Woman are delaying leaving violent relationships for fear their pets and other animals will be killed or tortured.

Evidence from a 2011 survey shows one in three women reported delaying leaving a violent relationship because they feared their partner would kill or torture their pets.

Of these, one quarter say their children also witnessed the violence against animals.

The research also showed that 50 per cent of women interviewed had witnessed animal cruelty as part of their experience of domestic violence.
Of the 203 women surveyed, more than half reported that animal cruelty was part of their experience of family violence as, either a family member or their partner had threatened to kill one of their pets, animals and/or farm animals.

One third of the respondents also reported actual injury of death of the animal.

As a result 28 per cent of women reported they would have left their abusive relationship earlier if they had not had a pet or animal.

The length of time they stayed ranged from one week to 22 years with an average of two years.
‘Pets as Pawns' research was commissioned by the Royal New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in partnership with Women's Refuge.

RNZSPCA National Chief Executive Robyn Kippenberger says the research shows a strong link between animal cruelty and domestic and family violence in New Zealand.

'This research shows the urgent need for RNZSPCA and Women's Refuge to work together to find solutions to make families safer by enabling them to leave violent situations with their animals.
'In the past we have had an informal arrangement between some of our regional SPCA's and Women's Refuges, and the feedback we were getting from these collaborations led us to commission this research.

'The research has confirmed the need for Women's Refuge and the SPCA to work closely together to protect the women and animals who are suffering as a result of domestic violence.”
The study also found that SPCA staff and police needed to better understand the link between animal cruelty and domestic violence.

Likewise, refuge workers needed more support when women with animals needed to leave violent relationships.
The research also uncovered that 159 research participants with children, a quarter reported their children witnessed someone in their family injure or kill a pet or animal.
'Disturbingly, many of the women reported that partners who had warnings or convictions around physical violence, would deliberately threaten or hurt pets as a way of controlling their family and make it easier to avoid reconviction,” says Heather Henare, chief executive of Women's Refuge.
'In this way, pets and other animals become part of an arsenal of tricks abusers use to instil fear and control over their family. Some men will threaten to kill family pets if the women leaves, and in some cases women and children have witnessed extreme torture of pets or animals as part of the horror of domestic violence.”