1. http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Animal+abuse
1.1. Source 1: Animal cruelty is the act of inflicting physical pain, suffering, or death on a usually tame animal, beyond normal discipline. It can include neglect such as not providing food or water. I believe this is a reliable source because it is a legal dictionary site. This is useful in helping people understand exactly what qualifies as animal cruelty.
2. Who participates in this issue?
2.1. http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/abuse_neglect/facts/animal_cruelty_facts_statistics.html
2.1.1. Source 5: This source shows the connection between animal cruelty and domestic violence. It states that nearly one million of the animals that are abused come from homes where the people are domestically violent, usually one spouse or person to the other. This just helps solidify the connection between violence among people and the violence towards animals.
2.2. http://www.mspca.org/programs/cruelty-prevention/animal-cruelty-information/animal-cruelty-study.html
2.2.1. Source 4: This particular study shows that people who commit cruelty against animals are most likely convicted or have committed another crime, such as violence against people or property damage related crimes. This gives insight to the demographic that participates in this heinous act.
3. How is it portrayed in the media?
3.1. Sarah McClaughlin, ya know, the commercial with the sad animals and her song playing in the background
3.1.1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gspElv1yvc
3.1.1.1. Source 6: This commercial is designed to tug at the heartstrings of all animal lovers. With Sarah's somber melodies in the background, it is difficult not to cry a little. Most people usually change the channel when these commercials come on, my family is a prime example of that, because it is hard to face the facts of animal cruelty and actually see the animals who were victims. This is a great tool to invoke an emotional response from the audience.
3.2. Shows on Animal Planet like all the time "Animal Cops"
3.2.1. This show is meant to show the viewing audience how bad and common the violence against animals is. It constantly plays on the Animal Planet, rerunning the same sad, heart wrenching episodes to drive home the point of how bad this problem is. I personally do not like this show and do not ever watch it. It is mostly because it is very difficult to handle. However, this could possibly be a good source to show people the severity of this problem. I just wouldn't recommend it.
4. How big of a problem is it?
4.1. http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/cruelty_database/statistics/yearly_animal_abuse_report.php?state=AL&year=2010&search=go
4.1.1. Source 7: This source gives statistics on how many animal cruelty cases and the type of abuse for any given year. It gives you a break down of how many cases of different types of abuse happened that year, from neglect to vehicular. This is the best source I've found, I believe, because it becomes fact when you see those hard numbers in front of you. This website really put things in perspective for me and I believe that it could do the same for others.
5. What are some laws and punishments against it?
5.1. http://www.animallaw.info/statutes/statestatutes/stusalset.htm
5.1.1. Source 2: The Alabama Animal Cruelty Act states that any cruelty against an animal, be it neglect or abuse, is a class C felony and punishable by law. This website is all about animal laws and gives details to the type of crime and the punishment that goes with it. It is useful in finding out the harshness of the punishment for these awful crimes.
5.2. http://awic.nal.usda.gov/government-and-professional-resources
5.2.1. Source 3: The Animal Welfare Act of 1996 was to originally stop the use of animals in laboratory testing, it then became the law that regulates the transportation, treatment in research facilities and by dealers.