2017 Conference Presentations Overviews:
Keynote Address - Planting Link Seeds and Watching them Grow - Phil Arkow
Does it sometimes seem like you’re just spinning your wheels and nothing ever changes? Don’t be discouraged! When we look back on what’s been accomplished in just a few short years we can say that increased public and professional awareness about The Link has made a huge difference. Let’s review some of the remarkable progress that local, state and national Link coalitions have been able to accomplish in public policy, programs and research. It’s a nice roadmap to help us see what lies ahead and how we might get there.
The Link in New Mexico – Tammy Fiebelkorn
Positive Links was formed to provide training to professionals, educate the public, advocate for policies to better protect all family members from violence. Positive Links is committed to ensuring that animal abusers receive the treatment they need to re-install empathy, all abuse victims are protected and that all forms of family violence is taken seriously by law enforcement. This session will provide an update on the status of link-related projects, programs and laws in New Mexico.
Community Partnerships to Reduce Family Violence – Captain Andi Taylor
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s office has developed unique and life-saving partnerships with animal services and local nonprofits to provide the best level of care and protection for animals and families in the area. Lt. Taylor will discuss the partnerships and show how various agencies and organizations can come together to help break The Link.
Animal Abuse, Intimate Partner Violence & Adverse Childhood Experiences – Dr. Frank Ascione
Case histories of women who were abused by their adult partners and whose companion animals were also harmed abound in the literature on intimate partner violence (IPV). The first systematic research on animal abuse in the context of IPV were conducted in Utah and indicated that the majority of women with pets who sought shelter at domestic violence safe houses or programs reported that their pets had been harmed or killed. This finding was confirmed in research conducted in Melbourne, Australia and in a forthcoming study of adult male sex offenders who also perpetrated domestic violence. This area of research on animal abuse has led to veterinary research on non-accidental injuries to animals and developmental research on children exposed to IPV as well as animal abuse in their home environments. An ongoing, federally funded research study, at the University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work, that examines these issues is described.
We know that children exposed to intimate partner violence are at increased risk for concomitant exposure to maltreatment of companion animals. There is emerging evidence that childhood exposure to maltreatment of companion animals is associated with psychopathology in childhood and adulthood. I describe a study examining the relation between children’s exposure to animal maltreatment, callous/unemotional traits (callousness, uncaring traits, and unemotional traits), and externalizing and internalizing behavior problems. A sample of 291 ethnically diverse children (55% Latino or Hispanic) between the ages of 7 and 12 was recruited from community-based domestic violence services. A meditational path model indicated that child exposure to animal maltreatment was associated with callousness (β = .15), which in turn was associated with greater internalizing (β = .33) and externalizing problems (β = .48). The effect of animal maltreatment exposure on externalizing problems was completely mediated through callousness. Results suggest that callous/unemotional traits are a potential mechanism through which childhood exposure to animal maltreatment influences subsequent behavior problems. Future research is needed to evaluate the extent to which exposure to pet maltreatment affects children’s adjustment over time in the context of other co-occurring adverse childhood experiences.
National Sheriff's Association & Animal Abuse - Nuria Querol Vinas
Nuria will provide an overview of the recent developments within the National Sheriff's Association that pertain to The Link and animal abuse. This overview will include information on the National Sheriff's Associations' National Law Enforcement Center on Animal Abuse and efforts by the Association to fight crimes against animals nationwide.
Food for Thought - Helga Schimkat
Helga will talk about the link between violence towards animals and violence towards people, with an emphasis on choices that we must make on a daily basis regarding what we eat. The presentation will present an overview of the laws and regulations affecting animals in agriculture, including recent developments at the state and federal level regarding that legal framework, as well as food labeling.
The International Link – Nuria Querol Vinas
Nuria will present the work on The Link being done in Europe and South America. She will provide examples of collaborations and research being done in other countries that we could implement here in the U.S. to better fight all forms of family violence.
Spotting Animal Abuse (for human-focused professions) – Angela Stell and Captain Andi Taylor
How do you know if an animal is being abused? What are the physical and behavioral signs that an animal is in crisis? What do animals’ various postures mean in terms of fear, aggression or pain? This class is designed for those professionals who are dealing with families and human violence regularly, but who aren’t as well versed on animal behavior or spotting animal abuse. You will leave this class with a better understanding of animal behavior, giving you an increased ability to look at the entire family and spot signs of violence and neglect. You’ll also gain insight into whether an animal you encounter in the field is friendly or dangerous.
Spotting Family Violence (for animal-focused professions) – NoraJean Salazar
How do you know if there is violence in a family? What are the physical and behavioral signs that a child, adult or elder is in crisis? This class is designed for those professionals who regularly deal with animals, but who aren’t as well versed in the signs of human violence. You will leave this class with a better understanding of the signs of violence towards humans, giving you an increased ability to look at the entire family and spots signs of violence and neglect.
Prosecuting Link Related Cases - Diane Balkin
Prosecutors face a host of challenges when dealing with cases involving both human and animal victims. This presentation by Diane Balkin, attorney for the Animal Legal Defense Fund’s Criminal Justice Program, will examine the Link through a prosecutor’s perspective, including investigation strategies, cross-reporting, witness issues, multidisciplinary partnerships, and community safety goals.
Domestic Violence Shelters & Animals – Panel Discussion (Candace Dan, Dana Mazaggatti, Jennifer Steketee)
Domestic violence victims often delay leaving abusive situations because of fear for the well-being of their companion animals. This panel discussion will present the work at domestic violence shelters to open their doors to companion animals, thereby removing one more barrier to leaving a violence home, as well as other programs and projects that help domestic violence victims and their companion animals.
Who Ya Gonna Call? Abuse Busters! – Phil Arkow
Anyone who works in animal care and control, child protection, domestic violence or elder abuse should have a pretty good understanding of how their systems work and who does what. But do they? And do they know who their colleagues are in their counterpart agencies and how they operate? And – more importantly – does the public have any idea of who to call to respond to family violence? The answers may surprise you! The National Link Coalition is compiling the first national directory of responding agencies in every county in the U.S., and the results show significant gaps. Come learn about what you need to do to make your website, Facebook page and community outreach more user-friendly so you can do a better job of helping survivors.
Investigating Crimes Against Animals – Robyn Gojkovich
This is an intensive workshop on investigating criminal cases involving animal cruelty. Lack of knowledge, training and resources can lead to poorly handled animal cruelty cases which do not hold up in court. Despite the fact that animal cruelty is often an indicator of other violent tendencies, these cases do not always receive the attention they should. This training has the following objectives: Define Cruelty to Animals and know the different types, identify the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor, understand the importance of processing and securing live evidence, define and understand the importance of personal protective equipment, know the difference between dog fighting and cock fights, how to charge someone with multiple counts of Cruelty to Animals when investigating a case involving numerous animals, and understand important motions that must be filed in court and the proper procedure on filing them.
The Who, What, When and Where of Veterinary Forensics for Animal Abuse Cases – Dr Patricia Norris
This presentation will answer the questions of what is veterinary forensics, who should be conducting veterinary forensic examinations, when is the inclusion of veterinary forensics in animal cases appropriate and where does veterinary forensics fit in the the scheme of animal case investigations. The presentation is targeted to law enforcement/animal control officers, veterinarians, and animal welfare personnel.
The How of Veterinary Forensics: How Should Live Evidence Be Examined and How Should the Veterinary Forensic Examinations be Documented? - Dr Patricia Norris
This presentation will cover the veterinary examination of live evidence animals for animal abuse cases as well as the documentation of the examinations and care of live evidence while in the care and custody of the animal shelter/law enforcement agency pending trial. This presentation is appropriate for law enforcement/animal control officers, veterinarians, animal shelter workers and other animal welfare personnel.
This is an intensive workshop on the role of veterinarians in animal cruelty cases. The proper role of the veterinarian in cases involving animals will be discussed. Participants will also learn how the veterinarian works with law enforcement to pursue legal cases against animal abusers. Proper methods for veterinary documentation of forensic cases including photography of veterinary aspects of the case will also be covered.
Anticipating Defenses in Animal Cruelty Cases - Diane Balkin
This presentation will focus on the prosecuting attorney's strategy and focus when handling an animal cruelty case. Specifically, we will cover ways to anticipate the defense attorney's moves and counter them successfully. This presentation is meant for prosecuting attorneys, as well as other professions who need to understand the prosecution of animal cruelty cases including animal control officers, law enforcement, etc.
Therapy Options for Intervening and Preventing Animal Abuse in Adults & Juveniles – Tamara Herbert Ward
This class will be an extensive training on therapy options for intervening and preventing animal abuse. This training is tailored to the needs of therapists and social workers who currently deal with cases that involve animal cruelty, or those who desire to add interventions that incorporate animal abuse prevention into their focus on other forms of family violence. Intervention is the best way to introduce empathy and personal responsibility in animal abusers, thereby stopping the cycle of violence and preventing future abuse. Intervention techniques for both adult and juvenile abusers will be covered. Participants will gain the knowledge needed to incorporate animal abuse interventions into their existing practices. This training is a resource for mental health professionals, educators, youth workers, public health agents, nurses, etc.
Sustaining Compassion, Beating Burnout – Colleen Dougherty
We've all heard the laundry list of ways to tackle job related stress; take a walk, take a vacation, meditate, etc. But often those activities don't really work for us. So, what's missing? In this presentation, we'll get down to some of the root causes of compassion stress. As we raise our awareness, we can learn to make these and other tools more effective for staying on top of stress and sustaining our passion and compassion for the work we do and those we serve.