Save the black cats this Halloween
- Thread starter Mambi
- Start date
a sleepy kitty
I'm eggscellent.
Black cats are not bad luck. To those who says they are bad luck, their lives are already $#!%.
RamblingRenegade
Just a Horse Trying to Avoid Life's Manure
People who think black cats are bad luck already had it before, it's not the cat
Marius Merganser
The Duke of Birds
I had a black cat years ago.
Let's just say he was rescued from a kill-shelter in an untraditional way hours before he was scheduled to be put down. The plan was to send him to a non-kill shelter who agreed to take him in, but they asked if we could hold on to him for a week until after Halloween. By then we got attached, named him Barnacle, and he took up residence on my pillow.
(Incidentally, actual Pagans and Satanists would absolutely NOT harm cats.)
Let's just say he was rescued from a kill-shelter in an untraditional way hours before he was scheduled to be put down. The plan was to send him to a non-kill shelter who agreed to take him in, but they asked if we could hold on to him for a week until after Halloween. By then we got attached, named him Barnacle, and he took up residence on my pillow.
(Incidentally, actual Pagans and Satanists would absolutely NOT harm cats.)
TyraWadman
The Brutally Honest Man-Child
This made me think of when people adopt pets and disown them shortly after the holiday. 
I hope it's curbed this year.
I hope it's curbed this year.
Filter
ɹǝʇlᴉℲ
Black cats are awesome. I love how their eyes seem to glow in contrast with their dark coloration.
Glad to hear that he found a good home!
People call themselves all sorts of things, but nobody with a conscience would harm a cat.
Glad to hear that he found a good home!
People call themselves all sorts of things, but nobody with a conscience would harm a cat.
Kellan Meig'h
Kilted Luthier
I have two black and white (Tuxedo) cats. One's cool, the other is a butthead. Actually, the male cat is a white and black cat.
D
Deleted member 160111
Guest
I love male cats. I am lucky with males, they are well trained and obedient. I have a black cat now, before him the cat was also black. Black animals have funny faces, you don't see a nose and a mouth, but you only see saucer eyes - it's funny.
The cat was given to me when he just opened his eyes, I had to finish feeding him with an eyedropper. He was the weakest and ugliest in the litter, but he grew up very smart and handsome. The ugly duckling who became a swan. Beautiful silk wool.
The cat was given to me when he just opened his eyes, I had to finish feeding him with an eyedropper. He was the weakest and ugliest in the litter, but he grew up very smart and handsome. The ugly duckling who became a swan. Beautiful silk wool.
Marius Merganser
The Duke of Birds
Fortunately, it's more urban legend than reality, but the story is that Pagans and Satanists (particularly in the US) will sacrifice black or white cats on Halloween (they don't). I think the idea originates from a jumble of misunderstood folklore, practicality, and a push by religious conservatives to discourage the celebration of the holiday.
Firuthi Dragovic
World Serpent, overly defensive
The way I understand it, there's also a tendency to adopt black cats on Halloween and then just try to return them to the shelter after the holiday's over.
I had a black cat a long time ago (like, this was a declawed cat, good luck finding one of those anymore). She lasted well over twenty years despite being a bit of a chonker and I believe she even managed to hunt successfully on a few occasions despite being declawed.
(Her previous owner had done the procedure, not us. She never even attempted to scratch furniture but would 'scratch' cardboard boxes on a regular basis. Sorry, people, ripping out the first knuckles of a cat does not change a cat's behavior. Please don't declaw a cat.)
quoting_mungo
Well-Known Member
Yeah, that's what I hear, too, or simply releasing them because cats "do fine outdoors." (No, they don't, and also they're an ecological disaster. I love cats but I recognize that outdoor cats are a Bad Idea both for the cats' sake and nature's.) Same things with chicks and rabbits around Easter. I think there's some pet stores and/or breeders that flat won't sell rabbits around easter for that reason.
Plus it wouldn't surprise me if dumb kids pulling pranks on Halloween decided to be dicks to cats for the lulz. But I mean... that (sadly) happens year round, to a variety of pets and less-agile wildlife.
Mambi
Fun loving kitty cat
Personally I thought the context was just a reminder that the mythical evils aren't the ones you have to worry about...it's humans on Halloween that will mess things up.
But unfortunately all of what was said above is still true. Black cats become a temporary prop, religious nuts go around trying to contain them or "cleanse" them, and all of it meaningless. It's not the colour of your fur but the joy in your heart. Black Cats Matter! (all respect to BLM of course, you can have both.)
Foxridley
A fox named Ridley
I’d heard that it was just idiots harming or stealing black cats. Not connected to any religion.
Though that appears to be a myth, too.
Marius Merganser
The Duke of Birds
We Pagans haven't been very high on the pearl-clutching list for for a good 10-15 years, but that was the story when I was a kid in the 80s, when the Satanic Panic was growing.
pippi
Stinky Skunk
it's not a myth. Our animal shelter here won't even adopt out black cats during october because it's too dangerous for the cats.
Kellan Meig'h
Kilted Luthier
Besides, most "Black" cats are really a deep, dark brown. I had a "Black" cat that if he would lay in the sunlight of a window, you could see he was actually a deep melanistic striped brown tabby. Just like my solid white cat; when she lays in the sun, you can see she's actually a white spotted tabby. Very few black cats are a true black, ones that look blue-black in the sunlight.
Pomorek
Antelope-Addicted Hyena
The very first cat I had around me in my life was black. And while one might hear about association of black cats with bad luck, it's never been serious claim the way I encountered it. Quite contrary, people had black cats and everyone was fine with them.
But now I recall, I've seen a mention that nowadays black cats can be less popular when it comes to adoption because "they don't turn out well in photos" and the social media -obsessed people are not interested in them for this petty reason. No idea how much of a real issue it is though.
But now I recall, I've seen a mention that nowadays black cats can be less popular when it comes to adoption because "they don't turn out well in photos" and the social media -obsessed people are not interested in them for this petty reason. No idea how much of a real issue it is though.
D
Deleted member 160111
Guest
They are fools. Black cats are barn owls of the feline world. The huge eyes on the black muzzle are beautiful. Like Toothless from "How to Train Your Dragon".
quoting_mungo
Well-Known Member
Genetically, they’re black. There are cases of tabbies with so heavy striping they appear black or near-black, but they’re very much the exception, not the rule. I’m not aware of melanism having been shown to occur in domestic cats. Ghost stripes will show up on some cats, because all cats have genes specifying what tabby pattern they would have if they had the (dominant) gene activating the tabby pattern. Red is “transparent,” so it’s exceedingly difficult to tell a genetic red tabby from a solid red cat based on phenotype alone (there are some tricks but they’re not 100% reliable).
Black cats are basically gray tabbies without the tabby activation gene. (Most mammal blacks will also appear brownish in strong direct sunlight because skin/fur pigmentation and artist’s pigments are very different beasts.) Some dilution genes will also make blacks more brown - seal points for the colorpoint gene and chocolate for the chocolate gene. Dilute gene does shift black to “blue” but how cool the blue is will vary widely between breeds and individuals. Doesn’t show super well in this shot as they were quite young and colorpoints tend to darken/develop more color with age, but my two ragdoll sisters had very different gray tones: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/3742574/
The lynx point was actually genetically tested because it was that hard to tell if she was seal or blue as a kitten. In this video I filmed the other day you can see the very warm tones especially on her back; it was overcast so it’s less obvious than it would be in full sunlight.
Yes, I’m a cat nerd.
Mambi
Fun loving kitty cat
"Don't...don't turn out well in photos"?? WTF? Photos of black cats are one of the best!!! Sheesh, some humans! <eye roll>
Pomorek
Antelope-Addicted Hyena
That wasn't my claim, to be sure. I just quoted what I've heard. And yeah, some folks are dumb...
For all those continuing to spread the myth that black cats are hunted/harmed on and around Halloween — it has been repeatedly shown to be untrue
Of course… no cats should ever be outdoor cats as it shortens their lifespans, spreads disease to humans and pets, absolutely decimates local ecosystems, and drives endangered birds and mammals to extinction. But since responsible owners wouldn’t be letting their kitties out anyway… no reason to worry about this so-called hunting!
Fun fact: black cats used to be adopted much less than cats of any other color. Luckily… this is no longer true! Black cats are now adopted at almost exactly the same rate as cats of any other color
Of course… no cats should ever be outdoor cats as it shortens their lifespans, spreads disease to humans and pets, absolutely decimates local ecosystems, and drives endangered birds and mammals to extinction. But since responsible owners wouldn’t be letting their kitties out anyway… no reason to worry about this so-called hunting!
Fun fact: black cats used to be adopted much less than cats of any other color. Luckily… this is no longer true! Black cats are now adopted at almost exactly the same rate as cats of any other color