Stonnington Council residents are calling for services to ensure the safety of pets and their owners in family violence situations.
According to Stonnington Council’s latest Domestic Animal Management Plan, 92 per cent of surveyed residents are concerned about the welfare of animals in family violence situations and the need for services to ensure the safety of these pets.
In terms of people leaving situations of abuse, concern for the safety of pets is a “paramount reason” why they might not choose to leave, says family violence expert and victim-survivor, Cathy Oddie.
“Being separated from a furry family member is traumatic,” says Oddie.
Ms Oddie, who works at Berry Street as an after-hours family violence response worker, says that securing accommodation for a parent and children leaving abuse is already a challenge.
“Trying to locate pet friendly accommodation makes the pool of available accommodation much, much more restricted.”
Pam Weaver, who runs the Save-A-Dog Scheme in Glen Iris, says that the changing culture in recognising the importance of animals on the mental welfare of their owners is a “tremendous step in the right direction”.
“The mindset has changed, which is fantastic. It will now come down to resources.”
Previous initiatives funded by the Victorian Government between Safe Steps Family Violence Response Centre, Lort Smith Animal Hospital and the RSPCA have offered services to pet and pet owners with emergency boarding. The problem with this approach is that pets and their owners are separated, and children often refuse to leave without their companion animal.
“The emotional bond that we form to them is so critical. We have to actually recognise them as family members,” says Ms Oddie.
The key factor is being able to provide safe and affordable accommodation where pets and their owners can be together from the time they leave a family violence situation.
“It doesn’t have to be the Ritz,” says Ms Weaver.
This approach also recognises the critical emotional support pets provide in ongoing healing and recovery from family violence, and dealing with “really black days” that follow after the initial crisis.
“They have literally kept me alive,” says Ms Oddie.
Stonnington’s Domestic Animal Management Plan establishes a policy and planning framework that will guide the delivery of animal management services for the next four years. Consultation and community engagement for the plan involved an online survey of 2451 respondents, submissions from six stakeholders, and a council staff workshop.
Feedback from the survey confirms that Stonington pets play an important and significant role in their owners’ lives. Written responses emphasise the importance of pets in terms of companionship, unconditional affection, connection with community, and for people living on their own or dealing with mental health challenges.
Of the surveyed residents, 93 per cent said that their pets give them “great comfort in times of need”, while 99 per cent said that pets are an “important part of my family”.
Stonnington Council was not available for comment at the time of publishing.
If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732)
Feature Image: Chewy via Unsplash
