Editing Zoosadism (section)

==Research==
Some studies have suggested that individuals who are cruel to animals are more likely to be violent to humans. According to ''The New York Times'':

{{cquote|The Federal Bureau of Investigation{{!}}FBI has found that a history of cruelty to animals is one of the traits that regularly appear in its computer records of Serial rape{{!}}serial rapists and Serial killer{{!}}murderers, and the standard diagnostic and treatment manual for psychiatric and emotional disorders lists cruelty to animals as a diagnostic criterion for conduct disorders.<ref>{{Cite news | last = Goleman | first = Daniel | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | title = Child's Love of Cruelty May Hint at the Future Killer | newspaper = New York Times | pages = | year = | date = 7 August 1991 | url = | postscript = <!--None--> }}</ref>}}

Helen Gavin wrote however in ''Criminological and Forensic Psychology'' (2013):

{{cquote|This is not a universal trait, though. Dennis Nilsen had difficulty initiating social contact with people, but loved his faithful companion, Bleep, a mongrel bitch. After his arrest, he was very concerned for her welfare, as she was taken to the police station too.<ref name="Helen Gavin 2013 120">{{cite book|author=Helen Gavin|title=Criminological and Forensic Psychology|pages=120|year=2013}}</ref>}}

Alan R. Felthous reported in his paper "Aggression Against Cats, Dogs, and People" (1980):

{{cquote|A survey of psychiatric patients who had repeatedly tortured dogs and cats found all of them had high levels of aggression toward people as well, including one patient who had murdered a boy.<ref>{{Cite journal | last = Felthous | first = Alan R. | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | title = Aggression Against Cats, Dogs, and People | journal = Child Psychiatry and Human Development | volume = 10 | pages = 169–177 | date = | year = 1980 | url = | doi = 10.1007/bf01433629| id = | postscript = <!--None--> }}</ref>}}

This is a commonly reported finding, and for this reason, cruelty to animals is often considered a warning sign of potential violence towards humans.