Noah Syndrome: A Review Regarding Animal Hoarding with Squalor

The main objective of this preliminary review was to identify studies that investigated extreme forms of animal hoarding in an effort to define the concept of Noah syndrome, recently proposed as the animal variant of Diogenes syndrome. From the 52 scientific articles identified in our search, we included and analyzed 23 manuscripts. The main findings show that persons hoarding animals in squalor tend to be of advanced age and socially isolated, lacking perception of the consequences of their behavior on themselves, their families, and their animals. Neurological and psychiatric conditions, such as dementia, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), psychoses, and drug addiction were some of the most common underlying causes. We discuss psychopathological mechanisms, such as ageism and attachment disorders. Due to the limited number of manuscripts on this topic, more research is needed to develop effective intervention strategies, which should include not only psychiatric and neurologic care, but also veterinary care and familiarity with public health policies.