Current Research

Research title
The Use and Abuse of Animals in Domestic Abuse-Related Deaths

This research is funded by Defra (the UK Government Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs) and is delivered by Dr Mary Wakeham (Founder and CEO, Refuge4Pets), and managed by Dr Natasha Mulvihill (Associate Professor in Criminology) at the School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol.

Policy context (provided by Defra)

“The Government has committed to halving violence against women and girls (VAWG) by 50% over the next decade. This target forms part of the ‘Taking Back Our Streets Mission’ and includes a cross-government approach to tackling VAWG. Data published by the National Police Chiefs’ Council in July 2024 found that over one million VAWG related crimes were recorded by the police in 2022/23, which is equal to about 3,000 offences each day. The data also found that recorded VAWG related crime increased by 37% between 2018 and 2023, with one in every twelve women a victim per year.

Animal abuse is now considered a specific strategy used by perpetrators to coerce, control and trap victim-survivors in the abusive relationship and there is a strong evidential link between people that carry out domestic abuse who also abuse animals.

Defra are funding this project to develop further understanding of how animal abuse and domestic abuse are interconnected, pinpointing critical areas for action and proposing strategies for coordinated services and policies.”

Research aims

The overall aim of this research is to provide the evidence base and make recommendations needed to reduce domestic abuse related deaths (homicide, suicide and unexplained deaths) where there are animals involved.

The objectives of the research are

• To develop our understanding about the interconnection between ‘the use of animals’ by perpetrators and domestic abuse related deaths.
• To map key stakeholders (for example, domestic abuse services, law enforcement, animal welfare, veterinary teams and social care services) and establish their roles in prevention and intervention to these interconnected issues.
• Make legislative, policy and practice recommendations to implement an effective integrated approach to safeguarding people and animals victimised by domestic abuse. These recommendations include suggesting how animals can be effectively integrated into evidence-based safety and response plans.

Research questions

• How were perpetrators of domestic abuse using animals as part of the dynamics of the abuse and what was the impact on victims?
• Where were the missed opportunities to recognise the use of animals as an indicator of harm or homicide/suicide?
• What does effective prevention, intervention and integrated safeguarding look like for human and animal victims of domestic abuse?

Call for research participants

The call for participants has now closed. We’ll publish research outputs here as soon as we can. Do check back regularly for the latest updates.

Published research papers:

Wakeham, M., and Mulvihill, N. (2025). The Use and Abuse of Animals by Perpetrators of Domestic Abuse Survey: The Link to Domestic Abuse-Related Deaths (Homicide, Suicide and Unexplained Deaths). University of Bristol.

Wakeham, M. (2025). Animal Abuse as a Strategy of Coercive Control. Journal of Gender-Based Violence. https://doi.org/10.1332/23986808Y2025D000000076

Wakeham, M. (2021) Animal Abuse as a strategy of coercive control, PhD Dissertation, University of Bristol. Available here >>>