Cops Find 200 Pets in Smelly 'Cat House'

[Champ]

ANCHORAGE - City officials have declared uninhabitable a home where 200 cats and other animals were found. After neighbors complained of a stench, police entered the South Anchorage home Wednesday. An officer wearing a gas mask found the cats and another animals living in squalor.



Neighbors told the Anchorage Daily News the disagreeable smells and sounds from the five-bedroom, 2,000-square-foot house had existed for years. Besides the cats, officers found at least two chickens, several caged exotic birds and four or five dogs.


A woman who lives in the house told police that she takes in strays and that it got out of control, said officer Jackie Valdez.


Police said animal waste was scattered everywhere inside the home, algae was growing in the bathtubs, toilets had not been flushed and food was rotting.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=816&ncid=816&e=3&u=/ap/20041008/ap_on_fe_st/cat_house

[Phillycat]

1. Is this some kind of disorder?

I often see stories like this. Is there some sort of psychological disorder where people are compelled to take in more and more animals?

[bicentennial_baby]

3. Yep

I can't remember what it is called, but they talked about it on Animal Precinct before. It has to do with a compulsion to collect...well, cats, or other animals, but usually cats.

[Phillycat]

6. Huh.

Thanks for the info. I will have to look further into this.

[arcane1]

2. as a 100% bona fide, complete, utter cat person...

stories like this never fail to boggle my mind

I have a mere 2 cats, and am astounded at how much, er, 'output' they can produce...

[fudge stripe cookays]

4. Smelly cat...

smelly cat
What are they feeding you?
Smelly cat
smelly cat
It's not your fault!

FSC

[medeak]

5. been there done that

made home visit to patient and had to call health dept.

one cat had been dead under bed for undetermined length of time and stench was unbelievable.

sweet little old lady.