Tuesday 22 February 2005
Telstra Theatre
Australian War Memorial, Canberra

Preventing cruelty to animals is the founding mission of the RSPCA movement, but despite nearly 200 years of dedicated work, cruelty persists with disheartening regularity.

Our understanding of the causes of cruelty to animals has improved, but there is much more to be done to address these causes and to adapt our legislation to protect animals from abuse and neglect as we now define them. And as we examine the triggers involved, it becomes increasingly apparent that cruelty to animals cannot be quarantined from the broader issue of violence in our homes and in society generally.

In the 2005 Scientific Seminar, RSPCA Australia asked: are we doing enough to prevent cruelty to animals in our society? And what are the implications for society of allowing animal abuse to continue? 

The Seminar tackled these important questions through two main themes: preventing cruelty to animals through early intervention, education and changing legislation, and examining the connection between cruelty towards animals and current or future violence towards humans. It also discussed how we can improve the links between agencies dealing with cruelty to animals and other human problems. 

The RSPCA Australia annual Scientific Seminars provide a forum for the dissemination of information on topical animal welfare issues to a wide audience. The Seminars are designed to cover a broad spectrum of opinion, encourage audience participation, and have a reputation for provoking lively and constructive debate.

Click here to download the programme 

Click here to download the Seminar summaries 

Click here to download the Seminar proceedings

This project is supported by the Commonwealth Government through a grant-in-aid administered by the Department of Finance and Administration