“Because choosing safety shouldn’t mean leaving a family member behind:” Ahimsa House

Welcome to Featured Rescue Friday! This week it is an honor to be able to feature a phenomenal rescue in Georgia that is helping to assist people and pets in violent situations, Ahimsa House!

Ahimsa House is an organization dedicated to helping the victims (and their fur friends) of domestic violence. “Ahimsa” means “non-violence” in Sanskrit. Their website reports that up to 71% of domestic violence victims entering shelters reported that their abusers threatened, injured, or killed their family pets. Ahimsa House addresses the link between domestic violence and animal cruelty and takes steps to help both the victims and their fur friends.

Emily Christie, who lost a pet to domestic violence, founded the organization in 2004. Today, it is the first and only organization in Georgia that helps human and animal victims of domestic violence.  As of December 2015, Ahimsa House has provided over 52,000 nights of safe shelter to pets in need. They are constantly growing; in the last three years, calls to their 24-hour-crisis line have more than tripled.

In addition to their 24-hour crisis line, Ahimsa House provides a variety of services to victims of domestic violence and their pets.  They provide emergency shelter for any kind of animal in confidential foster homes, veterinary care to any sick or injured animals (including spay and neuter), forensic veterinary examinations to document abuse and assist in prosecuting abusers, assistance both in Georgia and across country to transport pets and their owners to safety, pet food and supplies, legal advocacy to victims, and much more.

Mrs. Universe 2014 Sabrina Pinion publicly supports Ahimsa House. Her platform aims to give men a bigger say in domestic violence. At the Pizza Wars in Alpharetta, Georgia, Pinion set up shop and asked men who came to the event to publicly “take the pledge against domestic violence.” She also had information about Ahimsa House, which she fully supports.

“As a former victim of domestic violence myself, I believe it is so important for more men to speak up and speak out against it,” says Pinion.

Through spokespeople like Sabrina Pinion, Ahimsa House aims to educate the public about the link between domestic violence and animal abuse. They have a documentary addressing and explaining the intersection of animal abuse and domestic violence, as well as more information and statistics on their website.

To support Ahimsa House, visit their website and to stay up to date on their latest news, be sure to follow them on Facebook!