Dog Foster Carers Needed In Yorkshire

21 July 2014, 17:02 | Updated: 21 July 2014, 17:06

A charity that helps domestic violence victims in Yorkshire keep their pets says more than half of the animals have been threatened or abused as well.

The Freedom Project provides foster carers for dogs when people need to leave their homes quickly.

Domestic abuse remains a huge problem in the UK with one in four women physically abused by a partner at some point during their lives.  

The findings show 52% of domestic violence victims using the charity's Freedom Project report that their pets were also threatened or abused by a violent partner.

The pet fostering scheme highlights cases where partners have even threatened to kill, stab or cut their family pets.

Since domestic violence refuges can't accommodate pets many people remain in violent domestic situations simply for fear of what might happen to their pet if they were to flee without it.

 If you want to help foster a dog head to Dog Trust Freedom Project