How to Report Animal Cruelty

Animal cruelty, especially dog fighting, seems to be in the news more than usual these days. If you suspect or have direct knowledge of any animal cruelty happening in your neighborhood, do you know what to do?

For immediate animal cruelty complaints, you should contact the Honolulu Police Department (HPD). Please, don’t wait until an animal is so badly hurt or killed before calling the police on its behalf.

You can find HPD’s contact information here: http://www.honolulupd.org/main/email.htm

For matter of animal cruelty that is less than an immediate life-or-death situation, the proper organization to first contact is the Hawaiian Humane Society (HHS).

You can find HHS’s contact information here: http://www.hawaiianhumane.org/animallaws/index.html#cruelty

If you become aware of an animal that is a victim of cruelty, neglect, or abuse, please do not turn your head or walk away. The animal cannot help itself and cannot stop the pain and abuse on its own. It depends on YOU to help. Please, have the courage to do the right thing and get some help for the abused animal. Speak for the animal, as it cannot speak for itself!

What follows is what the state of Hawaii, by law, describes to be animal cruelty:

§711-1109 Cruelty to animals. (1) A person commits the offense of cruelty to animals if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly:
(a) Overdrives, overloads, tortures, torments, cruelly beats or starves any animal, or causes or procures the overdriving, overloading, torture, torment, cruel beating or starving of any animal, or deprives a pet animal of necessary sustenance or causes such deprivation;
(b) Mutilates, poisons, or kills without need any animal other than insects, vermin, or other pests;
(c) Keeps, uses, or in any way is connected with or interested in the management of, or receives money for the admission of any person to, any place kept or used for the purpose of fighting or baiting any bull, bear, dog, cock, or other animal, and every person who encourages, aids, or assists therein, or who permits or suffers any place to be so kept or used;
(d) Carries or causes to be carried, in or upon any vehicle or other conveyance, any animal in a cruel or inhumane manner; or
(e) Assists another in the commission of any act of cruelty to any animal.
(2) Subsection (1)(a), (b), (d), (e) and the following subsection (3) are not applicable to accepted veterinary practices and to activities carried on for scientific research governed by standards of accepted educational or medicinal practices.
(3) Whenever any domestic animal is so severely injured that there is no reasonable probability that its life or usefulness can be saved, the animal may be immediately destroyed.
(4) Cruelty to animals is a misdemeanor. [L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; am L 1986, c 192, §§1, 2; am L 1998, c 173, §2]

Go here for more information on Hawaii’s cruelty laws: http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/vol14_ch0701-0853/hrs0711/hrs_0711-1109.htm

What can you do if there is animal cruelty?

Where cruelty of an animal is concerned, please do not be an inactive participant; have the courage to get help for the animal right away. Tell someone that the animal is in need and is being harmed. Don’t risk danger to yourself by confronting the alleged abuser on your own… get help from HPD or HHS. They are trained to deal with matters of animal cruelty and those commit such unspeakable acts.

Always remember that HPD and HHS cannot stop animal cruelty that they don’t know about… so notify them immediately!

There is story about a man that asked God why he wasn’t doing anything to help the animals that were suffering from cruelty. God answered, “I did do something. I created you!”

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