First of all I'd like to try and compare animal cruelty to child abuse. Yes, they are very different problems, but in my mind there are some similarities to be noted. As with child abuse there are varying degrees of animal cruelty, or as I like to call it, animal abuse. We have all heard of the terms used in child abuse cases, from child neglect, to physical abuse, mental abuse and unfortunately even sexual abuse. It's sad, but these things do happen. When talking about animal abuse there are cases ranging from animal neglect, where the basic needs such as food, water, shelter, and basic health care needs are not met. The next step up, (or should I say down) in the animal cruelty chain is physical abuse and torture. This seems to be the most common form of animal abuse, or at least it is the one we hear about the most. This includes cases of animals being beaten, set on fire, run over, tortured with fire crackers and even drowned. The list of crimes against animals of this nature is probably very long and the above mentioned just gives an idea of some of the cruel acts that are perpetrated against animals. Of course, the most disturbing act of violence against animals involves bestiality which involves a sexual act being committed. Thank goodness we hardly ever hear about cases like this, but believe me they are still happening out there. My personal view is that topics such as this are hardly ever openly discussed because the average person finds it is a topic which is extremely hard to even think about, we'd rather not.
It is not any wonder that in most cases the types of animals that people choose to commit cruelty acts against are ones that are not likely to turn around and attack them back. Therefore, the majority of animals that suffer at abuser's hands are domesticated animals such as cats and dogs. However, there have been cases where larger more dangerous animals have borne the brunt of an attack, and in turn have retaliated causing harm to others. I have personally heard stories where people have purposely caused a confrontation with a dangerous animal in an attempt to catch the encounter on video tape. Whether these stories are really true, or whether they are just tall tales I do not know, but if there are true, coaxing an animal into attack could be an extremely dangerous thing to do. An animal that is frightened or cornered will undoubtedly attack, and who knows what the results could be.
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