Pet abuse registry may also protect children
May-25-2011

A New York county is launching a registry for animal abusers which could also help to identify potential violence against women and children.
The registry in Suffolk County, which will go live next week, is modeled after the sex offender registry to protect children.
It is the result of growing awareness that brutality against an animal is an indicator of possible family abuse, according to experts and studies.
"Animal abuse is not only the tip of the iceberg of family violence, but it's often the first warning sign and the one a neighbor is most likely to call in," said Phil Arkow, of the National Link Coalition, which educates people about the link between animal and human abuse.
"People assume the kids and the spouse can pick up the phone on their own, but they feel sorry for the animal because it's a silent victim," he said.
Nineteen U.S. states allow family pets to get restraining orders. Four states have also included animal cruelty under the criminal definition of domestic abuse.
The progression from animal to human abuse, known among experts as "the link," is changing the way laws are being written and enforced.
As many as 71 percent of battered women say their pets have been killed, harmed or threatened by their abusers, Arkow said.

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