\u201cIt\u2019s really rewarding knowing that you\u2019re helping someone in such a huge way,\u201d she says. \u201cYou\u2019re not just helping the animal, but you\u2019re actually helping the client, or the victim, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having been a vet nurse for 14 years, Hayward says her entire life has been \u201canimal related\u201d. But the chance to work with Pet Refuge provided an opportunity for her to use not just her experience with pets, but her own personal history to help others. Hayward has lived with domestic violence in a relationship before, and says it is a useful way of connecting with people on the job. \u201cIt\u2019s amazing being able to give them that encouragement and let them know that you\u2019ve been through it, that it is hard, but it gets better,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alice Hayward, Pet Refuge caseworker. (Photo: Supplied)<\/p>\n
As Hayward explains it, many people who find themselves in domestic violence situations often rely on their animals as crucial companions in times of abuse and upset. \u201cThey confide in their animals \u2013 their animals become their loyal and trustworthy friends,\u201d she says. \u201cBut then when they want to leave, the abuser knows that the animal is their lifeline, and will use that against them as a form of control.\u201d This is where Pet Refuge comes in, removing the animal and transporting it to a safe place, and allowing the victim to take back some control.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt takes a lot of stress off,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s providing peace of mind \u2013 knowing your pet is safe so you can get yourself and your kids to a safe place too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Perhaps unsurprisingly, no two days in the life of a Pet Refuge worker are ever the same. The charity works closely alongside other domestic violence agencies and police to remove animals from situations, and exit plans can be deployed at all hours of the day and night. Hayward recalls one instance where a woman had to urgently leave her home for her own safety, but had a horse on the premises that was due to give birth. \u201cShe couldn\u2019t be there to keep an eye on it, so we left at about three o\u2019clock in the morning, to get there really early, get it done, and get out of the way.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Pet Refuge staff with some dogs in their care. (Photo: Supplied)<\/p>\n
In another instance, she visited a property that was \u201csmashed up\u201d and found a very old, very grumpy dog barking behind a fence. \u201cThe victim and the abuser had to leave \u2013 he was in custody \u2013 but the dog wasn\u2019t in good health. And it was so nice to take her in.\u201d In the care and safety of Pet Refuge, the dog got back to good health and was eventually returned to the family at their new location. \u201cSeeing the kids\u2019 faces when they reunite again is just the best,\u201d Hayward says. \u201cIt really makes it all worth it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
While there are rewarding moments, there\u2019s also no shortage of challenges. \u201cThere are always certain cases that are really bad, especially ones where the pet is harmed.\u201d Christmas is always a particularly busy time, with the extra financial strain on families leading to more instances of abuse.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not really publicised just how much domestic violence is out there and the pressures that can cause people to turn.\u201d Every December, the pet refuge has to turn to overflow facilities to keep up with demand. \u201cIt\u2019s bad \u2013 and now with the cost of living, the stress on a lot of families is just pretty insane.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hayward says that Pet Refuge services are at an all time high. (Photo: Supplied)<\/p>\n
One of the big misconceptions about domestic violence, Hayward explains, is that it only affects \u201clow decile\u201d areas. \u201cIt can happen to absolutely anyone. Even people that are high profile, wealthy, it\u2019s happening to them too. There\u2019s a lot of emotional control, and most of the domestic violence is not just physical. The mental control is the hardest because nobody can see what goes on behind closed doors and there are no marks left behind.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
From her work on the front line, Hayward is emphatic in expressing that domestic violence is \u201c100%\u201d getting worse in Aotearoa. \u201cIt\u2019s really emotional and really sad to know that people are going through some really awful times out there,\u201d she says. \u201cSomething will always surprise you. If you think you\u2019ve heard it all, you\u2019ve never heard it all.\u201d Her hope is that more people will become aware of the extent of the issue, and reach out to people in their own lives. \u201cJust be a bit more aware, get your friends out for social events, check in on your friends and your family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hayward also says a lot more educational support is needed, not just for victims but abusers too. \u201cWe need to teach them how to control their anger, that this behaviour is not OK,\u201d she says. While refuges and services across the country struggle to cope with demand and minimal support, she\u2019s grateful that these places exist in the first place. \u201cIf it wasn\u2019t for Pet Refuge, I would probably be a lot more worried about the state of a lot of families and victims. So there\u2019s a definite need \u2013 we\u2019ve now just got to grow to be able to help even more people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every day, pets are being removed from domestic violence situations around the country. Alex Casey talks to one…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":512277,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[50,68218,102490,156,111,139,69,254840,31252,2935,254841],"class_list":["post-512276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-animals","tag-domestic-violence","tag-emotional-abuse","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-pet-refuge","tag-pets","tag-society","tag-womens-refuge"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/512276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=512276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/512276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/512277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=512276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=512276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=512276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}