1. A Summary of the Results of a 2003 Study of Colorado-Based Veterinarians on Non-Accidental Injury in Dogs and Cats This work was supported by the Animal Assistance Foundation, by the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association and by American Humane

2. Background  1999 Munro/Thursfield study  Non-accidental injury (NAI) in animals follows same patterns of diagnostic features as child abuse  CVMA/AAF connection  Colorado-based study of veterinarians’ beliefs and experiences with NAI  1109 surveys distributed  214 valid, unduplicated responses received (19%)  Luncheon at AH 125 th anniversary in 2002  CVMA members attended

3. Belief and NAI Experience Questions  Do you believe NAI exists?  Yes: 100%  Have you experienced NAI?  Yes: 65.4%  No: 33.6%

4. Animal Age and Gender of Maltreated Animals  Dogs  58.9% were males  63.8% of the males were intact  7.4% were under 12 weeks old  22.8% were 3-6 months  33.1% were aged 7 months – 2 years  30.1% were over 2 years old  Cats  41.7% were males  38.9% were females  15.3% were under 12 weeks old  22.2% were aged 3-6 months  33.3% were aged 7 months – 2 years  20.8% were over 2 years old

5. Most Common Dog Breeds with NAI  Pit Bulls and Labs  15 cases each  Mixed breeds  9 cases  Golden Retrievers and Australian Shepherds  7 cases each  German Shepherds and Cocker Spaniels  6 cases each

6. “What made you suspect or allowed you to recognize NAI?”  A particular person was implicated  Family member (60% of dogs; 61.4% of cats)  Dogs: 41.5% husbands/boyfriends; 18.5% children  Cats: 36.4% husbands/boyfriends; 25% children  Features in history  History provided did not match injuries  Witness to act of violence  Knowledge of violence in home  Previous death/injury involving another animal in home  Story changed over time or from person to person  Person said they had no idea how injury occurred.

7. “What made you suspect or allowed you to recognize NAI?”  Reporting agency involvement  Animal control, police, neighbors, strangers  Behavior of the owner or animal  Injuries  Type of injury  Repetitive injury  Sexual injury  Old injuries  Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy

8. Outcomes  Dogs  67.6% survived  10.3% died due to injuries  13.2% euthanized  Cats  66.7% survived  19.4% died due to injuries  2.8% euthanized

9. Distinguishing Features of NAI Have you seen or experienced any of the following?YesNo No Response Unexplained injuries115 (54%)74 (34%)25 (12%) History not consistent with injury75 (35%)113 (53%)26 (12%) Previous history of unexplained injury/ death, with same owner/family29 (13%)162 (76%)23 (11%) More than one fracture, of differing ages, in the animal33 (15%)159 (74%)22 (10%) Unexplained old rib fractures47 (22%)146 (68%)21 (10%)

10. Next Steps  Development of definitive guidelines for veterinarians on how to recognize NAI in animals  Develop case sheets for reporting suspected NAI  National-level prospective study needed  Future: annual report with data from each state (like NCANDS for animals)  Anyone who has not yet participated can still participate