A friend of mine who is a social worker told me in despair about a client who was a collector. The house totally overcrowded. Rats inside and outside the house. Massive complaints. She did not know how to manage to communicate with the client about these problems. I actually recommended her to watch this series, because it gives an insight into what this problem is like. There are deep psychological issues that lead to such problems for these people.
Still, I have some misgivings after watching several episodes. It is, of course, whether these people are able to assess what they are exposed to. That their lifestyle is exposed as entertainment.
But for me the most problematic are the episodes dealing with animal husbandry. Some of these extreme collectors have many livestock and pets. It is clear that they are exposed to gross neglect. In some episodes, I think this is not properly addressed. In one specific episode, it was about an elderly woman who had chickens in small animals indoors. Ducks that were enclosed in cages outdoors, without access to water, etc. In this episode, more consideration is given to the collector than to the welfare of the animals. This really provokes me. Animal welfare must always be taken seriously, even if the main characters in the series get upset when they are taken care of. In other episodes about animals, it is admittedly taken seriously. But here there is a lot of improvement potential for the creators of the series.
Still, I have some misgivings after watching several episodes. It is, of course, whether these people are able to assess what they are exposed to. That their lifestyle is exposed as entertainment.
But for me the most problematic are the episodes dealing with animal husbandry. Some of these extreme collectors have many livestock and pets. It is clear that they are exposed to gross neglect. In some episodes, I think this is not properly addressed. In one specific episode, it was about an elderly woman who had chickens in small animals indoors. Ducks that were enclosed in cages outdoors, without access to water, etc. In this episode, more consideration is given to the collector than to the welfare of the animals. This really provokes me. Animal welfare must always be taken seriously, even if the main characters in the series get upset when they are taken care of. In other episodes about animals, it is admittedly taken seriously. But here there is a lot of improvement potential for the creators of the series.