Types of Hoarding

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The Different Types Of Hoarding Explained

Below we explain common types of hoarding and what each type of hoarding looks like. Remember that hoarders should be shown respect, while motivating them and helping them cleanup and start a new and healthy lifestyle. See the different types of hoarding below!

Types of Hoarding

1. Shopper Hoarding

If chronic shoppers are also hoarders they will tend to hold on to every item they purchase, even if they have no practical use for it. Sometimes these items can contain volatile chemicals, such as propane, increasing the chance of fire and explosion in the home. Hoarders will hold on to these items even if rooms in their home become unusable because they can't bring themselves to let go of them. 

Some Common Examples of Items Bought in Shopper Hoarding Situations Include:

  • Food
  • Clothing
  • Antiques and Collectibles
  • Survival Gear and Equipment
  • Items from home shopping television networks
  • Common house hold items such as vacuums or propane tanks

2. Food Hoarding

When a person returns home with dozens of shopping bags full of groceries with an already full refrigerator and freezer, and cabinets, this person may suffer from food hoarding. Some food hoarders also have difficulty throwing away food that has rotted. This is not only wasteful but the food may attract vermin and insects, posing a large health risk to the hoarder and their family because of potential exposure to viruses and bacteria. 

3. Garbage and Trash Hoarding

When a person displays an inability to discard garbage, waste, or trash, they may be identified as a garbage hoarder. Garbage hoarders rummage through other people’s trash to find things to bring back home. This inability to decipher between harmful waste and items of value can be dangerous due to the vermin and insects that the garbage attracts. Vermin and insects may live amongst the trash in the home, wreaking havoc on the home’s structure from damage caused by the vermin and or insects. These vermin and or insects also pose a health risk to the homes inhabitants by caring viruses and diseases. Also, vermin and pests will leave behind their urine and feces while searching for food and living in the home, which adds to the potential health hazards that vermin and pests bring. Should a human be exposed to these health hazards serious illness or even death can occur. Also, garbage hoarders may collect common house hold items thrown away as trash that contain potentially harmful chemicals such as propane, which may cause a fire and or an explosion in the home if not kept or maintained properly.

4. Animal Hoarding

Animal hoarding is when someone obtains and keeps unhealthy quantities of animals to the point where they cannot provide a safe environment for their animals. In many animal hoarding cases the animals will use the inside of the home as a place too poop and or pee and the messes never get cleaned up. This is a dangerous environment for not only the animals to live in but for their owners as well, because animal waste can cultivate bacteria, viruses, and parasites that can get both animals and humans sick and may even lead to death. People who hoard animals may simply be trying to share their love for animals by collecting as many as possible but there is a point where the resources for taking care of these animals is exhausted, leading to an unhealthy environment.

The following responsibilities of animal care are typically overlooked in animal hoarding cases:

  • Grooming
  • Animal waste maintenance
  • Feeding
  • Pest/Flea/Heartworm Protection
  • Proper exercise for the animals

5. Paper Hoarding

Paper hoarders have difficulty discarding paper that they have accumulated. Many people keep papers like bills, invoices, books, news papers, magazines, special offers, and more but paper hoarders keep so many pieces of paper that they make the space that they are kept in unusable. Often the paper is pilled up creating stacks of paper that can present danger to the hoarder and their loved ones as a falling hazard, fire hazard, tripping hazard, etc. In severe cases people are trapped beneath a stack of paper that happens to fall, the paper causes a fire, or the paper stacks cause someone to trip, all of which can lead to serious injury or death. 

Call 410-589-2747, email Info@addressourmess.com, or use our contact us page for more information on our hoarding cleanup service. We specialize in cleaning for all types of hoarding cleanup projects and are here to help!

Wed, 09/18/2013 - 14:55 by Kenneth Donnelly