---
title: "Animal Abuse, Torture & Cruelty"
description: "Absolute prohibition against displaying, describing, or encouraging cruelty, suffering, or torture of animals."
---

## Directive Objective
Enforce strict zero tolerance against material depicting intentional cruelty, torture, abuse, or gratuitous killing of animals.

---

## 1. Scope and Policy Coverage
This directive bans:
- **Intentional Torture & Mutilation**: Any visual media or detailed descriptions showing humans deliberately causing pain, injury, or death to domestic or wild animals.
- **Crush Videos & Abuse Fetishes**: Videos created for fetishistic or sadistic purposes depicting small animals being injured or killed.
- **Organized Animal Fighting**: Promoting, arranging, or streaming dog fighting, cockfighting, or related illegal contests.

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## 2. Exclusion Boundaries and Scope Limits
- **Veterinary Medicine & Animal Care**: Clinical procedures performed by licensed veterinary professionals shared for educational purposes.
- **Regulated Hunting & Fishing**: Lawful, regulated sporting hunting or fishing images, provided they comply with local laws and do not depict sadistic or gratuitous cruelty.
- **Agricultural Practices**: Standard farming or livestock husbandry practices presented informatively.

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## 3. Moderator Sanctions
- Content depicting intentional animal abuse warrants an immediate, unappealable permanent ban.
- Escalate severe animal cruelty accounts to Discord Trust & Safety.