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Zoosadism is pleasure derived from cruelty to animals. It is part of the Macdonald triad, a set of three behaviors that are considered a precursor to psychopathic behavior.

Research

Some studies have suggested that individuals who are cruel to animals are more likely to be violent to humans. According to The New York Times:

The FBI has found that a history of cruelty to animals is one of the traits that regularly appear in its computer records of serial rapists and murderers, and the standard diagnostic and treatment manual for psychiatric and emotional disorders lists cruelty to animals as a diagnostic criterion for conduct disorders.

Helen Gavin wrote however in Criminological and Forensic Psychology (2013):

This is not a universal trait, though. Dennis Nilsen had difficulty initiating social contact with people, but loved his faithful companion, Bleep, a mongrel bitch. After his arrest, he was very concerned for her welfare, as she was taken to the police station too.

Alan R. Felthous reported in his paper "Aggression Against Cats, Dogs, and People" (1980):

A survey of psychiatric patients who had repeatedly tortured dogs and cats found all of them had high levels of aggression toward people as well, including one patient who had murdered a boy.

This is a commonly reported finding, and for this reason, cruelty to animals is often considered a warning sign of potential violence towards humans.

Examples

An adult man in Cuba, by the name of Rubén Marrero Pernas was found to be raping, torturing then killing dogs or puppies and recording the acts online for an audience who found this to be likewise sexually gratifying.

Serial killers such as Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer were known for torturing and killing animals in their youth.

A Canadian man, Leighton Labute, was arrested in 2020 for torturing and killing three hamsters, and uploading the video to social media.

In June 2023, the BBC uncovered a global monkey torture ring, where participants would produce and distribute videos of monkeys being hurt and killed.

Legal status

In the United States, since 2010, it has been a federal offense to create or distribute "obscene" depictions of "living non-human mammals, birds, reptiles, or amphibians ... subjected to serious bodily injury". This statute replaced an overly broad 1999 statute which was found unconstitutional in United States v. Stevens.

Criticism of alleged link to violence against humans

On the other hand, Piers Beirne, a professor of criminology at the University of Southern Maine, has criticized existing studies for ignoring socially accepted practices of violence against animals, such as animal slaughter and vivisection, that might be linked to violence against humans.

See also

• Bloodsport
• Cruelty to animals

References

1. J. M. MacDonald (1963). "The Threat to Kill". American Journal of Psychiatry. 120 (2): 125–130. doi:10.1176/ajp.120.2.125.
2. Goleman, Daniel (7 August 1991). "Child's Love of Cruelty May Hint at the Future Killer". New York Times.
3. Helen Gavin (2013). Criminological and Forensic Psychology. p. 120.
4. Felthous, Alan R. (1980). "Aggression Against Cats, Dogs, and People". Child Psychiatry and Human Development. 10 (3): 169–177. doi:10.1007/bf01433629. PMID 7357998. S2CID 24502567.
5. Echarry, Irina (November 18, 2018). "Zoosadism in Cuba and No Law to Punish it". Havana Times.
6. Poyser, Sam (2016-02-26). "Is London's 'Cat Ripper' a Serial Killer in the Making?". Newsweek. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
7. Zielinski, Jen (2021-08-18). "Kelowna hamster killer handed conditional sentence, not allowed in pet stores". Summerland Review. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
8. Potenteau, Doyle (2021-08-18). "Kelowna man, 21, receives conditional sentence for torturing, killing hamsters — Okanagan". Global News. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
9. Gunter, Joel; Henschke, Rebecca; Ajengrastri, Astudestra (2023-06-19). "Global network of sadistic monkey torture exposed by BBC". BBC News. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
10. Robson, Ruthann (2010-12-14) Animal Porn - Criminalized by Federal Law Again Archived 2011-04-15 at the Wayback Machine, Constitutional Law Prof Blog
11. "18 U.S. Code § 48 - Animal crush videos". LII / Legal Information Institute. Archived from the original on 21 November 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
12. Beirne, Piers (2004). "From Animal Abuse to Interhuman Violence? A Critical Review of the Progression Thesis". Society & Animals. 12 (1): 39–65. doi:10.1163/156853004323029531. Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-08.

External links

• Four-legged Forensics: What Forensic Nurses Need to Know and Do About Animal Cruelty

v t e Zoophilia
Zoophilia	Formicophilia History of zoophilia Human–animal marriage Ophidiophilia
Related subjects	Animal sexuality Hani Miletski Sexual ethics Sexual norm Sodomy Zoosadism
Category

• Abuse
• Animal welfare
• Cruelty to animals
• Paraphilias
• Zoophilia