Black cat lovers ‘heartbroken’ over charity’s stark Halloween message

Halloween is just around the corner (October 31), and one thing you’ll see a lot of are black cats. However, when it comes to actually adopting black cats, it seems that many people, bafflingly, are not as interested.

Cats Protection has shed light on some of the reasons people have given for not wanting to adopt a black cat, and they’re truly heart-wrenching.

Adopting cats is a fantastic alternative to buying them if possible, as it helps to prevent kittens from being bought and sold. However, Cats Protection Sleaford and District Branch took to Facebook to share some of the excuses they’ve heard when they’ve suggested people adopt black cats.

The charity posted: “Reasons given for not wanting to adopt a black cat.

“I won’t be able to take cute pictures of them.

“They are boring, have you got anything more interesting (as 4 kittens do the wall of death round their pen and hang from the roof! ).

“My neighbour has a black cat, I don’t want to be seen to be copying them.

“They won’t ‘go’ with my decor. And no, it’s not a joke, these are real reasons given to us for people not wanting to adopt a black cat”.

Tragically, many black cats are overlooked because they’re not seen as photogenic as their lighter-furred counterparts.

Psychology Today even suggested that there may be a ‘black cat bias’ as black animals are harder to take good pictures of.

They say that other potential barriers against adopting black cats include superstition (i.e., black cats symbolise bad luck) and negative associations of black cats with witchcraft or evil.

In a 2019 study, Jones and Hart (2019) sought to empirically examine the black cat bias and its explanations.

Psychology Today explained: “101 individuals (83% women) participated in their study and participants completed an online survey in which they rated 20 images of different cats, each with ‘a neutral facial expression and pose’.

“They indicated how friendly and how aggressive each cat looked, how willing they were to adopt the cat, and how well they could read the cat’s expression”.

The research discovered that people believe black cats are less friendly and more aggressive, people hold superstitious views about black cats, and people worry they won’t be able to interpret the emotions of black cats.

In the comments section of the Facebook post, black cat enthusiasts rallied around the gorgeous animals to demonstrate they are adorable.

“‘Won’t be able to take cute pictures of them’ – look at this photo and tell me my black cat doesn’t look cute! ? I dare you.

“And he’s definitely not boring, he’s an affectionate ball of fluff who loves winding up his feline roommate. Currently having zoomies right now after having his breakfast. He’s called Cosmo because he’s out of this world,” someone penned.

Another person shared: “So sad. Black cats have always been my favourite. They have such gorgeous eyes too. I was always told that black cats were lucky, if one ever crossed my path. My mum got a black cat, Queenie, for her birthday. Queenie eventually grew a little white patch of fur under her chin and she was the widest cat we’ve ever known.

“She was mysterious too. Snails from all corners of the garden surrounded her as if she was some sort of snail goddess. She had a special energy”.