What is Animal Hoarding?

What is animal hoarding?


The following criteria are used to define animal hoarding:


More than the typical number of companion animals.

Inability to provide even minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation, shelter and veterinary care, with this neglect often resulting in starvation, illness and death.

Denial of the inability to provide this minimum care and the impact of that failure on the animals, the household and human occupants of the dwelling.


For more information:


The Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium:

http://www.tufts.edu/vet/cfa/hoarding/index.html

Dogs get care: Psychologist says Newport case could be a matter of animal hoarding

Dogs get care: Psychologist says Newport case could be a matter of animal hoarding


(Note: Many thanks to SS for the information on these two articles.)


September 15, 2009


By Evan Bevins, ebevins@mariettatimes.com or 740-376-5447


The Marietta Times

P.O. Box 635

Marietta, Ohio 45750

740-373-2121

Fax: 740-376-5475

http://www.mariettatimes.com or http://www.mariettatimes.com/page/category.detail/nav/5046/Employee_directory.html

To submit a Letter to the Editor: letters@mariettatimes.com or http://vnr.oweb.net/vnr/add_submission.asp?categoryID=657&publicationID=84 (website form)


Fact Box


What is animal hoarding?

The following criteria are used to define animal hoarding:

More than the typical number of companion animals.

Inability to provide even minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation, shelter and veterinary care, with this neglect often resulting in starvation, illness and death.

Denial of the inability to provide this minimum care and the impact of that failure on the animals, the household and human occupants of the dwelling.

For more information: The Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium:

http://www.tufts.edu/vet/cfa/hoarding/index.html

~~~~~

The recent case of alleged animal cruelty in Newport has many of the characteristics of animal hoarding, according to a national expert on the subject.

"Although it may seem unusual in the community, it's the kind of story we see pretty regularly" at the national level, said Dr. Randall Lockwood, senior vice president for Anti-Cruelty Field Services with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Lockwood, a psychologist based with the ASPCA in Washington, D.C., is not involved in the local situation, but discussed animal hoarding cases in general.

"Several of these cases a day come across my desk," he said. "We estimate there probably are at least 5,000 new cases of this each year in the country."

An animal hoarder is someone who accumulates more animals than they can care for while remaining oblivious to the condition of the animals and the negative impact on the quality of life for the human beings involved, Lockwood said. It is not unusual for a hoarder's house to have animal feces in the eating or sleeping areas, he said.

"It is not just kind people who get in over their heads, which is often how this is characterized," Lockwood said.

Animal hoarders may hoard other things as well, and the condition can be linked to additional psychological disorders, Lockwood said. As in the Washington County case, there can be issues for Children or Adult Protective Services if the hoarder has children or a dependent adult living with them, he said.

Local humane officer Butch Morris said hoarding cases aren't frequent in Washington County, but authorities have seen their share of them. There are a couple of situations Morris said he is watching to make sure the individuals don't take in more animals and become a problem.

"If you go over seven or eight dogs, then I'm going to be looking hard," he said.

However, Morris noted there is no law in Ohio limiting the number of animals an individual can own. His office's concern is that the animals are properly cared for and licensed.

Lockwood said hoarders usually cannot be dealt with just by taking the animals away.

"Virtually all of them will begin again without close supervision," he said.

Lockwood said he does not necessarily advocate jail for hoarders but thinks probation conditions prohibiting them from owning more animals should be in place.


Copyright 2009, The Marietta Times.


http://www.mariettatimes.com/page/content.detail/id/515729.html?nav=5002


Related reading:


Dogs get care: Newport man accused of animal cruelty - Humane Society helps animals found in squalor


September 15, 2009


By Evan Bevins, ebevins@mariettatimes.com or 740-376-5447


The Marietta Times

P.O. Box 635

Marietta, Ohio 45750

740-373-2121

Fax: 740-376-5475

http://www.mariettatimes.com or http://www.mariettatimes.com/page/category.detail/nav/5046/Employee_directory.html

To submit a Letter to the Editor: letters@mariettatimes.com or http://vnr.oweb.net/vnr/add_submission.asp?categoryID=657&publicationID=84 (website form)


Five charges of animal cruelty have been filed against a Newport man accused of keeping more than 50 animals -- and his mother -- in filthy, unsanitary conditions.

Washington County Dog Warden Greg Sturm said five second-degree misdemeanor charges of cruelty to animals were filed in Marietta Municipal Court Monday against Steven Sharp, 52, of 1815 Long Run Road, Newport. More charges are possible, Sturm said.

A week ago, Sturm, sheriff's deputies and humane officers found Sharp's 80-year-old mother, Dorothy Sharp, living in the Long Run Road house, where the floors and other surfaces were covered with nearly an inch of cat feces and urine. Lightheaded and disoriented, Dorothy Sharp was hospitalized and placed in the custody of Adult Protective Services.

More than a dozen cats were found in the house, and numerous others were located in a trailer on the property. Twenty-two dogs were taken from the property and placed in the Humane Society of the Ohio Valley's shelter.

Officials said the cats were euthanized because they had leukemia, which is contagious among felines. Other cats, that were not closed up, are still roaming the property, said Butch Morris, humane officer.

"There's probably still another 30 cats out there," he said.

Two more dogs that had been running loose were brought to the shelter by Sharp's brother, Craig, who owns the property. At least three more dogs there have not been caught yet, Morris said.

Most of the dogs taken by the Humane Society, however, were tied up, with no food or water available, authorities said.

Steven Sharp was previously charged with failure to care for an impaired individual, a misdemeanor.

There are no plans to charge Craig Sharp, Washington County Sheriff Larry Mincks said Monday, because his brother lived at the residence at least part of the time and was the one responsible for Dorothy Sharp.

Craig Sharp has been cooperating with humane officers, Morris said.

Shelter manager Steve Herron said that when the dogs first arrived, they had to be housed in a garage due to crowded conditions at the shelter. However, a rescue operation took 22 other dogs from the shelter recently, and most of the dogs from the Newport property had been moved into regular cages in the shelter as of Monday.

"They've all been able to get cleaned up and taken care of," Herron said.

Most of the animals have overcome their initial fear and are warming up to shelter workers and volunteers, Herron said, but some are still "skittish."

People in the community donated puppy food, laundry detergent, bleach and blankets after the shelter took the dogs in, Herron said. The shelter will always accept more dog food and detergent (not to mention cat food and litter), he said.

"We appreciate what the public is doing for us," Herron said.

There are other ways people can get involved, the shelter manager said.

"I always look for volunteers in the afternoon to come and walk dogs," he said.


Copyright 2009, The Marietta Times.


http://www.mariettatimes.com/page/content.detail/id/515728.html?nav=5002

(ESA / Animal Law) NY University Law School Student Wins Committee on Animals & the Law's Student Writing Competition

New York University Law School Student Wins Committee on Animals and the Law's Student Writing Competition


"The Committee on Animals and the Law http://nysbar.com/blogs/animalaw/ was established to provide an information resource for the Association's members and the public about non-human, animal-related humane issues which arise from and have an effect upon our legal system."


September 15, 2009

News from the New York State Bar Association http://www.nysba.org


For more information contact: Brandon J. Vogel, Media Writer bvogel@nysba.org or 518-487-5535


ReadMedia, Inc. http://www.readmedia.com

Albany, New York - The New York State Bar Association's Committee on Animals and the Law has awarded New York University Law School Student Allison L. Westfahl Kong with the first-place award in its second annual Student Writing Competition for her submission entitled "Improving the Protection of Species Endangered in the United States by Means of a Revision of the Distinct Population Segment (DPS) Policy."

Kong's paper explores whether the DPS, a portion of a species' or subspecies' population or range, should be revised to permit the listings of species that are solely endangered within the United States, and whether such a change is consistent with the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Kong received $1,000 for her winning submission.

The Committee awarded its second-place award to Andra Waniek, a recent graduate of Brooklyn Law School. Her paper, "Protecting Woman's Best Friend from Family Violence: Proposal for a Model Statute Including Animals in Protective Orders," discusses and reviews proposed and enacted legislation concerning inclusion of animals in protective orders. Waniek proposes a federal statute authorizing the inclusion of animals in protective orders that combines and modifies components of several proposed and enacted state statutes and adds a new provision to account for the housing of animals during their owners' stay at domestic violence shelters.

Waniek received $500 for her essay.

"As the number of entries increased this year, so did the quality of the competitors' essays. Ms. Kong and Ms. Waniek each exhibited an extraordinary command of the topics through the use of excellent technical writing and sound legal analysis," said Committee Chair James F. Gesualdi of Islip. "We are so pleased to see law students taking an active interest in animal law and recognizing it as a potential practice area. I congratulate both Ms. Kong and Ms. Waniek on winning this year's Student Writing Competition."

"Animal-related law encompasses a range of important, high-profile, and evolving topics," said Jessica Sonenshein, chair of the Student Writing Sub-Committee. "We are happy that we had so many high-quality submissions addressing these areas, and were extremely impressed with the level of thinking and analysis that went into each of them."

The Committee on Animals and the Law was established to provide an information resource for the Association's members and the public about non-human, animal-related humane issues which arise from, and have an effect upon, our legal system. The competition was intended to foster legal scholarship among law students in the area of animals and the law. In addition, the competition provides law students with an opportunity to prepare and submit articles to the committee for possible publication in one of the New York State Bar Association's newsletters.

The 76,000-member New York State Bar Association is the official statewide organization of lawyers in New York and the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. Founded in 1876, State Bar programs and activities have continuously served the public and improved the justice system for more than 130 years.

Copyright 2009, ReadMedia, Inc.

http://readme.readmedia.com/news/show/New-York-University-Law-School-Student-Wins-Committee-on-Animals-and-the-Laws-Student-Writing-Competition/953167

Original New York State Bar Association News website address / URL:

http://www.nysba.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&template=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=31833


Additional researched, related, recommended reading/information:


Committee on Animals and the Law: Sponsored by the Commitee on Animals and the Law of the New York State Bar Association

"The opinions expressed and statements made by the bloggers are those of the blogger alone and do not reflect the opinions of the NYSBA, its sections, committees, special committees or subcommittees or any employee or other member thereof. The NYSBA and all other entities mentioned above are not responsible for the accuracy of any information supplied by the bloggers, and the Committee on Animals and the Law retains the absolute right to edit or remove any blog entries that are deemed to be inappropriate." http://nysbar.com/blogs/animalaw/

I am your Animal Control Officer

I am your Animal Control Officer


Undated


Author Unknown (but owed a great deal of gratitude)



I am your animal control officer. I am not the dreaded "Dog Catcher" or the "Murderer" you call me.

I'm not the one who allows your pet to roam the streets, to contract diseases from other free-roaming animals, to be hit by passing motorists or poisoned by rotting garbage. I am the one who must look into those sick, pain-glazed eyes, try to remove the animal without causing it further pain, and then humanely "put it to sleep" to end its suffering.

I'm not the one who allows your pet to breed, then dumps the unwanted puppies and kittens on the roadsides and in shelters. I'm the one who must find the tiny animals before they die of starvation, exposure or disease, and as an act of mercy, exterminate them.

It hurts me to be forced to kill hundreds of animals each year, but because of your irresponsibility, I have no choice.

I'm not the one who abandons unwanted animals on farm roads, telling myself that some friendlier farmer will surely take them in and give them a good home. But I am the one who picks up the frightened animal who waits in vain for its beloved master, wondering why it has been abandoned.

I am the one who must help that friendly farmer trap, tranquilize or kill that animal, because it has begun to roam in packs with other abandoned and hungry animals, killing livestock, fowl and game.

I am not the one who breeds and fights dogs in the name of "sport." But I am the one who fights the breeders and participants, and I pick up the dead and dying animals left behind.

I'm not the one who keeps a pet confined in an area too small -- without food, water, shelter, or exercise. But I must deal with the irresponsible owner that does.

I'm not the one who refuses to spend time and money to keep up with regular inoculations that all pets require. But I am the one who must pick up a sick animal that is dying from a preventable disease.

So remember -- the next time your child is bitten by a stray dog, your trash is dumped and scattered, your pet is lost, stolen, poisoned or hit by a car -- it is the Animal Control Officer you call, not the "dog catcher."

The next time your pet is picked up, or you are cited for neglecting or abusing it, remember that I am only trying to get you to fulfill your responsibility to your pet, your neighbor and yourself.

Do not scorn me. Respect me, for I am the product of your irresponsibility.