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C B C . C A N e w s - F u l l S t o r y : Doctors
investigate 'animal-hoarding' as disorder NORTH GRAFTON,
MASSACHUSETTS-- Many
people have heard stories about the neighbourhood 'Cat Lady' or man – a person
with more animals in their home than they know what to do with. The medical
community is starting to study these people, to find out if their behaviour
should be classified as a disorder. Some of the research is
taking place at Tufts University's School of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Gary
Patronek says the classic case of animal hoarding is a single, middle-aged to
elderly woman who lives alone, often in a small house or apartment. These people are typically
surrounded by dozens to sometimes hundreds of animals, living and dead. The
living conditions are such that there will often be piles of feces on the floor.
Researchers will try to
determine if the hoarding is an obsessive compulsion, or an addictive behaviour.
One theory being tested is that people who keep many animals have difficulty
with human interaction, transferring their emotions on to animals.
Jennifer Schmid of the North
Georgia Humane Society used to hoard animals. She said she felt orphaned as a
child, and that animals helped to fill the void she found in her life as an
adult. When her animals were seized
in 1999, she was devastated. At one point in her hoarding career, she had as
many as 120 cats, and 30 dogs living in her home. Now she helps find homes for
pets, but has stopped bringing them home. She says she doesn't consider herself
a hoarder, because she was able to euthanize her animals when necessary. Some researchers believe
many hoarders can't see there's a problem, similar to anorexics who deny being
too thin.
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