The Federal Bureau of Investigation has a new target on its radar. Starting 2016, the bureau will begin tracking cases of Animal Cruelty nationwide in a bid to discover how perpetrators of these acts could move on to other violent crimes in the future.

The Baltimore Sun's report says that, at present, crimes of this nature fall under a general, umbrella category together with other hard-to-define acts in the National Incident Based Reporting System - the FBI's central database.

In a podcast published on its official website, the FBI detailed its exact definition of an animal cruelty crime.

"Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly taking an action that mistreats or kills any animal without just cause, such as torturing, tormenting, mutilation, maiming, poisoning, or abandonment.

Included are instances of duty to provide care, e.g., shelter, food, water, care if sick or injured; transporting or confining an animal in a manner likely to cause injury or death; causing an animal to fight with another; inflicting excessive or repeated unnecessary pain or suffering, e.g., uses objects to beat or injure an animal. 

This definition does not include proper maintenance of animals for show or sport; use of animals for food, lawful hunting, fishing or trapping.''

"In animal abuse, you have total power over the animal. If you're willing to exert that in a cruel, malicious and vicious way, then you're likely to do that to people, too, who don't have power, like children and vulnerable adults. It's an issue of a lack of empathy." Said Baltimore Country Prosecutor Adam Lippe in The Sun's report.

According to a report from the Humane Society, animal abuse is one of the key indicators of future domestic violence crimes.

"Researchers have found that between 71% and 83% of women entering domestic violence shelters reported that their partners also abused or killed the family pet." Reads the data.