They are out of touch with any kind of reality as we know it, and they have no insight into the harm that they are doing to their animals. It also threatens people living in the home where hoarding is taking place, and their neighbors. And that no one will ever feel that they can’t ask for help, and be treated kindly. With compulsive hoarding disorder becoming the subject of a lot of research and officially being classified as its own disorder in the DSM-V as of 2013, we have come to understand much more about compulsive hoarding disorder in recent years. As previously stated, prosecuting hoarders can be problematic. Cats are the most common animal-hoarding victims. Many animal rights advocates believe that the state laws don’t go nearly far enough. Hoarding seems to be strongly connected to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and is sometimes considered a type of OCD. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) estimates that a quarter of a million animals suffer from hoarding every year. If you know the hoarder personally, there is nothing wrong with talking to him or her, and offering reassurance that help is available. One such example is ALDF v. Conyers, a case in which more than 100 dogs were seized. Even when states do not have any specific laws on animal hoarding, there can be municipal ordinances. Many animal hoarders report that they were abused as children, so this is the basis for the theory that animal hoarding may go hand in hand with attachment disorder. The Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium defines the problem this way: There is an accumulation of a large number of animals. Sometimes, this is in an effort to prevent hoarding. Hoarders keep abnormally large numbers of animals for whom they do not provide even the most basic care. One, in fact, had been caged in the basement of the home, and was unable to stand. They may also be very resistant to efforts by the ASPCA to help them achieve a manageable level when it comes to the number of dogs in the home. Hoarding cleaning is the first step in the process of ensuring the safety of pets and owners that may be trapped in their own homes. They feel compelled to acquire animals, and the compulsion does not go away even when it should be obvious to any reasonable person that it is going to be impossible to care for so many. The laws are woefully lacking, psychological help for hoarders virtually non-existent, and the results of hoarding horrific. The animals are so ill that they will not respond to veterinary treatment, and they are so traumatized that they are highly unlikely to be adoptable. Normally, this compulsion starts out as wanting to care for as many animals as possible. Obviously, you don’t need me to tell you that dog hoarders are mentally ill. It’s obvious. Animal hoarding is a hoarding behavior characterized by an excessive need to keep as many animals as possible without providing the necessary minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation, and shelter. This is particularly true in cases of animal hoarding, where a person takes in far too many animals than can be cared for and becomes virtually blind to their suffering. While hoarder personality traits and demographics vary widely, Basically, hoarders have two characteristics. Hoarding level 5, the most severe type of hoarding disorder, involves severe structural damage to the residence. This may not sound all that different from the laws in other states, but what it means is that prosecutors can charge hoarders in Hawaii with a single count that actually covers all the animals in the hoarder’s possession. Those animals are not receiving minimal standards of care, including sanitation. Animal hoarding is a complex issue where someone is housing too many pets that they can adequately care for. If you could spend 24 hours a day cleaning your house and still could not keep up, you have too many. Then they just go back to hoarding. In some instances, the court may also order that the hoarder undergo psychological counselling. Hawaii, however, specifically prohibits hoarding, and sets a specific number – any more than 15 animals (dogs and cats only are considered; there are no provisions for birds or reptiles) constitutes hoarding if the animals are not properly cared for, and can be prosecuted as a misdemeanor or as a criminal offense. Hoarders are not just too unable to care for their dogs; they are also incapable of taking care of themselves, or any humans who may live with them. However, the situation and the way the pets are cared for are the determining factors. The courts are not burdened by multiple charges, and hoarders do not get away with having only one charge leveled against them when, in fact, several animals have been harmed. Although any animal could be hoarded, cats and dogs are more commonly the victims. In addition, when a person does have too many animals or pets, the assistance of a trained, experienced professional pet hoarding cleanup specialist will be needed. As previously mentioned, it is probably a variation on OCD, but it can also be an indication of an attachment disorder (an abnormal attachment to animals or an inability to bond with humans), and can also have its roots in dementia (we’ve all heard of the “crazy cat lady”), and even sometimes in addiction. At its most horrific, animal rescuers have entered homes to find it littered with corpses in various stages of decay, some even cannibalized by other starving dogs. Considering the fact that animals are legally considered property, animal hoarding it would appear that it would qualify as compulsive hoarding … Besides, hoarders are not likely to be all that concerned about the law – they’ll just keep their dogs inside, in even worse conditions than if they were visible, rather than be parted from their pets. Sometimes, the stress of trying to look after so many dogs, coupled with the effort that it takes to maintain the delusion that nothing is wrong, spills over into actual abuse. Hoarders, of course, fear losing their animals, so they don’t ask for help. It’s also a slippery slope. After all, it is certainly possible for people to take care of many dogs at once, and an arbitrary number does nothing to forestall cruelty. Hoarding or caching in animal behavior is the storage of food in locations hidden from the sight of both conspecifics (animals of the same or closely related species) and members of other species. Occasionally, a hoarder will keep exotic or wild animals. Eighty percent of animal hoarders have diseased, dying, or … I’ve always been worried that I might cross the line and be considered a hoarder. Animal hoarding can be a very difficult subject to address. Instead, deep cleaning case managers can only suggest how to sanitize the affected property and how to avoid biohazards from causing the spread of dangerous diseases. Behavioral issues are also rampant. Even when there are so many dogs that it becomes impossible to maintain a decent level of sanitation, properly nourish them all, and provide veterinary care, even when the hoarder’s own health has become compromised, and even when disease, starvation and death occur, hoarders will cling to the belief that they are providing a good standard of care for their dogs. Hoarding is a form of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and may be accompanied by other symptoms of OCD. 12 Recidivism in this context refers to the frequency with which people reacquire multiple animals after having animals legally removed. Animal hoarding doesn’t just affect the animals involved. I know my limit. Often the floors, and even the countertops, of homes where hoarding has taken place, are covered in layers of trash and feces that are inches deep. Hoarding alone is not a violation of the Act, though – harm must be proven. They are not deliberately cruel – in fact, they love their animals very much, and may even believe, despite their circumstances, that they are providing proper care. You might not think that someone who is so invested in their dogs could be intentionally cruel to any living creature, but this often happens. A basic rule of thumb when determining if a person is suffering with animal hoarding is to decide if the owners have control of the home or the pets have control of the home. As of 2013, animal hoarding has been recognized as a mental illness and is listed in the DSM-5 under “Hoarding Disorder.” Animal hoarding has a negative impact on the animals. The dogs were in horrible condition. But if you think you know of an instance of hoarding, you can help. Hoarders often have difficulty organizing. The hoarder lashes out at children and aging parents in addition to being unable to provide a suitable standard of care for them. So, where is the cut-off between someone who is simply dog-obsessed, and a person who is a hoarder? A breeder’s dogs will also be in good condition, and there will not be more animals than is practical for the space available. ... Quality of life is imperative at all stages of life for animals! Center for Animals and Public Policy at Tufts University, 5 Most Common Dog Training Mistakes (Video). Animal hoarding has a negative impact on the occupants of the house. Rehabilitation is hardly ever an option, so the animals that the hoarder actually loved end up being put to sleep. Or is it the number of cats in proportion to the size of your house? To make matters worse, it’s not always just animals that are being hoarded. I’ve talked about breed bans in The Truth About Dog Bites and Should You Get a License for Your Dog, and I do worry that when governments at any level start telling citizens how many dogs they can have, breed bans may be the next step. It’s not rational, and it’s not sensible, but for the hoarder, it is very deniable. Childhood trauma may also be a factor in hoarding behavior. Often, the charge is a single count of animal cruelty – in other words, whether someone has neglected or starved just one dog, or 100 dogs, there may be only one count against them. Compulsive hoarding was commonly considered to be a type of OCD. So, how many cats is too many? Hoarding is animal abuse. Sometimes, a situation just gets out of control, and well-meaning seniors are hesitant to seek assistance out of fear that their beloved animals will be taken and put to sleep. The number of animals found in hoarding cases range from dozens to several hundreds, with extreme cases involving over a thousand animals. Animals collected range from cats and dogs to reptiles, rodents, birds, exotics and even farm animals. And it does not provide for a ban on future ownership of animals. So, how many dogs is too many? Much of the time, rather than prosecute, officials will offer a plea bargain in exchange for the animals being turned over. The Illinois Humane Care for Animals Act includes a definition of animal hoarders, and mandates psychological counselling for offenders. I hope that one day, I will never have to pick up a newspaper or turn on the television and be confronted with a horrific story of dogs that have become so ill that they had to be put down, or even died, due to hoarding. The ALDF (Animal Legal Defense Fund) requested and received a ban on the defendants’ owning any animals for a period of 10 years. How do you know how many pets are “too many”? With all this attention being afforded to hoarders of all stripes (reference a veritable media explosion on the discussion of animal and non-animal hoarding), I've noticed a trend towards a demonized depiction of the so-called, "crazy cat lady." Often, addiction and hoarding also go hand in hand. Repeated offenses can result in the offender being charged with a higher level of misdemeanor, which would carry a higher penalty. Many hoarders collect items in response to anxiety or trauma as a coping mechanism. Whether a person has two animals or two dozen animals should be irrelevant. Fortunately, there are signs to look out for when it comes to potential animal hoarders. Hoarding is one of the most egregious forms of animal cruelty, affecting tens of thousands of animals – mostly cats and dogs – in communities nationwide. Rather, it’s about a compulsive need to acquire animals that reaches an overwhelming state, resulting in unintentional animal neglect or abuse. Veterinary attention is also virtually non-existent when large numbers of dogs are crowded, and disease proliferates. What is at issue is the inability of the owner to take proper care of the dogs, and the refusal to admit that the animals are in poor health and the home is toxic. Does anyone know if there is any set number of cats that is now considered illegal and will result in charges being brought against you? Air quality suffers, often to the point where rescuers need to wear protective clothing and breathing apparatus in order to remove the animals from the home. I agree with him. 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