Sanitation is often a nightmare: many of the animals die from malnourishment, and the owner themself might die from related illnesses. Male or female, however, animal hoarders tend to do a poor job of caring for their pets. Men, apart from an occasional trend toward living on a rooftop surrounded by pigeons, tend towards either more complete isolation or a more diversified set of friends. This trope definitely seems skewed towards female characters, and can be read as an extension of the traditional negative characterisation of spinsters, especially when it's implied that the cats are a stand-in for human children that she never had before it was too late. Sometimes she will turn out to be a Misunderstood Loner with a Heart of Gold, leading to An Aesop about judging a book by its cover. She is often feared by the community and seen as an eccentric recluse. She lives alone (Either because she couldn't get married or because she is a widow) except for the large number of cats or whatever animals living with her. This person is invariably Not Good with People, except that instead of being an Animal Lover, she usually only has an affinity with one specific type of animal, which will flock to her like moths to a flame. Although real life animal hoarders come in all ages, races, pet preferences, and sexes, animal hoarders in fiction are predominantly older white women with a fondness for cats. Animal hoarding is a real-life psychiatric problem.
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