Animal hoarding
Encyclopedia
Animal hoarding involves keeping higher than usual numbers of animals as domestic pet
s without having the ability to properly house or care for them, while at the same time denying
this inability. Compulsive hoarding
can be characterized as a symptom of mental disorder rather than deliberate cruelty towards animals. Hoarders are deeply attached
to their pets and find it extremely difficult to let the pets go. They typically cannot comprehend that they are harming their pets by failing to provide them with proper care. Hoarders tend to believe that they provide the right amount of care for their pets. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
provides a "Hoarding Prevention Team", which works with hoarders to help them attain a manageable and healthy number of pets.
, who would have a large number of animals as the central component of his or her business; this distinction can be problematic, however, as some hoarders are former breeders who have ceased selling and caring for their animals, while others will claim to be breeders as a psychological defense mechanism, or in hopes of forestalling intervention. Gary Patronek, director of the Center for Animals and Public Policy at Tufts University
, defines hoarding as the "pathological human behavior that involves a compulsive need to obtain and control animals, coupled with a failure to recognize their suffering," According to another study, the distinguishing feature is that a hoarder
Alternatively, animal hoarding could be related to addiction
, dementia
, or even focal delusion.
in typical hoarding situations. Animals rescued from hoarders must often be cared for at the rescuer's expense, and the high cost of doing this can also act as a disincentive for prosecuting hoarding cases. These factors can make it a lengthy and challenging legal process to secure a verdict against an animal hoarder charged with animal cruelty.
In 2005, the Animal Legal Defense Fund
won a significant legal victory in the Sanford, North Carolina
, case ALDF v. Woodley.
A unique North Carolina state law allows any person or organization to sue an animal abuser. In April 2005, the judge in the case granted an injunction allowing ALDF and county authorities to remove more than 300 diseased, neglected, and abused dogs from the home of a Sanford couple. ALDF was granted custody of the animals, and the hoarders were found guilty of animal cruelty charges. ALDF subsequently won the right to restrict the hoarders' visitation rights while the dogs remained in custody during ongoing appeals.
, an RSPCA spokeswoman said the society was campaigning for legislation to monitor people who took in large numbers of animals.
, even in cases where the animals are not beyond rehabilitation, is often the only option for rescued animals. The effects of hoarding on the health and socialization of the animals involved are severe and lasting, taking heavy tolls on both their physical and psychological well-being.
, envenomation
s, and neglect of oneself and dependents.
In addition to severe odors which may pose a nuisance to neighbors, animal waste poses serious health risks in both the spread of parasites and the presence of noxious ammonia
levels. OSHA
, the United States agency regulating air quality standards in work-related environments, has identified an ammonia level of 300 parts per million as life-threatening for humans; in many hoarding cases the atmospheric ammonia level in the housing space approaches this number, requiring the use of protective clothing and breathing apparati during inspections or interventions. In an extreme case, the ammonia level in the hoarder’s house was 152 parts per million, even after ventilation.
The presence of animal waste also prevents sanitary means of food storage and preparation, which puts residents at particular risk of contracting food-related illnesses and parasites. Insect and rodent infestation can both follow and worsen hoarding conditions, and it can potentially spread to the surrounding environment including nearby buildings. In one case, an elementary school had to be shut down due to a flea infestation that had spread from a nearby dog hoarder residence.
Hoarders are frequently found to collect large numbers of inanimate objects in addition to animals, giving rise to extreme clutter as well. Hoarded objects can include newspapers, trash, clothing, and food; and the clutter inhibits normal movement around the house, hampering household maintenance and sanitary food preparation; heightening risks of accidents and contributing to the overall level of squalor. A lack of functioning utilities, such as toilets, sinks, electricity, or proper heating (often for non-payment of bills, a common theme in cluttering, though poor maintenance may also be a cause) further exacerbates the problem. Fire hazards comprise yet another health issue tied to poor sanitation; the clutter found in many hoarding households prevents workable fire escape
plans and serves as a possible fuel when located close to heat sources. The risk is amplified when hoarders, due to inoperative normal heating systems, seek alternate heating methods such as fire places, stoves, or kerosene heaters.
, influenza
, and rabies
. Common domesticated animals constitute a large portion of animals carrying zoonoses, and as a result, humans involved in animal hoarding situations are at particular risk of contracting disease. Zoonoses that may arise in hoarding situations—through means such as dog, cat, or rat bites—include rabies, salmonellosis
, catscratch fever, hookworm
, and ringworm. One zoonosis of special concern is toxoplasmosis
, which can be transmitted to humans through cat feces or badly prepared meat, and is known to cause severe birth defects or stillbirth in the case of infected pregnant women. The risk of zoonotic diseases is amplified by the possibility of community epidemics. Overall, zoonotic diseases constitute a major human health issue related to animal hoarding.
and elder
and child abuse
are also health problems associated with animal hoarding. Self-neglect can be defined as "the inability to provide for oneself the goods or services to meet basic needs," and has been shown to be an "independent risk factor for death". While self-neglect is a condition generally associated with the elderly, animal hoarders of any age can and do suffer from it. This is demonstrated by the fact that hoarders’ lifestyles often match the degenerate sanitary conditions that surround them. Child and elder abuse arise when dependents are living with the hoarder. According to one study, dependents lived with the hoarder in over half of the cases. As with his or her animals, the hoarder often fails to provide adequate care for dependents both young and old, who suffer from a lack of basic necessities as well as the health problems caused by unsanitary conditions. In one case, two children of a couple hoarding 58 cats and other animals were forced to repeat kindergarten and first grade because of excessive absence due to respiratory infections. Self-neglect and neglect of dependents make up a major human health concern of animal hoarding.
, attachment disorder
, obsessive–compulsive disorder, zoophilia
, dementia
, and addiction. Direct evidence for most is lacking, however.
, which is primarily caused by poor parent-child relationships during childhood. It is characterized by an inability to form "close relationships [with other humans] in adulthood". As a result, those suffering from attachment disorder may turn to animals for companionship. Interviews with animal hoarders have revealed that hoarders have often experienced domestic trauma in childhood, which is the basis of the evidence for this model.
Pet
A pet is a household animal kept for companionship and a person's enjoyment, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful...
s without having the ability to properly house or care for them, while at the same time denying
Denial
Denial is a defense mechanism postulated by Sigmund Freud, in which a person is faced with a fact that is too uncomfortable to accept and rejects it instead, insisting that it is not true despite what may be overwhelming evidence.The subject may use:* simple denial: deny the reality of the...
this inability. Compulsive hoarding
Compulsive hoarding
Compulsive hoarding is the acquisition of possessions in excess of socially normative amounts, even if the items are worthless, hazardous, or unsanitary...
can be characterized as a symptom of mental disorder rather than deliberate cruelty towards animals. Hoarders are deeply attached
Attachment theory
Attachment theory describes the dynamics of long-term relationships between humans. Its most important tenet is that an infant needs to develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver for social and emotional development to occur normally. Attachment theory is an interdisciplinary study...
to their pets and find it extremely difficult to let the pets go. They typically cannot comprehend that they are harming their pets by failing to provide them with proper care. Hoarders tend to believe that they provide the right amount of care for their pets. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing cruelty towards animals...
provides a "Hoarding Prevention Team", which works with hoarders to help them attain a manageable and healthy number of pets.
Characteristics of a hoarder
An animal hoarder is distinguished from a person who keeps an unusually large number of pets, but who fails to care for them properly. A hoarder is distinguished from an animal breederBreeder
A breeder is a person who practices the vocation of mating carefully selected specimens of the same breed to reproduce specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics....
, who would have a large number of animals as the central component of his or her business; this distinction can be problematic, however, as some hoarders are former breeders who have ceased selling and caring for their animals, while others will claim to be breeders as a psychological defense mechanism, or in hopes of forestalling intervention. Gary Patronek, director of the Center for Animals and Public Policy at Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
, defines hoarding as the "pathological human behavior that involves a compulsive need to obtain and control animals, coupled with a failure to recognize their suffering," According to another study, the distinguishing feature is that a hoarder
"fails to provide the animals with adequate food, water, sanitation, and veterinary care, and … is in denial about this inability to provide adequate care." Along with other compulsive hoardingCompulsive hoardingCompulsive hoarding is the acquisition of possessions in excess of socially normative amounts, even if the items are worthless, hazardous, or unsanitary...
behaviours, it is linked in the DSM-IV to obsessive compulsive disorder and obsessive compulsive personality disorder.
Alternatively, animal hoarding could be related to addiction
Behavioral addiction
Behavioral addiction is a form of addiction which does not rely on drugs or alcohol. Increasingly referred to as process addiction or non-substance-related addiction ) behavioral addiction includes a compulsion to repeatedly engage in an action until said action causes serious negative consequences...
, dementia
Dementia
Dementia is a serious loss of cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging...
, or even focal delusion.
United States
Many states have no legal definition for animal hoarding (though localities may have a limit of the number and types of pets), and many people are unaware of the severity of neglectNeglect
Neglect is a passive form of abuse in which a perpetrator is responsible to provide care for a victim who is unable to care for himself or herself, but fails to provide adequate care....
in typical hoarding situations. Animals rescued from hoarders must often be cared for at the rescuer's expense, and the high cost of doing this can also act as a disincentive for prosecuting hoarding cases. These factors can make it a lengthy and challenging legal process to secure a verdict against an animal hoarder charged with animal cruelty.
In 2005, the Animal Legal Defense Fund
Animal Legal Defense Fund
The Animal Legal Defense Fund is an American non-profit law organization that aims to protect the rights and advance the interests of animals through the legal system. It was founded in 1979 by attorneys active in shaping the emerging field of animal law. The ALDF has campaigned for stronger...
won a significant legal victory in the Sanford, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, case ALDF v. Woodley.
A unique North Carolina state law allows any person or organization to sue an animal abuser. In April 2005, the judge in the case granted an injunction allowing ALDF and county authorities to remove more than 300 diseased, neglected, and abused dogs from the home of a Sanford couple. ALDF was granted custody of the animals, and the hoarders were found guilty of animal cruelty charges. ALDF subsequently won the right to restrict the hoarders' visitation rights while the dogs remained in custody during ongoing appeals.
Europe
In the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, an RSPCA spokeswoman said the society was campaigning for legislation to monitor people who took in large numbers of animals.
Dangers of hoarding animals
The health issues in animal hoarding encompass a variety of concerns related to both individual and public health. Animal hoarding is the cause of many severe health risks that threaten the hoarded animals, individuals living in hoarding residences, and surrounding neighbors.Health effects on animals
Due to the harmful effects on the health of the animals involved, animal hoarding is considered a form of animal cruelty. Hoarders often fail to provide even basic care for their animals, thus resulting in disease and often death. The primary animal health issues involved are malnourishment, overcrowding, and problems related to neglect. Consequences of hoarding are long-lasting and continue to affect the animals even after they have been rescued and provided with better care.Malnourishment
Lack of sufficient food and water is a common feature of hoarding situations. The immediate consequence of this is starvation and death. One study found at least one dead animal present in over half of the examined cases, the leading cause of death being an insufficient food and water supply. Malnourishment also leads to increased susceptibility to diseases, and the hoarded animals are often in advanced stages of sickness. Further, when there is a limited food supply, animals may resort to aggressive behavior in competing for available food, killing and sometimes even eating other animals. The hoarder’s failure to provide sufficient food and water constitutes one of the principal health risks to hoarded animals.Overcrowding
Overcrowding is also an acute animal health problem in hoarding situations. The number of animals found in hoarding cases range from dozens to several hundreds, with extreme cases reaching over a thousand. These animals are confined to houses, apartments, or even trailer-homes. In one case 306 cats were removed from a home, 87 of which were dead. Corpses were found embedded in the chimney and living room furniture. In addition to lack of living space, the extreme overcrowding facilitates the spread of diseases among animals. Furthermore, in cases where more than one species are confined to the same living spaces, the animals can pose a danger to each other due to inter-species aggression. Due to insufficient living space, the spread of disease, and close proximity to other animals, overcrowding is a major animal health concern of hoarding.Owner neglect
Various other health problems arise from hoarders’ neglect of and inability to provide basic care for the animals. Lack of veterinary attention is notable among these. Hoarders, refusing to acknowledge the deteriorating health conditions of their animals and scared they will be forced to give up custody, often refuse to bring their animals in for veterinary treatment. As a result, diseases are left untreated and allowed to become more severe. Another problem tied to neglect is poor sanitary conditions for the animals. Basic animal waste management is absent in virtually all animal-hoarding situations, and animals are found filthy and often infected with parasites as a result. Further, animals suffer behaviorally from a lack of socialization caused by an absence of normal interaction with humans and other animals. Hoarders’ neglect to provide even minimal standards of care, in addition to the problems of insufficient food and severe crowding, contribute much to the health problems of animal hoarding.Lasting consequences
Many of these health problems continue to cause suffering even after the animals are rescued. Strained animal shelters or humane societies, forced to prioritize when dealing with a large number of rescued animals, may be unable to provide immediate treatment to many animals. Further, many of the rescued animals, due to health or behavioral problems, may be un-adoptable. EuthanasiaEuthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
, even in cases where the animals are not beyond rehabilitation, is often the only option for rescued animals. The effects of hoarding on the health and socialization of the animals involved are severe and lasting, taking heavy tolls on both their physical and psychological well-being.
Health effects on humans
Animal hoarding also causes many health problems for the individuals involved. Hoarders, by definition, fail to correct deteriorating sanitary conditions of their living spaces, and this gives rise to several health risks for those living in and around hoarding residences. Animal hoarding is at the root of a string of human health problems including horrendous sanitation, fire hazards, zoonotic diseasesZoonosis
A zoonosis or zoonoseis any infectious disease that can be transmitted from non-human animals to humans or from humans to non-human animals . In a study of 1415 pathogens known to affect humans, 61% were zoonotic...
, envenomation
Envenomation
Envenomation is the process by which venom is injected into some animal by the bite of a venomous animal. Many kinds of animals, including mammals , reptiles , spiders , insects , employ venom for hunting and for self defense...
s, and neglect of oneself and dependents.
Sanitation concerns
Poor sanitation practices, a general characteristic of hoarding households, poses numerous health risks to inhabitants, both animal and human. In typical hoarding residences, animal waste is found coating interior surfaces, including beds, countertops, and cupboards. In one case, floors and other surfaces were found to be covered in a six-inch layer of feces and garbage.In addition to severe odors which may pose a nuisance to neighbors, animal waste poses serious health risks in both the spread of parasites and the presence of noxious ammonia
Ammonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
levels. OSHA
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. It was created by Congress of the United States under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, signed by President Richard M. Nixon, on December 29, 1970...
, the United States agency regulating air quality standards in work-related environments, has identified an ammonia level of 300 parts per million as life-threatening for humans; in many hoarding cases the atmospheric ammonia level in the housing space approaches this number, requiring the use of protective clothing and breathing apparati during inspections or interventions. In an extreme case, the ammonia level in the hoarder’s house was 152 parts per million, even after ventilation.
The presence of animal waste also prevents sanitary means of food storage and preparation, which puts residents at particular risk of contracting food-related illnesses and parasites. Insect and rodent infestation can both follow and worsen hoarding conditions, and it can potentially spread to the surrounding environment including nearby buildings. In one case, an elementary school had to be shut down due to a flea infestation that had spread from a nearby dog hoarder residence.
Hoarders are frequently found to collect large numbers of inanimate objects in addition to animals, giving rise to extreme clutter as well. Hoarded objects can include newspapers, trash, clothing, and food; and the clutter inhibits normal movement around the house, hampering household maintenance and sanitary food preparation; heightening risks of accidents and contributing to the overall level of squalor. A lack of functioning utilities, such as toilets, sinks, electricity, or proper heating (often for non-payment of bills, a common theme in cluttering, though poor maintenance may also be a cause) further exacerbates the problem. Fire hazards comprise yet another health issue tied to poor sanitation; the clutter found in many hoarding households prevents workable fire escape
Fire escape
A fire escape is a special kind of emergency exit, usually mounted to the outside of a building or occasionally inside but separate from the main areas of the building. It provides a method of escape in the event of a fire or other emergency that makes the stairwells inside a building inaccessible...
plans and serves as a possible fuel when located close to heat sources. The risk is amplified when hoarders, due to inoperative normal heating systems, seek alternate heating methods such as fire places, stoves, or kerosene heaters.
Zoonotic diseases
Another human health issue caused by animal hoarding is the risk of zoonotic diseases. Defined as "human diseases acquired from or transmitted to any other vertebrate animal," zoonotic diseases can often be lethal and in all cases constitute a serious public health concern. Examples of well-known zoonotic diseases include bubonic plagueBubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
, influenza
Influenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
, and rabies
Rabies
Rabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis in warm-blooded animals. It is zoonotic , most commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post-exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms...
. Common domesticated animals constitute a large portion of animals carrying zoonoses, and as a result, humans involved in animal hoarding situations are at particular risk of contracting disease. Zoonoses that may arise in hoarding situations—through means such as dog, cat, or rat bites—include rabies, salmonellosis
Salmonellosis
Salmonellosis is an infection with Salmonella bacteria. Most people infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever, vomiting, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. In most cases, the illness lasts four to seven days, and most people recover without treatment...
, catscratch fever, hookworm
Hookworm
The hookworm is a parasitic nematode that lives in the small intestine of its host, which may be a mammal such as a dog, cat, or human. Two species of hookworms commonly infect humans, Ancylostoma duodenale and Necator americanus. A. duodenale predominates in the Middle East, North Africa, India...
, and ringworm. One zoonosis of special concern is toxoplasmosis
Toxoplasmosis
Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. The parasite infects most genera of warm-blooded animals, including humans, but the primary host is the felid family. Animals are infected by eating infected meat, by ingestion of feces of a cat that has itself...
, which can be transmitted to humans through cat feces or badly prepared meat, and is known to cause severe birth defects or stillbirth in the case of infected pregnant women. The risk of zoonotic diseases is amplified by the possibility of community epidemics. Overall, zoonotic diseases constitute a major human health issue related to animal hoarding.
Self-neglect and child/elder abuse
The problems of self-neglectSelf-neglect
Self-neglect is a behavioural condition in which an individual neglects to attend to their basic needs, such as personal hygiene, appropriate clothing, feeding, or tending appropriately to any medical conditions they have. Extreme self-neglect can be known as Diogenes...
and elder
Elder abuse
Elder abuse is a general term used to describe certain types of harm to older adults. Other terms commonly used include: "elder mistreatment," "senior abuse," "abuse in later life," "abuse of older adults," "abuse of older women," and "abuse of older men."...
and child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
are also health problems associated with animal hoarding. Self-neglect can be defined as "the inability to provide for oneself the goods or services to meet basic needs," and has been shown to be an "independent risk factor for death". While self-neglect is a condition generally associated with the elderly, animal hoarders of any age can and do suffer from it. This is demonstrated by the fact that hoarders’ lifestyles often match the degenerate sanitary conditions that surround them. Child and elder abuse arise when dependents are living with the hoarder. According to one study, dependents lived with the hoarder in over half of the cases. As with his or her animals, the hoarder often fails to provide adequate care for dependents both young and old, who suffer from a lack of basic necessities as well as the health problems caused by unsanitary conditions. In one case, two children of a couple hoarding 58 cats and other animals were forced to repeat kindergarten and first grade because of excessive absence due to respiratory infections. Self-neglect and neglect of dependents make up a major human health concern of animal hoarding.
Mental health issues
Though it has not been firmly linked to any specific psychological disorder, evidence suggests that there is "a strong mental health component" in animal hoarding. Models that have been projected to explain animal hoarding include delusional disorderDelusional disorder
Delusional disorder is an uncommon psychiatric condition in which patients present with circumscribed symptoms of non-bizarre delusions, but with the absence of prominent hallucinations and no thought disorder, mood disorder, or significant flattening of affect...
, attachment disorder
Attachment disorder
Attachment disorder is a broad term intended to describe disorders of mood, behavior, and social relationships arising from a failure to form normal attachments to primary care giving figures in early childhood, resulting in problematic social expectations and behaviors...
, obsessive–compulsive disorder, zoophilia
Zoophilia
Zoophilia, from the Greek ζῷον and φιλία is the practice of sex between humans and non-human animals , or a preference or fixation on such practice...
, dementia
Dementia
Dementia is a serious loss of cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging...
, and addiction. Direct evidence for most is lacking, however.
Delusional Disorder
Animal hoarders display symptoms of delusional disorder in that they have a "belief system out of touch with reality". Virtually all hoarders lack insight into the extent of deterioration in their habitations and on the health of their animals, refusing to acknowledge that anything is wrong. Further, hoarders may believe they have "a special ability to communicate and/or empathize with animals," rejecting any offers of assistance. Delusional disorder is an effective model in that it offers an explanation of hoarders' apparent blindness to the realities of their situations.Attachment Disorder
Another model that has been suggested to explain animal hoarding is attachment disorderAttachment disorder
Attachment disorder is a broad term intended to describe disorders of mood, behavior, and social relationships arising from a failure to form normal attachments to primary care giving figures in early childhood, resulting in problematic social expectations and behaviors...
, which is primarily caused by poor parent-child relationships during childhood. It is characterized by an inability to form "close relationships [with other humans] in adulthood". As a result, those suffering from attachment disorder may turn to animals for companionship. Interviews with animal hoarders have revealed that hoarders have often experienced domestic trauma in childhood, which is the basis of the evidence for this model.
Obsessive–compulsive Disorder
Perhaps the strongest psychological model put forward to explain animal hoarding is obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). An overwhelming sense of responsibility for something is characteristic of OCD patients, who then take unrealistic measures to fulfill their perceived duty. Animal hoarders often feel a strong sense of responsibility to take care of and protect animals, and their solution—that of acquiring as many animals as they possibly can—is clearly unrealistic. Further, the hoarding of inanimate objects, practiced by a majority of animal hoarders, is a fairly common occurrence in OCD patients. These connections between animal hoarding and obsessive–compulsive disorder suggest that OCD may be a useful model in explaining animal hoarding behavior.Popular culture and fiction
- On Animal Planet's Confessions: Animal Hoarding, friends and family of animal hoarders intervene to offer them support to make a change in the form of psychological help and veterinary care or placement for their pets.
- In the animated series The SimpsonsThe SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
animal hoarding is represented by the semi-recurring character Crazy Cat Lady, whose real name is Eleanor Abernathy. She is a mentally ill old woman covered by cats who is often seen speaking in gibberish and throwing cats at people.
External links
- Confessions: Animal Hoarding on Animal Planet
- Animal Hoarding documentary project
- Inside Animal Hoarding (with video)
- People Who Hoard Animals, Psychiatric Times
- Behind Closed Doors: The Horrors of Animal Hoarding, Humane Society of the United StatesHumane Society of the United StatesThe Humane Society of the United States , based in Washington, D.C., is the largest animal advocacy organization in the world. In 2009, HSUS reported assets of over US$160 million....
- The Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium, Tufts UniversityTufts UniversityTufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
- Animal Hoarding, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsAmerican Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsThe American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing cruelty towards animals...
- Animal Legal Defense Fund
- Animal Hoarding: Alone in a Crowded Room
- News and information on animal hoarding and large scale animal cruelty