awareness campaign.