Have you got a safety plan? Does your safety plan include your pets? Often, pets are a forgotten part of a domestic violence safety plan.
If you don’t have a domestic violence pet safety plan in place, you should.
Pet abuse is one of four significant factors associated with domestic violence.
First, let me introduce myself. My name is Val Pena. I work at the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) with the Safe Havens for Pets program. I am grateful that Gina Hamilton asked me to write about what we do. I’m inspired by survivors turned domestic violence advocates like Gina, who work tirelessly to provide resources for individuals and pets experiencing abuse.
Most people, like myself, consider their pets as members of the family. For survivors and their families, pets play a vital role. Pets help with healing and provide comfort.
Experts estimate that 48% – 71% of survivors have pets who also have been abused or killed.
Many survivors delay getting help from an abusive situation for fear of what will happen to their pets if they leave. Abusers often use the special bond the victims have with their pets to enforce even more abuse. Thus, it is crucial to ensure there are resources for domestic violence victims with pets to seek safety.
Part of having a pet safety plan is knowing where your pets will be when you are ready to escape. For that reason, the Safe Havens for Pets searchable online directory (www.safehavensforpets.org) was established by the Animal Welfare Institute in 2011.
We created the directory to help more people find domestic violence facilities with pet resources.
Safe havens are sheltering services that assist individuals experiencing domestic violence by placing their companion animals out of harm’s way so that they may seek safety for themselves as well as their animals.
Before AWI established the Safe Havens Mapping Project in 2011, there were only partial listings of resources for survivors with pets. The Safe Havens Mapping Project addressed this gap with the development of an integrated, comprehensive state-by-state listing of sheltering services. You can find these locations all on one stand alone website.
The listings provide sheltering services for the animals of domestic violence survivors or have a relationship with an entity that does. When users visit our website, first, they enter their zip code or state. Then, they will be given sheltering options in their area.
There are approximately 1,200 listings from all around the United States in the Safe Havens for Pets directory.
We’re dedicated to ensuring our database listings are up-to-date and complete. We have an ongoing refinement and updating process to re-verify and confirm the information about the sheltering services. In addition, we monitor online and on social media for any new safe haven sheltering service not already in our database.
Our organization knows how important it is to ensure that survivors have streamlined information when escaping abuse. It’s something we take very seriously.
Safe havens on our database come in many different forms. Many listings in our directory rely on networks of foster care homes. Others use the additional kennel space of a local humane society or veterinarian.
In addition, some domestic violence shelters house victims and pets together.
Families and pets are either in the same area or in dedicated kennel space at the domestic violence shelter.
Safe Havens can be independent nonprofit organizations and formal partnerships between domestic violence agencies and animal agencies or groups.
Depending on the local arrangement, family members may be able to visit their pets while they are in safe-keeping. How long a pet may stay in a safe haven again will depend on the local arrangement.
Ultimately, confidentiality of the pet’s location is highly guarded in order to protect the pets and their family members.
Here are ways you can get involved with what we do at Safe Havens for Pets:
- Follow and engage with us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
- Use our database to search for safe havens in your community and find ways to support them directly through donation or by volunteering your time.
We are a small team.
Help from members of the domestic violence prevention community is critical to ensure our directory is as accurate as possible.
If you see we’ve left out a program that should be in our registry, or if you spot an error in any of the listings, contact us at safehavens@awionline.org and let us know so we can fix it.
Thank you for taking the time to read about the services we provide at Safe Havens for Pets.
I hope you learned something!
We wouldn’t be able to have the impact on survivors that we do without help from members of the community like you, so thank you!
If you or a loved one are planning an escape, be sure to have a safety plan in place. Go to the Safe Havens for Pets safety plan template on Gina Hamilton’s website for help.
