Until recently, the field of criminology has largely ignored the suffering and abuse of non-human animals in the variety of forms in which it occurs. In order to address one aspect of this suffering, this article explores the non-human animal abuse inherent in the trade of wildlife. To demonstrate both the individual harm to non-human animals and the institutionalized abuse in this market, the fur and falcon trades will be detailed. First, since non-human animal abuse and harm have been largely (...) invisible to the criminological community, this article sets out one justification for the adoption of a harm-based discourse. The result is examination of the these two forms of wildlife trade from an animal rights and species justice perspective of harm that is now one of the three broad conceptions of justice in the rapidly growing field of green criminology. (shrink)

Nonhuman animal farming, by its fundamental nature, involves a greater or lesser degree of ill treatment and oppression. Definitions of abuse or cruelty in relation to nonhumans, however, are inconsistent and ambiguous. People support nonhuman farming by purchasing its products, but the majority of people do not themselves mistreat nonhumans. How can this incongruity be explained? Any account is likely to be complex, but work in experimental psychology has identi- fied a number of conditions that can contribute toward individuals becoming (...) morally disen- gaged from abusive acts. This paper shows that a number of these conditions are embedded in the nonhuman animal farming industry, thus providing some insight into why consumers may be disconnected from the mass abuse carried out by an industry they support. Recognizing this process can help advocates for nonhumans take steps to counter this disengagement and so allow consumers to examine their ethical choices more clearly. (shrink)

This research analyzes the overall arrest histories of persons aged 18-34 convicted for weapon-related deer spotlighting in Virginia during 1997 and 1998. Deer spotlighting, or "freeze-killing," is a specific form of deer poaching involving shining a deer with a spotlight for an easier kill. Defined as unsporting, freeze-killing constitutes animal abuse. This study isolated and compared arrest rates of white males - 90% of the sample in the present research - with estimated rates of a cross-sectional national sample of the (...) same race-sex-age combinations. Results showed that about two in five freeze killers had been arrested, more than one in five for a crime of violence. Freeze-killers had almost twice the rate for violent crime and almost three times the rate for property crime as the control group - after accounting for age and for the time at risk of arrest. The findings' direction is consistent with the recent literature and a "generality of deviance" approach, and support an earlier call to expand hypotheses about animal abuse to include other criminal correlates in addition to violence. (shrink)

Sociologists have largely ignored the role of animals in society. This article argues that human-animal interaction is a topic worthy of sociological consideration and applies a sociological analysis to one problematic aspect of human-animal relationships - animal cruelty. The article reformulates animal cruelty, traditionally viewed using a psychopathological model, from a sociological perspective.The article identifies social and cultural factors related to the occurrence of animal cruelty. Ultimately, animal cruelty is a serious social problem that deserves attention in its own right, (...) not just because of its association with human violence. (shrink)

This paper reviews evidence of a progression from animal abuse to interhuman violence. It finds that the "progression thesis" is supported not by a coherent research program but by disparate studies often lacking methodological and conceptual clarity. Set in the context of a debate about the theoretical adequacy of concepts like "animal abuse" and "animal cruelty," it suggests that the link between animal abuse and interhuman violence should be sought not only in the personal biographies of those individuals who abuse (...) animals but also in those institutionalized social practices where animal abuse is routine, widespread, and socially acceptable. (shrink)