Posted on Oct 15, 2023
The Women’s Safe House aims to help abuse victims stay safe by welcoming their pets
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Seventy-one percent of women in domestic violence shelters report that their abuser threatened, injured or killed a pet. The fear of violence against a beloved animal can make survivors feel trapped.
The Women’s Safe House in St. Louis is working to remove that deterrent.
“Women would call the safe house crisis line and want to bring their family there so they would be safe. … They would ask, ‘Can I bring my dog, my cat, my gerbil?’ And the answer was always no,” said Executive Director Mary Ann Owens. “The women would say, ‘Then we cannot come.’ They were choosing to stay in an abusive relationship and in an unsafe home because they couldn't leave their animals.”
The Women’s Safe House in St. Louis is working to remove that deterrent.
“Women would call the safe house crisis line and want to bring their family there so they would be safe. … They would ask, ‘Can I bring my dog, my cat, my gerbil?’ And the answer was always no,” said Executive Director Mary Ann Owens. “The women would say, ‘Then we cannot come.’ They were choosing to stay in an abusive relationship and in an unsafe home because they couldn't leave their animals.”
The Women’s Safe House aims to help abuse victims stay safe by welcoming their pets
Posted from stlpr.org
Domestic Violence
Safety
Pets
St. Louis
Posted 7 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."The average stay is about six months, so we want it to be home for them,” she said. “It's going to be much more of a home if they're there with their treasured pets and able to be together as a family.”
The shelter will welcome pets of all kinds — furry, feathered and scaled — by early 2024.
Owens joined St. Louis on the Air alongside Sara Newton, who is a domestic violence survivor and an ambassador for the Women’s Safe House and Duo Dogs."
..."The average stay is about six months, so we want it to be home for them,” she said. “It's going to be much more of a home if they're there with their treasured pets and able to be together as a family.”
The shelter will welcome pets of all kinds — furry, feathered and scaled — by early 2024.
Owens joined St. Louis on the Air alongside Sara Newton, who is a domestic violence survivor and an ambassador for the Women’s Safe House and Duo Dogs."
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