Black cats at Halloween. Are they really in danger?

A few years ago I visited an animal shelter looking for a pet to adopt. I struck up a conversation with one of the workers and somehow we got on the subject of black cats. She mentioned that they do not adopt black cats around Halloween. I asked why. She informed me that sometimes they are used in satanic rituals. I had never heard of such a thing.

I've thought about that statement over the next few years. I began to wonder just how at risk black cats really were around Halloween. I decided to do some research.

What did I find? I found out that at least in the last 2 or 3 decades there have been no documented cases of Halloween related cruelty to black cats. I did come across several stories involving cats and satanic activities but in each of those cases there was no concrete evidence to prove it. They appear to be merely urban legends.

Most animal shelters have no restrictions on cat adoptions around Halloween. they say that black cats have a difficult enough time being adopted that preventing them for unfounded reasons would only add to the difficulty.

It seems that people that are cruel to animals don't care what time of year it is or what color the animal is.

So if you own a black cat the possibility of it being stolen and used as a sacrifice or mistreated in connection with Halloween is very remote. However, a little caution never hurts either.

We wish everyone a happy and safe Halloween.