In the last month alone, UAN's Emergency Animal Rescue Service (EARS) has responded to two crises that stemmed from animal hoarding situations.

"Animal hoarding" is a serious problem that we are witnessing and hearing about more often. Usually, animal hoarders start off "rescuing" animals and find themselves overwhelmed, unable to stop taking animals in, and unable to care for them properly.

The following information from the Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium is useful to people who may suspect animal hoarding in their own communities.

Animal hoarding is defined by four characteristics:

* Failure to provide minimal standards of sanitation, space, nutrition and veterinary care for the animals

* Inability to recognize the effects of this failure on the welfare of the animals, human members of the household and the environment

* Obsessive attempts to accumulate or maintain a collection of animals in the face of progressively deteriorating conditions

* Denial or minimization of problems and living conditions for people and animals

Researchers have identified three types of hoarders:

* Overwhelmed caregivers may make an effort to provide proper care, but eventually become overwhelmed. They are unable to solve problems effectively, tend to minimize rather than deny the problems, and have a strong attachment to animals as family members. They typically experience a gradual decline in animal caretaking capacity.

* Rescuer hoarders have a strong sense of mission to save animals. They oppose euthanasia, acquire animals actively rather than passively, and believe that they are the only people who can provide adequate care for the animals. Rescue hoarders typically find it hard to refuse requests to take more animals and avoid authorities and/or impede their access.

* Exploiter hoarders are the most problematic to deal with. They acquire animals purely to serve their own needs and lack empathy for people or animals. They tend toward extreme denial of the situation and reject authority or any outsider’s legitimate concern over animal care. Exploiter hoarders usually have superficial charm and charisma and are manipulative and cunning.

If you suspect animal hoarding in your own community, please contact your local animal control agency, humane society or sheriff's department.

For more information on the research and management of animal hoarding, visit the Hoarding Animals Research Consortium.