Animal Hoarding
What Happens to the Animals Once They are Rescued?
JUNE 12, 2019 written by Rebecca Wallace
Animal hoarding is something that is more common than you might think. And unfortunately, it is on the rise. The most common animals that are hoarded are cats and dogs and hoarding can consist of hundreds of animals. The media shares a lot about animal hoarding cases, but what they do not talk about as much, is what the animals go through once they are rescued.
There are 3 major things that are seen with animals once they are rescued, malnourishment, disease/illness and severe trauma. Rescuers work hard to help the animals regain their health, but it is a big undertaking and can cost thousand of dollars. Every animal that leaves a hoarding situation needs to be examined by a veterinarian and the vast majority will need some type of medical care. Some will need life long care, and those animals are usually harder to find homes for. In addition to that, these poor animals have undergone trauma by the hoarding situation and by the rescue. These animals normally come from dirty, tight quarters with little veterinary care and without enough food or water. It is traumatic. It takes time, patience, money, and usually foster homes to get the animal ready for adoption. Sue Marue the founder of the Arizona based cat rescue, Ark Cat Sanctuary had this to say, "We have taken in dozens and dozens of cats from all over Arizona that have been rescued from hoarders. The lucky ones can be up for adoption within weeks. But for some, they will never be ready for adoption and will live out their days at Ark or we cannot save them because they are just too sick. We have one little tabby that we rescued from a hoarder in Phoenix over a year ago that just last week allowed us to pet her and love her. Sometimes it takes that long. The problem with that is, most rescues cannot take a year for an animal to come around. They don't have that kind of space or time. It isn't their fault, it is just how it is. We deal with overpopulation, under-funding and just not enough help. Unfortunately, its the animals that suffer."
As a community, how can we help? What impact can we make?
* Please contact your local animal rescue to make a donation or volunteer your time
* If you see an animal in distress, contact authorities
* Let the animal hoarder know that it is okay to ask for help
* Contact your local social services department
For more information on how to identify an animal hoarder please visit https://www.aspca.org/animal-cruelty/animal-hoarding/closer-look-animal-hoarding
