Confronting animal hoarding
February 15th, 2008 by admin
Animal hoarding is a horrible problem, for the animals and humans involved. Unfortunately, it is also a common problem. Last week alone there were five horrific cases in Florida:
12 dogs, a cat and a Burmese python were removed from a fithy home east of Brooksville, in Hernando County. The dogs were infested with fleas and suffered from mange and other skin problems. One of the dogs was so weakened by fleas and worms that he was euthanized. The cat was missing an eye and several teeth. The homeowner, Debra Ann Harmon, was arrested on 14 counts of cruelty to animals. Harmon pleaded to the St. Petersburg Times, “I know how to take care of these animals. These people have got it all wrong.”
At a home in Town ‘n Country (Hillsborough County), police responding to a burglarly call found 19 emaciated animals: 16 dogs and three cats. The Tampa Tribune described the animals as living, “in a sea of their own waste.” The remains of a dead dog were also found at the home. The homeowner, Cynthia Annette Cuervo, was arrested and charged with 20 counts of animal cruelty.
In Vero Beach, animal control officers returned to a home that they had been to several times before and found 233 animals- including dozens of rabbits, chickens and other birds, mice, gerbils, guinea pigs and hamsters, eight iguanas, six dogs, six cats, three pigs, squirrels, turtles, a ferret and a chinchilla! The animals were found confined in filthy cages, many with no food or water. Several dead animals were also found. The homeowner was held for mental evaluation under the state’s Baker Act.
Police responding to a neighbor’s complaint found 27 cats and 101 hamsters in a small condominium in Bradenton. The first officer on the scene wrote in his report that immediately upon opening the door, his chest “began hurting from the ammonia smell of the cat urine.” Most of the animals were in poor health and are expected to be euthanized. Bradenton Code Enforcement has ruled that the condo is uninhabitable. The condo owner, Brenda Steiner, dismissed the city’s concerns, “They just told us we had too many hamsters. That is all that happened.”
Finally, in Broward County, a mother and daughter, Ann M. Centofanti and Ann Hesse-Centofanti, were arrested after they abandoned 46 dogs and three cats at a home they were renting in Oakland Park. When they were arrested, they had another 16 dogs and one bird with them. (The two women are accused of abandoning a different property last year, leaving it covered in excrement and fleas.) Investigators, who put on HazMat suits to safely enter the home, said of the two women, ‘’They told us they love their dogs…. In their own way, they thought they were taking care of those dogs.'’
You Can Help
1. Most animal-hoarding cases are brought to authorities’ attention by a neighbor, friend or family member. Please speak up if you suspect animals are being neglected or abused, even if the person appears well-intentioned.2. It is common for animal hoarders to repeat their behavior. It is encouraging that animal cruelty charges are increasingly being filed in hoarding cases, but because animal hoarding can be linked to mental illness, psychological counseling is also needed to help prevent future incidents. In 2001, Illinois became the first state to specifically address animal hoarding in its anti-cruelty statute. The law in Illinois increases penalties for animal hoarding, and requires convicted animal hoarders to undergo a psychiatric evaluation and receive appropriate treatment. Please contact your state Senator and Representative and ask them to introduce legislation to add a similar requirement to Florida’s cruelty to animals law. Click here to find your elected officials (requires 9-digit ZIP Code). Please contact ARFF if your Senator/Representative responds positively.