Adoptions of Black Cats Halted in Palm Beach Until After Halloween

Palm Beach County is apparently full of sadistic weirdos and people who love exuberant parties, so it only makes sense that three animal shelters in the county have banned adoption of black cats until after Halloween. The shelters fear that the cats may be harmed due to All Hallow's Eve sacrifices and...

By Kyle Munzenrieder

October 18, 2010

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "19274298",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17482312",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18711090",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17482310",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18711090",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17482313",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Palm Beach County is apparently full of sadistic weirdos and people who love exuberant parties, so it only makes sense that three animal shelters in the county have banned adoption of black cats until after Halloween. The shelters fear that the cats may be harmed due to All Hallow's Eve sacrifices and pranks, or picked up to be used as party decorations and then dropped back off after the celebration.

"The bottom line is, we are trying to avoid any situation that may put a black cat into an unsafe environment," Karen Buchan, community projects manager for Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control, told The Palm Beach Post.

That shelter will stop adopting out black cats on October 28th, and won't resume them until the day after Halloween. Two other shelters will have similar holds on black kitty adoption. They also do the same on any Friday the 13th.

In folk lure, black cats are associated with bad luck and are often pictured as the pets of witches. Though there's no history in Palm Beach County or anywhere else in the country where the torture of black cats is linked to Halloween. We also can't find evidence of anyone using the animals as party decorations.

Shelters in Miami-Dade do not have similar policies.

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Miami, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.