Despite Saskatchewan having the highest rate of police-reported domestic abuse in the country, male spousal abuse is often dismissed and ignored.
"In the research world, (male spousal abuse) is something that people are just starting to look at," said Rachel Trann from Partners Family Services in Humboldt. "What they have found is that there's not a huge gap in percentages, but the types of abuse seem to be different."
According to a Statistics Canada report in 2011, Saskatchewan had the highest rate of police-reported intimate partner violence. At a population rate per 100,000, violence against female victims was just over 1,200. Violence against males was just under a third of that rate.
That statistic, however, can be misleading considering the differing nature of male spousal abuse and the shame that is carried with it.
"(Spousal abuse) comes down to power. For men, that could come in the form of emotional or mental abuse," said Trann.
"Men are less likely to report to the RCMP when they're being abused. There's a stigma regarding any form of family violence, but it's even greater for men."
That embarrassment often hinders men fromseeking help or reporting to the police, said Trann. Even if they do decide to get help, the resources at their disposal are significantly less compared to women. It was only recently that Partners' anonymous cell phone service opened up for men as well as women.
"We have dealt with (male spousal abuse) in the past," said Cpl. Randy Wittig from the RCMP in Humboldt. "We suspect it's reported a lot less than it happens. It's usually common assault-like when a partner picks up something and throws it."
According to various help websites online, abuse of male partners can be anything from name-calling, insults, isolation, financial control and manipulation to physical assault such as shoving, hitting, kicking, or slapping.
"Abuse in general is about power. It's not about wanting to hit someone," said Trann. "It's not just physical. It can be mental, emotional, financial, spiritual, or sexual."
Until earlier this year, the only abuse shelter for men in Canada was closed due to a lack of funding. The shelter, called Men's Alternative Safe House (MASH), was run by Earl Silverman. Silverman committed suicide the following month after becoming homeless.
"It would have been nice if somebody had written in to deplore the disparity in treatment between female and male victims of domestic abuse," said Barbara Kay in the National Post article regarding Silverman's death. "The silence on the letters page spoke volumes on the stubbornly persisting public perception that only women are victims of domestic violence, or that when men suffer abuse, they provoked it or deserve it."
Since the closing of that shelter in Calgary, the only resource that comes up on a Google search is the Men's Advice Line.
There are many tips and information resources about spousal abuse against men, but hardly any links for support lines or support groups. In Humboldt, the support for men can only be found at Partners Family Services.
"We've definitely seen an increase in our male clients," said Trann. "We've seen a significant increase overall in the services accessed over the last fiscal year. It's been almost doubled."
According to Trann, they've had males come in for support for emotional and mental abuse, such as belittling and bullying.
"It doesn't matter who comes to us for help, we just try to help them through it," said Trann.
