[Poppyseed]

"North Star (http://www.northstarrescue.org) is currently involved in a large rescue project involving an overwhelming rat situation in the South Bay. We are still in the process of gathering statistics, but are currently aware of 150 rats that are being displaced from their current home and will be in dire need of our help. Many of these rats have medical condition, and a majority of the females are at risk of being pregnant.

We are in dire need of rat-free foster homes that would like to provide quarantine grounds for homeless rats, long term foster homes for medical treatment cases as well as adopters for some of these sweet, hard luck rats. We are in need of contributions of supplies and monetary donations to help towards our mounting veterinary costs and operational costs of food, bedding, antibiotics, habitats and other supplies for these little guys.

If you can help by adopting, fostering, contributing rat cages, bedding, supplies or money towards our vet bills, now is the time to help us help them! Our primary cost is going to be medication, mite treatment, bedding and food for these incoming rats. For $15 we can pay for the incoming cost of a bath, mite treatment, a round of antibiotics, food and bedding for one rat for the first month. If you can help or know of anyone that can, please forward this information on! "

This last guy was unresponsive to any stimulation and was gasping for breath.

Cmon guys, these rats need help big time!
For more information: http://www.northstarrescue.org/news.html

I've contacted Lauren from the rescue that there are some rats that have passed quarantine ready for long term foster homes. They provide cage/supplies/vet cost if needed. So, this is perfect for someone who has a case of GGMR but not quite ready to commit for having more rats (like me). They require one month commitment and willing to accommodate your ideal situation.

This is her contact information:[email protected]
_______

Please help these rats! I helped. Wish I could foster but I live across the country.

 

[JESSU]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Those poor rats. That cage is gross looking. That 2nd picture is that litter or is that all poo?

 

[Hippy]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

As horrible as this looks, second to last picture, there is a little rat there looking at the camera, looks like a bear. Brown markings on his face. You know who Im talking about. Only rat looking at the camera.

This is so sad.
Ive emailed to foster at least two males.

 

[Poppyseed]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

There are some adorable rats there that will probably make awesome pets. That one you mention is sweet Hippy. I hope he gets saved ): Wish I could help but donating is the most I can do. Wish I could donate more ):

 

[JESSU]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Wheres this at? It says you cant adopt if you already have a rat. Why?

 

[Poppyseed]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

No you can adopt with a rat. Where it mentions you need to be rat free- that is quarantine homes only. They need those because the rats need to be quarantined before they go anywhere with rats. Fostering isn't the same as adopting.

The web page linked above tells more. The rescue is based in Novato, CA. The rats were in San Jose. Many are still there from what I read. It's a slow process getting them out and with those who can't be QT'd of can't afford to be save... they are going to be euthanised by animal control ):

There are 150 rats and many of the females are pregnant.

 

[Sparker]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Thank you for posting this, Poppyseed. I'm in California and more than happy to drive there.

 

[JESSU]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

I'm across the country.
Can you adopt and not foster. I don't think I could foster I would get attached.

 

[Poppyseed]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

They do need adopters as well, but if you are across the country a rattie train would be very difficult. You can ask to see if it can be done but that's a long trek for a little rat that's already been through so much. Still, if you are interested in adopting I'm sure it won't hurt to ask.

Since I am across the country, I donated $15. That's enough to fund one rats medications and care for one whole month and essentially saves one rat from being euthanized. Crossposting on other locations also helps them out!

 

[sonoma]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Those pictures are heartbreaking. How can people let their pets get into such a terrible state?!

I live a little north of Novato, I will see what I can do to help these poor ratties. Thanks for posting this Poppyseed, I had no idea this rescue was so close to me!

 

[DonnaK]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Those pictures are heartbreaking. How can people let their pets get into such a terrible state?!

I'm not sure if hoarders see them as pets, more of a collection?

 

[twilight]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

That is so sad and a shame. They are gorgeous rats, even with the filth and flea bites, who deserve better. Thank goodness for rat rescues and people who care.

Edit: From my understanding, often times hoarders have serious mental problems. Alot of times they do not realize anything is wrong. They love their pets (emotionally) and just do not understand. It seems in this case, though, it was just breeding that got out of control.

 

[Sparker]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

You're right, Twilight. This is from an article about hoarding:

For most people, the term "animal hoarding" conjures up images of an eccentric "cat lady." Despite the stereotype that collecting animals is simply a quirky behavior, recent research has pointed to a direct correlation between psychological problems and the tendency to hoard.

"Hoarding is very often a symptom of a greater mental illness, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder. For most hoarders, it is likely that their actions are the result of a true pathology, even though they are still usually able to function quite well in society," says Randall Lockwood, HSUS vice president for Research and Educational Outreach.

Because animal hoarders quite often appear to lead normal lives, it's important to recognize when a person's fixation with animals has gotten out of control. The HSUS defines an animal hoarder as a person who has more animals than he or she can properly care for. Another defining characteristic is the hoarder's denial of his inability to care for the animals and his failure to grasp the impact his neglect has on the animals, the household, and the human occupants of the dwelling.

What's more, hoarders are usually well-educated and possess excellent communication skills. Many hoarders have an uncanny ability to attract sympathy for themselves, no matter how abused their animals may be, which is often how hoarders manage to fool others into thinking the situation is under control.

"Very few hoarder cases simply involve good intentions gone awry, despite the insistence of the hoarder that he or she loves the animals and wants to save their lives," says Lockwood. "It's unbelievable how someone who reports to love animals so much can cause so much suffering."

 

[Kimmiekins]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Hording is a psychological problem, a form of OCD. The sad part of it is that - as far as research is aware - there is no "cure". That is why you'll see repeat hoarders. It's so so sad. Much like some hoarders collect "junk", animal hoarders collect animals. They THINK they are doing the right thing and often can't see what conditions the animals are really in - they can not see it for what it is. They believe they are "saving" them. They think the animals are better off with them then dead. The intentions are good on a basic level, but as *we* all know, they're doing severe harm to the poor animals.

I think I agree, Twitch, though I also think in cases where breeding gets so out of control, that they do reach the fine line between "out of control" and hoarder. Hard to tell.

Heh - Posted at the same time, Sparker.

 

[Sparker]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

That is because great minds think alike. ;-)

 

[Sparker]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Hording is a psychological problem, a form of OCD.

Actually, I did more reading:

Several psychiatric models have been suggested for problematic animal hoarding (Lockwood, 1994). The delusional model suggests that people who hoard animals suffer from a highly focused form of delusional disorder. Two pieces of anecdotal information support this model. First, in our pilot study, participants all firmly believed they had a special ability to communicate and/or empathize with animals. Furthermore, the hoarders insisted that their animals were healthy and well-cared for. This claim, in the midst of clear and immediate information to the contrary, suggests a belief system out of touch with reality. One interesting finding is that, outside the context of their relationship to their animals, many of these people appear reasonably normal and healthy.

:-(

 

[Sparker]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

Also these theories. No one really knows.

Another possible model for animal hoarding is an attachment model in which the individual suffers from early developmental deprivation of parental attachment and is unable to establish close human relationships in adulthood. This situation may result from childhood experiences of absent, neglectful or abusive parents or caretakers. The chaotic households and inconsistent parenting observed in the HARC interviews, as well as the desire for unconditional love from animals described in Worth and Beck's report (1981), provide some support for this model. This model is also consistent with current theorizing about the hoarding of possessions.

Perhaps the most parsimonious model ties animal hoarding to OCD (Lockwood, 1994). Two major features are consistent with the OCD model. People with this syndrome appear to experience an overwhelming sense of responsibility for preventing imagined harm to animals, and they engage in unrealistic steps to fulfill this responsibility. OCD patients experience this same sense of excessive responsibility for preventing harm and engage in unrealistic ritualization to prevent it.

 

[Kimmiekins]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

You're right - it's a theory that it's OCD and isn't technically "labeled" as OCD in a clinical setting (I think... I don't believe it's in the DSM and I believe I recall there being some talk of it being it's own classification, OR being a form of OCD). I suppose I should have phrased it as it having ties to OCD. That's the problem... We just don't know.

What's even more bizarre is that while animal hording isn't NEW, have you noticed it being severely on the rise? It's utterly terrifying how many hording cases there are a year thought the world. Although, one could always argue that it may just be that we're hearing about it more. I'm not sure.

Excellent reading, though, thank you.

 

[Hippy]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

There are some adorable rats there that will probably make awesome pets. That one you mention is sweet Hippy. I hope he gets saved ): Wish I could help but donating is the most I can do. Wish I could donate more ):

Oh god he isn't adopted?!?!! o-o I want him now.
I so wish they let me foster. And they have preggers?
I want to foster all of them now!
o-o"""""

 

[Sparker]

Re: North Star Small Animal Rescue needs help with hoarding

You're welcome. I googled it.

Also, I wasn't meaning to sound like I was trying to correct you or anything... you were right!

When I worked at the SPCA in my area (up until a couple years ago) we saw a lot of hoarding cases. It is obscene, to say the least. One of them was an employee... I drove her home one day and had to use her restroom (when I say had to, I mean HAD TO...) and she finally gave in and let me come inside. I had burns in my lungs from the ammonia inside the house and vomited a few times before the whole ordeal was over. She had been taking home foster animals and filling out the paper work, claiming to have brought them back. No one thought to check up on her because she was an employee... We ended up removing about 60 cats and 35 dogs from her home. We also found a few bodies in there...

It was one of the most horrific things I have ever been a part of.

Needless to say, she was criminally prosecuted and lost her job.