I was wondering about this and not sure where to post, but I thought this forum would work. I saw a lady on Oprah the other day who has 81 cats and they showed her house and all these cats. It seemed that she was very devoted to caring for them but obviously, you can do a good job and when you get to a certain number of cats it isn't going to matter. In the end she agreed to give up all the cats, which I thought might be unrealistic but that's another matter...
I'm wondering if anyone could clarify for me how you would personally distinguish someone who has a lot of cats with someone who is an animal hoarder. I think I've seen posts from people who are "permanent" homes (opposed to foster) to up to 8 cats. Many of the stories I've read about hoarders talk about 30-200 cats. So where is "the line"?
Like how would you judge how many cats is enough? By temperment of the cats and how well they mesh? By their various habits (litter box, food)? By health concerns requiring separate food types? By your financial situation? By the space in your home? Etc etc? The woman with 81 cats spent tons of time caring for them, and no doubt thought she was capable, so I don't know that judging your own abilities would be a very good measure to go by, but maybe I'm wrong?
What I've read about hoarders is that these things are typical:
-The cats have medical problems that go untreated
-Dead or very sick animals are often found
-The cats are usually not altered and are sometimes inbred
-The homes are usually very dirty with cat feces and urine throughout, and unkempt litterboxes
Anything else? Is there a magical "number"? I've known people with less than ten cats where all of the above would be accurate, but they probably wouldn't be called "hoarders", is that right?
Sorry if I sound ridiculous. Thanks for any comments, clarification, and insight.
I'm wondering if anyone could clarify for me how you would personally distinguish someone who has a lot of cats with someone who is an animal hoarder. I think I've seen posts from people who are "permanent" homes (opposed to foster) to up to 8 cats. Many of the stories I've read about hoarders talk about 30-200 cats. So where is "the line"?
Like how would you judge how many cats is enough? By temperment of the cats and how well they mesh? By their various habits (litter box, food)? By health concerns requiring separate food types? By your financial situation? By the space in your home? Etc etc? The woman with 81 cats spent tons of time caring for them, and no doubt thought she was capable, so I don't know that judging your own abilities would be a very good measure to go by, but maybe I'm wrong?
What I've read about hoarders is that these things are typical:
-The cats have medical problems that go untreated
-Dead or very sick animals are often found
-The cats are usually not altered and are sometimes inbred
-The homes are usually very dirty with cat feces and urine throughout, and unkempt litterboxes
Anything else? Is there a magical "number"? I've known people with less than ten cats where all of the above would be accurate, but they probably wouldn't be called "hoarders", is that right?
Sorry if I sound ridiculous. Thanks for any comments, clarification, and insight.