Why it matters

Nationwide

• A woman or girl is killed in Canada every 48 hours via Gender-Based Violence (GBV).

  In 2025, 147 women/girls were murdered. (1)

• 89% of GBV cases had some form of animal maltreatment. (2)

• 60% of women entering shelters have pets (3)

• 56% of clients delayed leaving their abuser because of their pets. (2)

• Only 21% of GBV shelters in Canada surveyed offered onsite co-housing. (3)

In Ontario

• 20% of shelters provide co-housing of people and their pets, mulberryfinder.ca

  • 7% have facilities on site for pets (not in client rooms)

    At a time when people and their pets truly need each other, most pets are placed off-site in foster homes, local veterinary facilities, boarding kennels, or humane societies.

  • (1) Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability (n.d.). #CallItFemicide2025 Report. Femicideincanada.ca. Retrieved April 3, 2026, from https://femicideincanada.ca/cfoja-research/cfoja-reports/

  • (2) Barrett BJ, Fitzgerald A, Stevenson R, Cheung CH. Animal Maltreatment as a Risk Marker of More Frequent and Severe Forms of Intimate Partner Violence. J Interpers Violence. 2020 Nov;35(23-24):5131-5156. doi: 10.1177/0886260517719542. Epub 2017 Jul 14. PMID: 29294833.

  • (3) [Amy Fitzgerald and Rochelle Stevenson]. Intimate partner violence, animal abuse, and shelter: The Canadian landscape [Video]. YouTube. https://fredacentre.com/intimate-partner-violence-animal-abuse-and-shelter-the-canadian-landscape/ ‍