By Joe Hyer
The animal hoarding cases in Philadelphia have been on the rise this summer and there is a reason for the uptick.
"What once used to be considered kind of an eccentric person who was a collector of animals, people are recognizing it's a real problem," according to Susan Cosby, CEO of the Pennsylvania SPCA.
The PSPCA has responded to four fairly large cases of hoarding since July 12 in Philadelphia, some with exotic animals like alligators, turtles and iguanas. Cosby says TV shows, like A & E's Hoarders, have alerted people to the problem, so more cases are being reported.
University of Pennsylvania Psychiatrist Dr. Mahendra Bhati is studying animal hoarders.
"The interesting thing about people who have hoarding disorders is that they more often than not have other psychiatric disorders," he said. "These are people who cannot tolerate, or are not capable of normal human interaction and as a result, they start to accumulate these animals, which are very reliable companions."..." More & video
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