Cause And Effect Of Animal Abuse

Abuse. An animal is physically kicked out of someone’s way. Neglect. An animal waits for food and water that will never come. Fear. An animal doesn’t understand why this is happening and is afraid it will happen again. Animal cruelty is a common occurrence that continues to be a problem in the United States. The perpetrators should clearly be punished for their crimes; however, the threat could be lessened further if these criminals received mental health counseling along with their sentence. Although locking abusers up and forcing them to pay a hefty fine is a good way to punish them, it doesn’t actually solve the problem. They can simply pay the fine, do the time, and go right back to their old habits of abusing animals. The mental stability …show more content…
It can range from brutal killings to simply forgetting to feed your pets. However, “cruelty is cruelty and cannot be disguised” (Solutions). Whether someone intentionally harms, injures, or neglects an animal, some form of abuse is taking place. Not only does animal cruelty cover a wide range of abuse, but animal cruelty happens to a variety of species. The chart below shows the percentage of abuse in 2007 for cats, dogs, and other animals. The “other” category covers all other animals kept in captivity. Cows, pigs, and other domestic animals are at the biggest risk behind cats and dogs. Farmers are often reported for mistreating their cattle and livestock. For example, “[i]n 2007, there were 20 reported neglect cases involving cows and eight involving pigs (“Animal Cruelty Facts and Statistics : The Humane Society of the United States”). Although the neglect cases have gone down since 2005, that is an unreasonably high number of cases. The high rates of abuse cause about “7.6 million companion animals [to] enter animal shelters nationwide every year. Of those, approximately 3.9 million are dogs and 3.4 million are cats” (“Misc.”). So many animals go into shelters, but only about 35% of these animals come out of the shelter each year. About 35% of the dogs brought into the shelters are returned to loving homes, and only about 38% of cats find new homes …show more content…
Cases are inspected by SPCA, local humane societies, or animal control agencies. In some areas, especially those that do not have these programs, the police may investigate the cases as well (“Facts About Animal Abuse & Domestic Violence”). If the investigation shows sufficient evidence to warrant prosecution, the police department or the humane societies will file the charges with the local district or state attorney. However, “only the most serious cases generate sufficient sympathy and evidence to warrant prosecution, and gaining convictions may be very difficult” (“Facts About Animal Abuse & Domestic Violence”). This means that only the more severe cases will result in the punishment of the perpetrator instead of all forms of abuse being evaluated and