Bestiality Among Sexually Violent Predators

Abstract

Bestiality, or sexual contact between humans and nonhuman animals, is a poorly understood aspect of sexual behavior. There is a dearth of scientific research on the prevalence of bestiality, the motivations for individuals to engage in the behavior, and the risk that such individuals pose for interpersonal sexual and nonsexual violence. This study is a descriptive analysis of bestiality in all individuals found to be sexually violent predators (SVPs) in the state of Virginia between the years 2003 and 2017. Of 1,248 SVPs, 33 (2.6%) had a history of engaging in bestiality. SVPs with a history of bestiality were significantly more likely to be victims of childhood sexual abuse (P < .005), to engage in nonsexual animal abuse (P < .0001), and to have committed child sexual abuse (P < .005). They were most likely to report sexual contact with dogs and demonstrated a breadth of other atypical sexual behavior. The lifetime prevalence of 2.6 percent is low compared with other published findings, suggesting that offenders may have intentionally minimized their history of atypical sexual behavior. The relationship between childhood sexual victimization and bestiality has not previously been reported in the literature and represents an important nidus for future investigation. Further research is necessary to characterize human–animal sexual interactions in SVPs and other populations.