Domestic violence and companion animals in the context of LGBT people’s relationships

Abstract

The link between domestic violence and animal abuse has now been well established, indicating that where there is one form of abuse, there is often the other. Research on this link, however, has almost exclusively focused on heterosexual cisgender people’s relationships. Lacking, then, is an exploration of the possibly unique links between domestic violence and animal abuse in the context of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) people’s relationships. In this article we adopt a feminist intersectional approach informed by Critical Animal Studies to advocate for a non-pathologising approach to understanding LGBT people’s relationships with regard to the link between domestic violence and animal abuse.

People of Diverse Genders and/or Sexualities and Their Animal Companions: Experiences of Family Violence in a Binational Sample

“…The little research that does exist investigating relationships with animal companions among people of diverse genders and/or sexualities supports the findings of research conducted with heterosexual cisgender communities, namely, that animals offer a source of nonjudgmental support and love and may improve human mental health (see, e.g., Kailey, 2010;O'Haire, 2013;Putney, 2013Putney, , 2014Taylor, Fraser, & Riggs, 2017). In the current study, support is conceptualized broadly as outlined by Collis and McNicholas (1998) drawing on the work of Cobb (1976), to be relationships leading to "one or more of three outcomes: feelings of being cared for; the belief that one is loved, esteemed and valued; and the sense of belonging to a reciprocal network" (Collis & McNicholas, 1998, pp.…”

Locked Down with the Perpetrator: The Hidden Impacts of COVID-19 on Domestic and Family Violence in Australia

“…Domestic violence is a gendered issue with women being disproportionately over-represented as victims/survivors, and men overwhelmingly represented as perpetrators (Mlanbo-Ngcuka, 2020;WHO 2021). This is not to deny that women can be perpetrators, that men can be victims, or that domestic violence occurs in same-sex relationships (e.g., see Taylor, Fraser and Riggs 2017).…”