With Halloween approaching quickly the familiar sites of black cats, often seen as ominous companions with witches and omens of bad luck. This unique stigma during the scary season has many people wondering, why are black cats bad luck?

Written records link black cats to the occult as far back as the 13th century when an official church document called “Vox in Rama” was issued by Pope Gregory IX on June 13, 1233. “In it, black cats were declared an incarnation of Satan,” Meaning that cats have been demonized for nearly 800 years now. 

In addition to being associated with demons, black cats also became associated with witches. People who owned a black cat were subject to persecution for being a witch, practicing witchcraft or association with the devil. The evolution of black cats being “familiars” with witches was rooted in the belief that witches were able to use cats for spying and other dark magic.

In modern times, the stigma surrounding black cats can lead to serious consequences, particularly during Halloween. Animal shelters often report an increase in adoptions of black cats leading up to the holiday, but they also note a troubling trend: some of these cats are abandoned or mistreated after the festivities.

All of these bad connections with black cats led to dangerous environments for them around halloween. Many people will aim to hit the cats with their cars, and even go out of their way to harm them.

However all of this negative stigma around them couldn’t be further from the truth. Black cats are just as cute, affectionate, playful, and as good companions as other cats are. These bad reputations they are getting are just old folk stories being passed down from generation to generation.

There are many organizations like the Black Cat Rescue that are working to destroy this bad depiction of our black cat fur babies. As Halloween approaches it is important to remember to keep your black cats inside and safe, and hug your cats a little tighter.