Last week the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) held a conference to discuss evidence of links between animal cruelty and child abuse.
American research suggests that animal abuse, perpetrated or witnessed by children, can evolve into a desensitisation to violence and acts of violence in adulthood, and that it can also be a predictor or indication of domestic violence or child abuse.
Although there has not been much research into the subject in Britain, compared to the United States, the RSPCA said a report published 20 years ago suggested a link between child abuse and the abuse of animals, noting that 82 per cent of 23 families it investigated for animal abuse or neglect were also known to local social services as having children on their 'at risk' registers.
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