How Cat Hoarding Can Affect A Cats Health

The practice of cat hoarding serves no useful purpose for either cat nor the human that has become a hoarder, and contrary to the intended motives of the hoarder to aid cats in distress the opposite outcome is often the reality. Understandably there is a dire need for some measure or kindness to be extended to the exploding population of unwanted cats, but the practice of cat hoarding often has disturbing consequences that actually does more harm than good. An individual that is a cat hoarder rarely has the financial resources to care for the animals properly and a large number of cats that have not been spayed or neutered living in close quarters is a recipe for a rapid population increase that is unavoidable.
Cat hoarding can affect a cat’s health negatively on a number of fronts, starting with each cat’s exposure to disease and illness from which they cannot escape. There are literally dozens of diseases which can be transmitted from one cat to another and a large group of cats that have not been vaccinated have no defense against any of them. Even those aspects of cat health that are generally not considered severe play a role in weakening the immune systems of cats at a cat hoarder’s location, opening the door to a less healthy life and subsequently one that is less fulfilling due to illness. Because of financial considerations and the quantity of cats at a hoarder’s home the issues with diseases running rampant are compounded often by a lack of good nutrition and clean drinking water.

Cat hoarding can affect a cat’s health in that there is never enough human supervision to ensure that the animals are safe and protected, not only from outside forces but from cats in their own social group. Injuries to the cats at a cat hoarders home may go unnoticed for weeks, and even if and when they are discovered no funds are available for proper veterinary care.

Lastly, cat hoarding can affect a cat’s health in that these animals never receive an adequate amount of human interaction and affection that is needed to form a bond as a pet. Quite often, cats that have been housed at a cat hoarder’s home have become unsocial to a point that they will never be viable candidates to become anyone’s pet. Sadly, even when rescued from a hoarder’s clutches these animals are frequently relegated to spending the remainder of their days at a shelter.