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Abuse

Animal hoarding

An often overlooked type of abuse, animal hoarding can be a serious problem.

A person who is hoarding animals may keep an excessive number of animals in poor conditions with no means to care for them appropriately. Someone who hoards animals may not realise the extent of the problem, and may be in denial about what is happening.

Signs that someone may be an animal hoarder:
  • they possess more than the typical number of companion animals
  • they are unable to provide even minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation, shelter and veterinary care, which may result in starvation, illness and death
  • they are in denial of their inability to provide minimum care and the impact of that failure on the animals, their home and other people who may live there

A person who hoards animals may be dealing with other mental health issues and require support to manage this.

Remember that not everyone who has multiple animals is an animal hoarder.


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