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I've seen several houses like that. I was on a team cleaning out one after elderly owner died. There weren't dead cats, but there were bugs and filth in several rooms just a few feet short of the ceiling. Yes, we were in suits and had masks.
The elderly owners had clinical depression, OCD, and other mental challenges. It wasn't right, but I can understand why the caregiver(s) may have stepped away in the Iowa case. It takes a team to tackle a problem like that when it has been allowed to get that bad.
Also, in many cases, there is no cure. The owner generally ends up in a mental hospital or other facility.
Well, that's true. And if you look at this particular hoarder's home, it's not much different from what you'd find in the homes of hoarders who amass other types of things.
And as in those cases, family members aren't prepared to deal with the underlying illness. That's when others have to step in.
Rescuers, in protective gear, were only allowed to enter the premises for 30 minutes at a time. The dead cats were found in refrigerators and freezers throughout the house, and the man refused to cooperate, thinking that he (and the cats) should be allowed to remain there.
The animal rescue organization is overwhelmed because this is the area's third hoarder case in six weeks, and the living (so far) 186 cats and kittens need treatment and care.
Let's not forget why it is so difficult to do something about it.
Quote:
The ARL lobbied Iowa lawmakers in the 2018 session to strengthen animal cruelty laws, including requiring mental health evaluations for offenders, like in cases such as this. The bill passed unanimously out of the Iowa House, but Iowa Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver refused to bring it to a floor vote before the session ended.
There were some cat hoarders on the Hoarders tv show with dead cats discovered under the piles, and some "stored" in the freezer. Some of the dead cats had been there so long they were dried out and flat like a cardboard cutout.
Of course all of these people are mentally ill, but it takes a lot to get full guardianship and control of an adult.
By this guy's photo he looks really out of it, and older than his age. It is fascinating that in one of the photos in the midst of the hoard and feces there appears to be a small air purifier. Maybe at one point he tried.
What a horrific situation for those cats! Thank goodness the surviving cats have been rescued, and hopefully the gentleman hoarder gets into a good place where he can get appropriate care and supervision. A place with a visiting cat would be nice, like the nursing home we chose for my aunt. Every week, they brought in a cat to visit with the cat lovers.
But I wonder how many people assumed the cat hoarder was a woman?
I did. I've never heard of a Crazy Cat Man before.
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