What Is Animal Abuse

Animal Abuse; Unleashing the Laws “You can judge a man’s true character by the way he treats his fellow animals.” The aforementioned quote by Sir Paul McCartney has the ability to strongly express the feelings many have towards animal abuse and neglect. The meaning behind this quote is saying that if a person is abusive to animals, others should realize that the abuser does not have a kind character. On the other hand, it also is praising the ones that treat animals with compassion, who are more likely to have a generous character. Animal abuse is something that not only has caused opinions to be formed about the topic, but is something that has an immense amount of facts to prove how serious the issue truly is. Despite all the opinions that

There are many animal owners that believe abusing it is the only way to control and train it (Nine Reasons for Animal Abuse). This not only includes animals that are pets, it includes the ones that are in the performing business (Nine Reasons for Animal Abuse). Trainers that do not properly know how to get the animal to act as they want may result in using physical harm to initiate fear, and this will “teach” the animal to do as it is told, so it does not have to risk being abused all over again. As another reason as to why a person may not think of animal cruelty as something serious is due to what the philosopher Raymond G. Frey of Bowling Green State University had to say on the issue. His argument is based around his belief that because animals are not human, they do not have moral rights (The Animal Rights Debate). He also goes on to say that their lives do not have the same moral values as the lives of humans due to another belief that he possesses, which is thinking an animal does not undergo the same emotional and intellectual experiences as a human would (The Animal Rights Debate). While there are some that do not believe that animal cruelty is a serious issue because they have placed their trust in what Raymond G. Fray has said, there are others that simply think animals are a lower form of life (Missimer). These people conclude that

When an animal is beaten, it not only causes the animal to be physically harmed, but it can also result in the animal receiving severe psychological damage. The abuse can cause the animal to become afraid of all humans, whether they are abusive or not. Not only can the victim become afraid of humans, it can cause it to even be hostile towards people and other animals. For example, if a dog’s previous owner was abusive, that can end in the dog being aggressive towards others due to its fear of being hurt like he/she was in the past. A tremendous part of animal cruelty that people do not recognize is the abuse of animals is linked to the abuse of humans in many cases. Animal neglect correlates with human neglect, which usually involves a child, elder, or other dependent (Animal Legal Defense Fund). In a survey, seventy-one percent of domestic violence victims said that their abuser also turned their household pet into a victim of abuse (Animal Cruelty Facts and Statistics). In a study completed in 1983, eighty-eight percent of families under investigation for child abuse partook in animal abuse along with the abuse of their child (Animal Cruelty Facts and Statistics). Not only does this cruelty affect the victims, but it can also affect the ones witnessing the violence. When someone is in the presence of violence of an animal or another person, it can affect the