215702 Animal hoarding, mental illness, and competency to care

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 : 8:50 AM - 9:10 AM

Gary Patronek, VMD, PhD , Animal Welfare and Protection, Animal Rescue League of Boston, Boston, MA
Animal hoarding is unlike other forms of cruelty because intent to harm animals is lacking, and the hoarder may be at risk of significant harm via self-neglect. Hoarders exhibit traits (e.g., poor insight, impulsivity, emotional instability, chaotic internal and external lives, inaccurate perceptions, dissociation) that are highly consistent with Axis II (personality) disorders and which create significant barriers to intervention. Hoarders' acceptance of self-neglect is a further obstacle to providing proper attention to animals' needs. The egocentric psychopathology may be severe enough to pose a risk to both people and animals, but this potential is largely unappreciated by laypersons. Unfortunately, competency to care for animals can be considerably impaired before a situation is actionable under the cruelty statutes, resulting in avoidable suffering. With respect to etiology, neglectful parenting or physical or psychological trauma during childhood is commonly reported by hoarders. This may predispose to disordered attachment styles and attempts at self-reparative relationships with animals through compulsive caregiving in adulthood. When caregiving becomes the hoarder's source of identity, safety, and self-esteem, the interests of the person begin to overshadow any semblance of altruism. Threat of prosecution rarely outweighs the emotional relief a hoarder experiences through their deliberate pursuit of the animal hoarding compulsion. When prosecution occurs, laws based on the notion of animals as property contain inherent contradictions because animals are both victims and evidence of a crime. The latter constraint often victimizes animals again by limiting options for care and placement. Better options are needed for both prevention and intervention.

Learning Areas:
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Other professions or practice related to public health
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the association between human psychopathology and animal hoarding. Describe the limits of current statutes for addressing this behavior and preventing animal suffering.

Keywords: Health Behavior, Mental Disorders

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have authored or co-authored the bulk of the published literature on animal hoarding. I chaired the Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium for 10 years (www.tufts.edu/cfa/hoarding).
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.