Specialist will link animal abuse to other violent acts

By JONEL ALECCIA
Mail Tribune

Colleen Macuk still shudders at the thought of the third-grader who liked to hurt cats.

In class, the local boy boasted about how he enjoyed mutilating neighborhood pets, said Macuk, director of Jackson County Animal Care and Control.

"He talked about pulling their hair, pulling their whiskers, kicking them, stomping them," Macuk recalls. "Basically, a very cold and uncaring response to how he hurt these animals."

That was a red flag to Macuk, who heard about the incident from a worried parent of the boy's classmate.

"The teacher thought it was just boy talk, but we took it seriously," says Macuk, who called in state social workers. "It turns out the child had been regularly neglected and abused."

That story illustrates what local animal care and social service workers say they've known intuitively for some time: There's a strong association between animal abuse, child abuse and spousal abuse.

But with the Friday visit of a national expert on animal abuse, local providers say they expect to glean statistics to bolster their anecdotal evidence as well as specific suggestions for raising awareness and improving treatment.

Frank Ascione, a Utah psychology professor, will speak to more than 150 area professionals, parents and others interested in his research into the connections between animal abuse and youth violence and domestic violence. He is set to lead a seven-hour seminar from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Smullin Center at Rogue Valley Medical Center, 2825 E. Barnett Road, Medford.

"It sounds like a lot of information tying animal abuse and animal cruelty to the serial killer mentality," says Teresa O'Grady, who plans to attend as a representative of the county Juvenile Services department. "We've always known there's been a link, but now he's got the data."

Data is vital to understanding and appreciating the scope of the problem, says Ascione, reached by phone at his Utah State University office.

"It's very similar to where we were with child abuse four decades ago," Ascione says.

Back then, doctors and other professionals knew some kids were neglected and abused, but they believed the incidents were isolated. Mandatory reporting laws revealed a problem much more common than anyone knew.

It's likely the same with animal abuse, which should be studied not only because of the effects on the animals, but because of what the abuse signals about human behavior, Ascione says.

"Animal abuse is associated with interpersonal violence," he says. "People with tendencies toward violence have animal abuse in their backgrounds."

In fact, Ascione's research indicates that between a quarter and two-thirds of violent adult offenders have pasts involving animal abuse.

The abuse can range from the husband who controls his wife by threatening to hurt her dog to the teenager who acts out her own abuse by hurting the family cat. A quarter of women victims of domestic violence in one study indicated they didn't seek help because they were afraid for the safety of their pets, according to Ascione.

Local professionals such as Ken Chapman, who runs Jackson County's juvenile sex offender program, welcome attention on the problem. Chapman estimates 10 to 15 percent of the offenders he sees exhibit some degree of animal abuse, ranging from sexual acts to cruelty.

"We always consider that extremely serious," he says. "When they can go out of their way to cause pain, it's another indication of lack of boundaries and lack of empathy. Those unable or unwilling to show empathy are our most serious offenders."

Of the 322 reports of animal neglect and cruelty in the county last year, about seven or eight were committed by juveniles, estimates Macuk, whose staff are trained to recognize child abuse as well as animal abuse.

By the time local providers leave the seminar, they should be well-versed in statistics about the incidence of animal abuse and the common motivations for kids who commit the acts.

Those range from simple curiosity to coercion, imitation and "practicing" on animals before engaging in violence against people, according to Ascione.

Providers also will learn to evaluate treatment approaches and programs, he says.

"It's not a panacea," Ascione adds. "We're not going to solve the problem of youth violence by focusing on animal abuse, but it's a problem we have ignored for too long a time."

That view is echoed by Macuk, who is haunted by another classroom revelation. She brought her own dog, Gus, a formerly abused pooch rescued from the shelter, to teach the kids kindness.

"I get goose pimples when I think about it," Macuk says. "I was in this second-grade class in Central Point, and a little boy stood up and said, 'I know how Gus feels because my dad kicks me, too.'"

For information about Ascione's visit, call Debra Swanson at 772-3300.

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