# How many cats is the tipping point from cat lover to crazy cat collector? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 7, 2005, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321 "2005-03-07T05:51:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/81 "2005-03-09T00:07:36Z")
We have three cats in a 3-bedroom house; frankly, 3 is a lot. I’m shocked anyone would want ten or more; the effort you’d have to put into to scooping their shit and piss would be tremendous, and that gets to the point where they wouldn’t be getting much individual attention. But hey, it’s your house. I think we could probably have a fourth, but that would be the absolute upper limit. A couple in my hometown were finally charged when animal control officers showed up and found their house had approximately six HUNDRED cats. There were the usual denials; they’re all fine, they’re clean, blah blah blah. The reason animal control was summoned to the house was that the stench of the cats and their waste was unbearable in the adjacent homes, and could be clearly smelled across the street. It was a nightmare. So, it’s a real psychological condition, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/82 "2005-03-09T00:19:29Z")
> [@pinkfreud](#): > > This discussion reminds me of some people’s opinions about how many children a couple can have without being considered whackaloons. > > A couple who used to live next door to us had fourteen children. Yep, fourteen. One set of twins and twelve singletons. Someone who didn’t know them (especially if it were someone who doesn’t much like kids anyway) might assume that those kids must have been neglected. How could two parents possibly pay enough attention to that many kids? Well, I can’t tell you precisely how, but the kids’ needs were obviously met, and then some. Those were the happiest, healthiest, brightest, best behaved children you can imagine. > > Where cats are concerned, folks can jabber about neglect, abuse, excess, hygiene, and delusional tendencies, but in the end, all that really matters is this: are the cats happy and healthy? Are the owners happy and healthy? Is anyone outside the household being affected in any negative way? If the answer to the first two questions is “yes,” and the answer to the third is “no,” then it is nobody’s damned business how many cats a person has. Totally agree. My mother raised five children on her own, not by choice, in a house a lot smaller than the one I live in now and she did it very well indeed. All of us with a college education and self-supporting. Some of us with children and some not, but that’s the way life is. We’ve always loved animals, Mom grew up on a farm, and we had scads of them around us growing up. I have just cats because my work hours can be uncertain-cats are more easily left to their own devices than dogs I think. (Oh, I work in a hospital pathology lab-I **know** germs.) My four like each other well enough (they fight less than I and my siblings did!) and my vet has no complaints about their state of health. That’s absolutely all that matters. ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/83 "2005-03-09T04:22:11Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > If you honestly believe that your house is spotless and that your bed, where you spend eight hours a day rolling around, is completely clean and free of fecal particles, dried urine and semen droplets, you either have little idea how nasty even the cleanest surface is when you look at it closely enough or steamclean your bed every day after you get up. > > If there is no noticeable smell or discoloration and no one is getting sick, there’s no reason to worry. Clearly, you’ve never seen my house. It’s far from spotless. I can assure you, however, that it does not contain urine or fecal matter, unless of course you’re talking about microscopic conditions. I don’t frequently check my sheets with a microscope. Do you? ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/84 "2005-03-09T04:29:20Z")
> [@Wile E](#): > > I think she’s getting defensive because there is a subtle pile on going on here. People are making comments about collectors being delusional and directing her to read articles about it. Intrepreting her comment about everyone having tiny amounts of urine and fecal matter on their beds whether or not they have cats to mean she has soggy sheets and steaming piles of cat shit on her bed, which is not what she was saying. She was saying that living creatures (human and otherwise) leave little bits of themselves everywhere they go. > > She didn’t get defensive until there were rather obvious references to the person with 13 cats being a delusional cat hoarder. I didn’t realize she was the one who had posted that she had 13 cats, so yeah, I can see why she would feel defensive. I didn’t recommend that link to her because I thought _ **she** _ was a cat collector but to clarify that there is a **significant** difference between a person who loves cats and a “crazy cat collector.” It’s not a joke. Collectors are seriously ill. ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/85 "2005-03-09T04:36:53Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > I’ve not read that article, but I’ve read the original research papers from Tufts University. And I’d be pretty annoyed at your attitude, too, if I were her. She’s defensive because you’re suggesting she’s crazy and an animal abuser, and she’d like to defend herself from that implication. > > (And yes, you’re doing it subtly, but you’re still doing it). > > Daniel Well, **Dorkness,** you need to work on reading the content of posts more accurately, instead of reading your opinions into them. What I said was that if she thought sleeping in bedding that contains urine and fecal matter was normal, then something was wrong. NO WHERE did I suggest even remotely that she is either crazy or an animal abuser. What’s wrong with you? Please read my postings carefully before you make such inappropriate remarks. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/86 "2005-03-09T05:18:53Z")
> [@Large Marge](#): > > Clearly, you’ve never seen my house. It’s far from spotless. > > I can assure you, however, that it does not contain urine or fecal matter, unless of course you’re talking about microscopic conditions. Not to put too fine a point on it: yes, they are talking about microscopic conditions, and most of the surfaces in your house are, in fact, nicely blanketed with all manner of human and animal waste, in microscopic (but widespread) quantities. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/87 "2005-03-09T05:29:35Z")
I certainly agree that the problem of “cat collectors” exists. The animal rescue organization to which my husband and I belong has encountered some horror houses filled with pitiful creatures that some demented individual was trying to save. But the animal hoarding sickness is not something that can be assumed just by knowing the number of animals that are in a home. The conditions in which the animals are kept and the attitude of the owner are the key, not just a head count. In case anyone wonders, my 13 cats were not acquired by breeding on the premises. Everyone is neutered. Our oldest is nearly 20 years old, a huge, hunchbacked bull’s-eye tabby with inoperable cancer. Our youngest is about 9 months, a tiny Russian blue with microphthalmia (an eye deformity). Oh, and about the feces and urine on the bed, I didn’t mean to imply that visible chunks and puddles are acceptable. But microscopic bits of critters are going to be all over the place, whether the critters are feline or human. I put a fresh quilt on the bed every day and wash the bed linens with Clorox. I’ll bet my bed is at least as sanitary as the bed of someone who has a toddler in the house. A bit hairier, though. I hope there will be no hard feelings, **Marge**. If I sounded snarky in my earlier posts, I am sorry. Here, have a cat as a peace offering. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/88 "2005-03-09T05:32:42Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > Not to put too fine a point on it: yes, they are talking about microscopic conditions, and most of the surfaces in your house are, in fact, nicely blanketed with all manner of human and animal waste, in microscopic (but widespread) quantities. Granted. When I was speaking (posting), I was referring to visible, smellable (is that a word?) urine and feces. I didn’t see the word “microscopic” anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/89 "2005-03-09T05:40:06Z")
> [@pinkfreud](#): > > I certainly agree that the problem of “cat collectors” exists. The animal rescue organization to which my husband and I belong has encountered some horror houses filled with pitiful creatures that some demented individual was trying to save. > > But the animal hoarding sickness is not something that can be assumed just by knowing the number of animals that are in a home. The conditions in which the animals are kept and the attitude of the owner are the key, not just a head count. > > In case anyone wonders, my 13 cats were not acquired by breeding on the premises. Everyone is neutered. Our oldest is nearly 20 years old, a huge, hunchbacked bull’s-eye tabby with inoperable cancer. Our youngest is about 9 months, a tiny Russian blue with microphthalmia (an eye deformity). > > Oh, and about the feces and urine on the bed, I didn’t mean to imply that visible chunks and puddles are acceptable. But microscopic bits of critters are going to be all over the place, whether the critters are feline or human. I put a fresh quilt on the bed every day and wash the bed linens with Clorox. I’ll bet my bed is at least as sanitary as the bed of someone who has a toddler in the house. A bit hairier, though. > > I hope there will be no hard feelings, **Marge**. If I sounded snarky in my earlier posts, I am sorry. Here, have a cat as a peace offering. 😛 😃 No offense taken. I happen to be an animal lover. You sound the same. For the record, I never made an assumption that you (or anyone) were a cat hoarder. The OP asked for our opinion on how many cats were the “tipping point” from cat lover to crazy cat collector. While I stand by my opinion that I will wonder **why in gawd’s name a person would have more than three cats** , no one is in a position to judge until they’ve seen the actual condition of the home and cats. I didn’t realize this thread would turn so ugly, frankly. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/90 "2005-03-09T05:53:24Z")
> [@Large Marge](#): > > I didn’t realize this thread would turn so ugly, frankly. Neither did I. It’s enough to make me want to… want to… [throw cats at someone](http://www.mortalwombat.com/Image/CrazyCatLady.gif). 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/91 "2005-03-09T13:50:59Z")
> [@pinkfreud](#): > > Here, have a cat as a peace offering. 😛 Sig Line !!! 🙂 Ya’ll two are making up very nicely. I’ll just go and clean up those huge hairballs from the runner in the hallway, and I just picked up the new finewire curry brush because the last one finally ran out of wire. So far I’ve got Dobby, Cocoa, Bumper, Lightning, Thunder, Bogart, Aragorn, Lucia, Scooter, Sasha and Muggs to brush down. Did I miss anyone on the list? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/92 "2005-03-09T19:36:15Z")
> [@Spectre of Pithecanthropus](#): > > I think three’s all right even for a single person. With that many cats, they keep each other company; if a cat wants to play, there’s almost always someone to play with. I’m not single, but we have four overpampered cats, the oldest of whom is pushing 12 but still playful as a kitten. We must be doing something right as regards their care. > > . I’ve been thinking about this, and have to ask: Does the _weight_ of each cat factor into the calculation? Considering that our four probably total out to about 65 or 70 pounds, maybe we _are_ borderline! ---
**Author:** ![mouthbreather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a698b9/32.png) [@mouthbreather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mouthbreather)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/93 "2005-03-09T19:51:43Z")
I don’t own any cats, and sure, there’s a shitlog or two in my bed. SO WHAT?! Back on topic, The answer is 4. 5 or more and you’re a crazy cat person. “Only” having 4 does not issue you a free pass, either. 4 cats falls under the “Hmmm…” category. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/94 "2005-03-09T20:08:12Z")
I have one and have a hard time keeping the apartment odor-free. I don’t care how often someone scoops, if you have 13 cats, your house is stanky. You might not smell it, but trust me, other people do. Ick. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/95 "2005-03-09T20:42:35Z")
> [@Indygrrl](#): > > I have one and have a hard time keeping the apartment odor-free. I don’t care how often someone scoops, if you have 13 cats, your house is stanky. You might not smell it, but trust me, other people do. > > Ick. Perhaps you’re not aware how insulting that is? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/96 "2005-03-09T20:50:24Z")
> [@The Devil's Grandmother](#): > > (snip) where others seem sane even with a whole menagerie of fish, lizards, parrots, dogs and cats. I believe our very own \*\*tomndebb \*\* fits in this category and he’s as sane as they come. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/97 "2005-03-09T20:55:59Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > If you honestly believe that your house is spotless and that your bed, where you spend eight hours a day rolling around, is completely clean and free of fecal particles, dried urine and semen droplets, you either have little idea how nasty even the cleanest surface is when you look at it closely enough or steamclean your bed every day after you get up. > > If there is no noticeable smell or discoloration and no one is getting sick, there’s no reason to worry. …I’m thinking the single ladies may have whole \*days \* where there is no semen droplets on their bed. Just sayin’. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/98 "2005-03-09T21:03:02Z")
Regarding the odor problem, I think this is related not only to the number of cats, but to the number of cubic feet in the dwelling. We live in an old twelve-room house. 13 cats in 12 rooms isn’t that much different from one cat in one room, is it? Some of these rooms are quite large, incidentally, and all of 'em are drafty. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/99 "2005-03-09T21:22:06Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Perhaps you’re not aware how insulting that is? Eh. I don’t think she cares. I have personally been in houses with more than 4 cats, and the house didn’t stink. One of my friends has had 3 cats, and she’s the most anal-retentive, clean-freak there is. So her house certainly doesn’t stink. I cannot imagine her house stinking if she had more than 3 cats. She’d make damn sure. I have observed that having a lot of dirt boxes and scooping them out a few times a day (if there are a _lot_ of cats) really does make a big difference. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2005, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321/100 "2005-03-09T22:45:20Z")
> [@Indygrrl](#): > > I have one and have a hard time keeping the apartment odor-free. I don’t care how often someone scoops, if you have 13 cats, your house is stanky. You might not smell it, but trust me, other people do. > > Ick. I have five permanent cats and two temporaries, and sometimes more temporaries. I have a 3-story 11 room condo, 1900 sq. ft. I have asked many, many people to PLEASE tell me the honest truth - can they smell cat when they walk in. Can they smell poop, urine, cat smell, or anything else. These are people who would tell me the truth, especially when I am insisting on it. Nobody has ever smelled anything. I can’t believe these people I ask are all lying to me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cats-is-the-tipping-point-from-cat-lover-to-crazy-cat-collector/293321.md?page=6)