![]() Teens and adults attending or returning home from Halloween parties may be emboldened by the role-playing and faux-satanic nature of the event-and possibly the influence of alcohol-to commit acts of cruelty toward cats that otherwise might never cross their minds (or at least be stifled by common sense). On Halloween night, there are great numbers of people outside, including children who may be quite rowdy on this occasion. Unfortunately, this does not protect cats that are normally outside from would-be sadists and other miscreants at Halloween-time.įelines face additional dangers during Halloween that typically do not occur with other holidays. Unfortunately, some unstable people who have been exposed to callous or hateful attitudes toward cats use Halloween as an excuse to capture and viciously abuse them.īecause the Halloween season seems to spark violence against cats in general and black cats in particular, many shelters refuse to allow the adoption of black cats during the month of October. Today, although cats are the most popular pet in the United States and other Western countries, mean-spirited anti-cat bias persists, sometimes with disturbing echoes from the past. For instance, in the 16th and 17th centuries, tens of thousands of cats, along with humans accused of being witches, were cruelly put to death. Far too often, misguided ideas about felines have led to the violent persecution of both cats and the people who cared for them. Starting in the Middle Ages, certain groups associated cats with witchcraft and evil and believed that witches could turn themselves into cats. Although the ancient Egyptians revered cats, our culture has maintained various unpleasant superstitions about them. Throughout history, Western culture has had a love-hate relationship with cats, especially black cats. Fortunately, there are ways that you can make the holiday delightful rather than frightful for your cat. Black cats can make wonderful companions, and should be considered so during the whole of the year, even October.Halloween is a wonderful opportunity for children (and many adults) to engage in fun and frivolity, but for cats it is filled with dangers-some of them extreme.Black cats are not associated with witches.This in itself is a cruel act, as a cat is removed from shelter environment into a home environment and then returned within 24 to 48 hours and the disruption to the cats environment could be considered cruel. What has become more prevalent however is the temporary adoption of a black cat from an animal shelter, only to be returned the next day or in early November, deemed to be “unsuitable for my household”. So yes, there are circumstances where black cats may be treated cruelly or sacrificed however this is not associated with Halloween, October, or satanic rituals. Where there have been cases of animal cruelty, it has been associated with mental illness in the individual, and not necessarily associated with the month of October. There is little evidence to support the notion that black cats or any cats are sacrificed in association with Satanic rituals during the month of October. This is worrisome as it restricts the time through the year when cats are available for adoption. In response, Adoption societies or animal shelters have restricted the adoption of black cats during the month of October. ![]() This mythology of black cats has led to the unfortunate situation where it is thought that cats are sacrificed at this time of year in satanic rituals. And when the witches were charged and tried, then found guilty to be burnt alive, then their Black cats would be burnt at the stake with them. In many cases it was thought the witches could turn themselves into cats and return. Later in the dark age, in England, black cats were associated with the unknown forces attributed to witches. The priestess known as the “dark mother” is said to have turned into a black cat and waited around the temple with the priestesses. The mythology of black cats and their association with the dark arts goes back to ancient Greece. It’s that time of the year and we wonder about the mystery of Halloween.īlack cats and witches! Should we be worried about them? What should they be worried about us?
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