Values are often invoked in discussions of how to develop a more sustainable relationship with the environment. There is a substantial literature on values that spans several disciplines. In philosophy, values are relatively stable principles that help us make decisions when our preferences are in conflict and thus convey some sense of what we consider good. In economics, the term values is usually used in discussions of social choice, where an assessment of the social value of various alternatives serves as a guide to the best choice under a utilitarian ethic (the greatest good for the greatest number). In sociology, social psychology, and political science, two major lines of research have addressed environmental values. One has focused on four value clusters: self-interest, altruism, traditionalism, and openness to change and found relatively consistent theoretical and empirical support for the relationship of values to environmentalism. The other line of research suggests that environmentalism emerges when basic material needs are met and that individuals and societies that are postmaterialist in their values are more likely to exhibit pro-environmental behaviors. The evidence in support of this argument is more equivocal. Overall, the idea that values, especially altruism, are related to environmentalism, seems well established, but little can be said about the causes of value change and of the overall effects of value change on changes in behavior.

Although there is a growing body of literature documenting the co-occurrence of animal abuse and intimate partner violence (IPV), only a few studies have examined the relationship between animal maltreatment, types of IPV, and abuse severity. The results of those studies have been inconclusive and in some cases even contradictory. The current study contributes new findings to that specific segment of the literature and sheds some light on the inconsistent findings in previous studies. Data were gathered from 86 abused women receiving services from domestic violence shelters across Canada via a structured survey about pet abuse and the level and types of IPV perpetrated by abusive partners. Type and severity of IPV was measured using subscales of the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2) and the Checklist of Controlling Behaviors (CCB). Animal maltreatment was measured using the Partner's Treatment of Animals Scale (PTAS). Participants were divided into three groups: women who did not have pets during their abusive relationship ( n = 31), women who had pets and reported little or no animal maltreatment ( n = 21), and women who had pets and reported frequent or severe animal maltreatment ( n = 34). Examining within-group variations in experiences of IPV and pet abuse using a series of one-way between-groups ANOVA tests, this study provides evidence to support the conclusion that women who report that their partner mistreated their pets are themselves at significantly greater risk of more frequent and severe forms of IPV, most specifically psychological, physical, and sexual abuse. The findings point to the urgency of better understanding and mitigating the unique barriers to leaving an abusive relationship faced by women with companion animals.

Previous studies have documented the frequent coexistence of companion animal abuse and forms of family violence. The frequent coexistence of these forms of victimization is illustrative of the interconnectedness of forms of oppression and provides evidence in support of the claim that true social justice requires ending all forms of oppression—including the oppression of other animals. This paper moves beyond documenting the degree of coexistence between these forms of victimization and interrogating why they coexist—both goals of my initial study (Fitzgerald 2005)—to more fully examine the roles of “pets” in the lives of abused women. Using data from the larger project wherein 26 abused women were interviewed, this paper examines how “pets” can moderate the abuse experienced by the human victims of family violence. Illustrative of this moderating role played by “pets,” some participants report they stayed with their abusive partner longer than they otherwise would have because their “pets” “kept them going” by providing them with the social support necessary to cope with the abuse. The importance of the social support provided by “pets” is further evidenced by the finding detailed herein that some participants cite their “pets” as the reason they did not end their own lives. It is argued that “pets” are uniquely situated to provide social support to some abused women and can even serve a protective function against suicidality. Therefore, in order to adequately address the needs of abused women, particularly related to suicidality, the important roles “pets” can play in their lives must be taken seriously and, ideally, fostered.

Photographs of trophy animals in 14 popular hunting magazines were analysed to explore the visual representations of dead animal bodies. We found multifaceted messages about the relationships between humans and other animals grounded in narratives of gender, race and embodiment. The visual representations of dead animal bodies are embedded in the taken-forgranted stories of love and affection for nature and wildlife that frame the contemporary hunting agenda, including the assumption that trophy displays memorialize the beauty of nature and natural animals. Disentangling ourselves from that dominant notion of what it means to display dead trophy animals was revelatory. Instead of love and respect for nature and wildlife, we found extreme objectification and marginalization of animal bodies. While we observed some elaborate displays of reassembled and carefully positioned dead bodies to appear as if still alive, a number of trophy exhibits hid the animal body behind or beneath weapons and other hunting equipment. The vast majority of the hunters in the images were white males, and when women or men of colour were included in the photographs their representations were usually consistent with gender and race stereotypes. Of these race/gender stereotypes the most interesting (and most symbolic of the patriarchal nature of the hunting discourse) was that neither women nor men of colour ever held a weapon when they appeared in photographs with white men.Hunting was not about getting enough vitamin B 12. (Donna Haraway, Primate Visions 1989:217)

A growing body of research has highlighted the significant co-occurrence of violence against women and companion animals in abusive households. Collectively, this work has also documented that sizable proportions of women with pets sampled report that they delayed leaving their partner due to fear for their pets’ safety. Using data from 86 residents of 16 battered women’s shelters in Canada, this study begins to tease apart the relationship between five types of animal maltreatment (emotional abuse, threats to harm, neglect, physical abuse, and severe physical abuse) and women’s deliberations to leave violent relationships. The findings indicate that while the specific types of animal maltreatment are significant motivators for leaving an abusive partner, the length of the relationship and the physical abuse experienced by the woman better explain the degree to which concern for the well-being of the pet kept them from leaving their abuser earlier.