The monograph begins with a brief history of animal cruelty laws, which began as far back as 1641 with the Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, before moving on to a discussion of why animal cruelty cases should be prosecuted. Main reasons for prosecuting animal cruelty cases are that incidents of animal cruelty can be indicators and predictors of other types of violent criminality toward humans, they destabilize communities by instilling fear, and the prosecution of such crimes is consistent with the Balanced Approach Model of juvenile justice, which is currently emphasized in contemporary juvenile justice prosecution. The way in which cruelty to animals is defined varies widely by State; some definitions are quite succinct and non-specific while others incorporate a comprehensive collection of references to historical and modern animal-related offenses. The types of animal cruelty (simple neglect; gross willful, cruel, or malicious neglect; intentional abuse, torture; animal hoarding; organized abuse such as dogfighting and cockfighting; ritualistic abuse; and animal sexual assault) are described followed by a discussion of the progression of a cruelty to animals case, which begins with a report of animal cruelty and concludes with a consideration of sentencing requests and guidelines. The prosecution of animal cruelty cases also involves the disposition of deceased animals, the charging decision, and the building of the case, which is described as similar to cases involving interpersonal violence or sexual assault. The outcome of animal cruelty prosecutions should: (1) hold offenders accountable for their crimes; (2) enhance community safety; (3) develop the offender’s competencies to become a productive member of the community; and (4) provide for the interests of the animals involved. Types of punishment are considered, including limits on employment, restitution, punishment, fines, prison, probation, community service, and psychological evaluation. References, appendix