Position Statements

Responsibility of Veterinary Professionals in Addressing Animal Abuse and Neglect

August 19, 2024

Position

The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) holds that veterinary professionals, including veterinarians and registered veterinary technologists/technicians, have a duty to protect the health and welfare of animals. While a veterinarian may have a legal obligation to report suspected abuse and/or neglect depending on the jurisdiction in which they practice, all veterinary professionals have an ethical duty to address animal abuse and/or neglect whenever they have reasonable grounds to believe it has occurred.

Summary

  • Veterinary professionals have an ethical duty to address animal abuse and/or neglect whenever they have reasonable grounds to believe it may have occurred, up to and including reporting to the relevant authorities. This includes reporting concerns regarding their own clients and any observed or suspected acts of neglect or abuse.
  • Veterinary professionals play an important role in educating their clients about humane animal care, which can prevent or interrupt the occurrence of animal abuse or neglect.
  • Veterinarians should verify reporting requirements and protection from liability within their jurisdiction and whether these also apply to non-veterinarian coworkers.
  • There is evidence of an association between abuse of animals and violence towards people. Veterinary professionals play an important role in identifying animal abuse which might give rise to concerns about the welfare of members of a household.
  • The CVMA supports engagement between veterinary professionals, family services agencies, and appropriate law enforcement authorities for the benefit of both people and animals.

Background

  1. Veterinary professionals have a duty of care regarding animal welfare and have an ethical duty to address animal abuse or neglect when suspected or confirmed (1,2). Addressing abuse or neglect may include educating the client, intervention, or reporting suspected abuse or neglect to the appropriate animal welfare enforcement authority. The CVMA supports engagement between veterinary professionals, family services agencies, and appropriate law enforcement authorities for the benefit of both people and animals (2).
  2. Veterinary professionals are trained to recognize the signs of animal distress and understand the differences between abuse and neglect (1-4). Any person may be engaged in acts of abuse and neglect, which may in rare instances even include veterinary professionals and staff. Cases may be complicated and involve multiple parties. Animal welfare must be a priority in all situations with understanding that there may be difficult but necessary actions.
    1. Definitions of animal “distress” vary between provincial and territorial legislative documents. Generally, an animal is in distress if experiencing physiological or psychosocial consequences related to: (1) deprivation of adequate shelter, ventilation, space, exercise, protection from extreme temperatures, deprivation of food, water, or necessary veterinary care, (2) being injured, sick, in pain, or suffering, or (3) being subjected to harms resulting from privation, neglect, or abuse.
    2. Animal “abuse” or “cruelty” includes any intentional activity that causes unlawful and/or unnecessary distress, pain or suffering, injury, disability, or death to an animal. Categories of animal abuse include: (1) physical abuse, (2) mental/psychological abuse, (3) sexual abuse, (4) purposefully withholding basic needs and medical attention, (5) administration of noxious substances, and (6) performing unauthorized veterinary procedures (2,4,5,7).
    3. Animal “neglect” refers to failure to provide adequate basic needs or failure to continually support health for extended periods of time leading to distress, suffering, permanent injury, or death. Neglect may be intentional or unintentional. Unintentional neglect may potentially be corrected with client education. Categories of neglect include: (1) failure to provide animals with adequate necessities to support health and well-being, (2) lack of knowledge of appropriate animal husbandry and care, (3) neglect to remove pests or wildlife (refer to “Pest Management PS”), and (4) failure to seek veterinary care when required (2,5).
  3. Veterinary professionals have an important role in educating clients about animal welfare and best care practices. Nationally recognized codes of practice and standards, and guidelines for care and handling of various species of animals are valuable references to inform clients about accepted practices and standards for animal care (6,7,8). Veterinarians must commit to helping clients prioritize medical care and decisions including the recognition of humane endpoints and end of life decisions regardless of client constraints (financial, schedule, ability, etc.).
  4. The legal determination of animal abuse or neglect is the responsibility of the animal welfare enforcement authorities in the jurisdiction in which the harm occurred and not the duty of the person who reported the concern (1,6). However, veterinary professionals may be asked to provide evidence to authorities to aid in determining whether a violation occurred or may be called upon to testify in court (1,6,8,9).
  5. There is evidence of an association between abuse of animals and violence towards people. Veterinary professionals play an important role in identifying animal abuse which might give rise to concerns about the welfare of members of a household (5,9,10-18).
  6. Veterinary professionals need to be aware of reporting requirements in the jurisdiction in which they practice. In most areas in Canada, reporting of suspected animal abuse is mandatory for veterinarians, and immunity from prosecution for acting in good faith is afforded (1,6,9,19,20).
  7. The CVMA advocates for mandatory reporting of suspected animal abuse by individual veterinary professionals with immunity from prosecution in all jurisdictions. In addition, the CVMA advocates for harmonized animal welfare legislation and definitions of key reporting requirements, such as ‘distress’, ‘abuse’, ‘cruelty’ and ‘neglect’.
  8. The CVMA encourages all provincial or territorial veterinary medical associations to work with provincial or territorial governments to support the development of harmonized legislation requiring veterinarians to report suspected animal abuse, and to provide immunity to veterinarians who do so in good faith using their best professional judgement. Safeguards for anyone reporting suspected animal abuse should always be in place.
  9. The CVMA encourages all veterinary professionals, teaching institutions, and provincial and territorial veterinary associations to include information on the recognition, documentation, management, and reporting of animal abuse in their curricula and continuing education programs to improve animal protection and empower individuals to report concerns without fear of reprisal.

References

  1. American Veterinary Medical Association. Practical Guidance for the Effective Response by Veterinarians to Suspected Animal Cruelty, Abuse and Neglect. Available from: https://ebusiness.avma.org/Files/ProductDownloads/AVMA%20Suspected%20Animal%20Cruelty.pdf. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  2. Arkow P. Recognizing and Responding to Cases of Suspected Animal Cruelty, Abuse, and Neglect: What the Veterinarian Needs to Know. Vet Med (Auckl). 2015;6:349-359. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6067667/. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  3. Arkow P. & Munro H. “The veterinary profession’s roles in recognizing and preventing family violence: The experiences of the human medicine field and the development of diagnostic indicators of non-accidental injury.” In: The International Handbook of Animal Abuse and Cruelty. West Lafayettee, Indiana: Purdue University Press, 2010. Available to purchase from: https://www.press.purdue.edu/9781557535658/international-handbook-of-animal-abuse-and-cruelty/. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  4. Ascione FR & Arkow P, eds. Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, and Animal Abuse. Linking the Circles of Compassion for Prevention and Intervention. West Lafayettee, Indiana: Purdue University Press, 1999. Available from: https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/4092053. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  5. Animal Legal Defense Fund. 2016 Canadian Animal Protection Laws Rankings. Available from: http://aldf.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/2016-Canadian-Rankings-Report.pdf. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  6. Canadian Council on Animal Care. Types of Animal Guidelines. Available from: https://ccac.ca/en/guidelines-and-policies/the-guidelines/types-of-animal-guidelines.html. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  7. National Farm Animal Care Council. Codes of Practice for the care and handling of farm animals. Available from: https://www.nfacc.ca/codes-of-practice. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  8. Canadian Veterinary Medical Association. Codes of Practice. Available from: https://www.canadianveterinarians.net/policy-and-outreach/codes-of-practice/. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  9. Cook A. Effective Veterinary Response to Animal Abuse. Sir James Dunn Animal Welfare Centre, CVMA, UPEI, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Available from: http://files.upei.ca/avc/sjdawc/effective_veterinary_response_to_animal_abuse_handout.pdf. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  10. Vermeulen H & Odendaal JSJ. Proposed Typology of Companion Animal Abuse. Anthrozoös 1993;6:248-257. Available from: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2752/089279393787002178. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  11. Merck MD. Veterinary Forensics: Animal Cruelty Investigations. 2nd ed. Ames, Iowa: Wiley-Blackwell, 2013:1-16. Available to purchase from: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/book/10.1002/9781118704738
  12. Fitzgerald AJ, Barrett BJ, Gray A, Cheung CH. The Connection Between Animal Abuse, Emotional Abuse, and Financial Abuse in Intimate Relationships: Evidence from a Nationally Representative Sample of the General Public. J Interpers Violence. 2022;37(5-6):2331-2353. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260520939197. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  13. Fitzgerald AJ, Barrett BJ, Gray A. The Co-occurrence of Animal Abuse and Intimate Partner Violence Among a Nationally Representative Sample: Evidence of "The Link" in the General Population. Violence Vict. 2021;36(6):770-792. https://connect.springerpub.com/content/sgrvv/36/6/770. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  14. Fitzgerald A, Coulter K, Monckton V, & Thompson K. The Violence Link in Practice: An Empirical Examination of the Implications of the Violence Link for Family Justice Professionals, Final Report. Humane Canada, Department of Justice Canada, 2023. https://lsnl.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Humane-Canada_The-Violence-Link-in-Practice-Final-Report.pdf . Last accessed May 3, 2024.
  15. Friedman SH, Sorrentino RM, Allgire J, Friedman JB. “Chapter 4: The LINK: Violence toward people and animals.” In: Loue S & Linden P, eds, The Comprehensive Guide to Interdisciplinary Veterinary Social Work. Switzerland: Springer Nature, 2022. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10330-8_4. Last accessed May 3, 2024.
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  20. Will DD, Whiting TL. Animal Protection Reporting Requirements of Canadian Veterinarians: Example Case. Can Vet J. 2022;63(3):301-306. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8842380/. Last accessed May 3, 2024.