Introducing Safe Housing for Pets

Thanks to a new partnership with Lewis & Clark Humane Society, The Friendship Center is now able to offer temporary, safe housing for pets at no cost to our clients.

Those of us who work to support survivors of intimate partner violence often get asked why people stay in abusive relationships. To be clear, leaving any kind of relationship, anywhere on the spectrum from healthy to abusive, can be difficult. However, the barriers are more pronounced, and the stakes can be more dire in abusive relationships because of the pattern of coercive control that abusers use to secure power over a partner.

On the practical side, for example, research indicates that financial abuse is present in 99% of domestic violence cases, meaning that most of the time, survivors have limited or no ability to access, maintain, or acquire the economic resources needed to build safety and independence. On the emotional side, too, it’s important to remember that relationships that become violent rarely start out that way. It’s a big reason that it’s not uncommon—whether you’re talking about survivors specifically or people in general—to have genuine love for those also capable of causing great harm.

As another factor that can delay the choice to end an abusive relationship, survivors may be taking into account the extreme danger they will face once they start the process. Research indicates that about 75% of domestic violence-related homicides occur upon separation, and as much as half occur within two months of a breakup. Even survivors not familiar with those statistics may recognize the risk of separation based on their lived experience with a partner. Any threat to an established pattern of power and control can be intolerable for an abuser. Leaving can be the sign of defiance that triggers new extremes of violence against both survivors and their loved ones. Sadly, the harm can extend to beloved pets.

Pets are present in domestic violence cases more often than not, and they are among the most common reasons survivors cite for staying in abusive relationships. Consider some of the following facts:

• Up to 70% of domestic violence victims have pets. Of those with pets, 48-71% report that their pets have been abused or killed.

• Anywhere between 1 in 5 to over 3 in 5 domestic violence victims delay leaving a dangerous situation because they don’t know where to place, or how to protect their pets. Some survivors will even resort to living in their cars to avoid being separated from their pets—an option that comes with its own safety concerns since homelessness greatly increases a person’s risk of violent victimization.

• Abusive partners often use the bond between survivors and their pets to control, manipulate, and isolate. Up to 25% of survivors will return because a pet is being used as a pawn to coerce them into returning.

• As of May 2024, less than 20% of domestic violence shelters in the US were equipped to accommodate pets. As a result, more than half of survivors in shelters leave their pets with abusers.

• 91% of survivors say that their pet was significant in their ability to survive and heal.

Like most shelter facilities for those escaping violence, The Friendship Center's onsite safe shelter is not designed to house animals, and our offsite emergency shelter options are similarly limiting. This gap in safe housing for pets leaves many survivors in our own community faced with making the impossible choice between their own safety, and the safety of their pets.

With the support of a RedRover Safe Housing grant, The Friendship Center is now teaming up with Lewis & Clark Humane Society (LCHS) to provide free safe housing for the pets of our clients. By offering this service in our community, it’s our hope that we’re helping to subtract at least one of the complex reasons so many survivors struggle to leave an abusive relationship.

Beyond eliminating violence, we envision a community where everyone can access the healing and resources they need to thrive in healthy relationships. For many of us, pets are among the most unconditional sources of love we have. Working together to give people and their companion animals the space and safety to heal together is one powerful way we can stem the cycle of abuse and lay a foundation of hope for survivors in our community.

If you or somebody you know is experiencing domestic violence, and safe housing for a pet is a barrier to leaving a relationship or seeking resources like shelter, LCHS and TFC can help!

Check out our Pet Safe Housing program page for some FAQs about this program, plus additional links and resources about the intersection of domestic violence and pets, including ways you can support efforts to spread awareness and increase the number of pet-friendly domestic violence shelters nationwide. RedRover and Purina’s goal through their Purple Leash Project is to ensure that 25% of DV shelters in the US are pet-friendly by 2025.

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If you or someone you know has been affected by domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, advocates at The Friendship Center are ready to help. Call 406.442.6800 to access our free and confidential services 24/7. Visit our resource page to explore helpful information for victims and advocates, and visit our services page to learn the ways we can assist survivors and their loved ones.