Hoarding has become a nationwide cause célèbre, with shows such as Hoarding littering (pun intended) the airwaves; and help for “object” hoarders, mostly focusing on hoarding cleanup of homes, is a fast-growing industry. But there is another dimension of hoarding that isn’t as widely known, and it’s doubly troubling because it involves the suffering of the innocent. That being said, recently there has been more media coverage about this disorder, and public awareness is in fact increasing. [See Smelly Scene; Rainbow's End; LAPD Online.] Let me be clear about this: Animal hoarding is a mental disorder. We’ve heard the party line: “They want to help the animals, they’re just overwhelmed.” Or, “They really love their animals, but it just got out of hand.” Well, that’s just not the whole story. According to HARC, the Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium, animal hoarding is defined as: The pathological accumulation of animals, using the following criteria:
So, what to do? The situation requires more than just cleaning a hoarding home; the animals must be captured by professionals and either placed in shelters for adoption or, sadly, euthanized because of the severity of their condition. The owners are usually wildly reluctant to surrender their animals, believing that they are being well cared for despite evidence to the contrary.
The Animal Planet posted an interesting article called “5 Ways to Help an Animal Hoarder,” summarized as:
Further reading: http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/people-who-hoard-animals http://animalhoarding.com http://www.examiner.com/article/what-is-animal-hoarding-psychological-profile-of-a-hoarder http://www.aspca.org/search/node?search=animal%20hoarding http://vet.tufts.edu/hoarding/abthoard.htm#A1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_hoarding Comments are closed.
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AuthorMichelle Quintana Featured Service Information
• Hoarding Clearout Saves More than "Stuff" · Why Clients Hire—and Trust— Clutter&Hoarding Pros · Levels IV & V Clear-Out · Is My Loved One a Hoarder? • After the Clean-Out • Animal Hoarding • Decluttering for the Elderly • What Is a Hoarding Clean- Out? • Hoarding vs. Clutter • Hoarding Help in Orange County • Hoarding Help in LA County • How to Choose a Hoarding Clean-Out Company • Why a Junk-Hauling Service Is NOT What You Need! • Paper, Paper, Everywhere! • Are You a Concerned Third Party? • Estate Clearing for a Loved One—You're Not Alone • Clearing a Hoarded Estate During the Holidays • Where Do You Fit In? • Deep Cleaning a Cleared Estate • "That's okay, we have insurance . . ." • Planning to Sell Your Hoarded Estate? • In-Home Assessment for Hoarding Remediation-- Second Step to Success • Is Your Relative's Home Red-Tagged? • 7 Simple Step to a Successful Estate Sale |