All throughout history, black cats have gotten a bad rap. They’ve been associated with everything from simple bad luck to witches and Satanists. In the United States, they are considered to be so unlucky that they are one of the least likely cats to be adopted. And this is quite unfortunate considering that black cats aren’t any more “evil” than cats of any other color.

Fortunately, there has been a holiday created to help rehabilitate their image and place them back in the public’s good graces. This holiday is observed on October 27th and is known as National Black Cat Day. Since this holiday is celebrated a full four days before Halloween, we believe that it’s the perfect time to appreciate our dark feline friends.

The History of National Black Cat Day

At one point in time, we were unsure of who started this holiday or when it was started. However, that has changed recently as we discovered that this holiday was actually started by an animal charity in the U.K known as Cats protection.

This organization founded this holiday to raise awareness about how difficult it is for black cats to be adopted. We’re not exactly sure when they invented this holiday, but we do know that it’s been around for quite a few years. Since we’re talking about the history of National Black Cat Day, we thought that we’d also talk about the history of the attitudes towards these cats.

Black cats have been treated differently according to the year and the place in which they lived. For example, in Great Britain and Japan, a black cat is considered good luck. However, in the United States, it has come to symbolize bad luck or evil forces. In some parts of the world, if a black cat crosses your path, then it’s considered to be a bad omen.

In folklore, black cats are often depicted as agents of evil or even evil itself. In some parts of Europe, they were considered so evil that they were burned alive by superstitious villagers in giant midsummer bonfires.

Black Cat Facts

We did a lot of research for National Black Cat Day, so naturally, we also uncovered some amazing facts about black cats. Facts that we would like to share with everyone reading this today. If you think that you know everything there is about black cats, then hold onto your seat because we’re about to give you some facts that will prove you wrong.

• The Egyptians considered black cats to be lucky
• Fisherman, sailors, and pirates saw black cats as good luck
• In parts of England and Ireland, a black cat crossing your path is lucky.
• In Russia, cats of all colors are considered lucky
• Black Cat Appreciation Day falls on August 17th
• Black Cat Awareness Month falls on October
• There are 19 different cat breeds that have black as a coat option.

National Black Cat Day Customs, Traditions & Observations

Not only are black cats cool little felines to have around, but they also go quite well with Halloween decor. If you have your house decorated in full Halloween regalia, then nothing adds the finishing touch like having a black cat lounging in front of it. This is why National Black Cat Day is a good day to celebrate.

So give your favorite black cat a gift on this day or maybe some extra appreciation. And if you are inclined to post pictures of your black cat on social media, be sure to use the hashtag #NationalBlackCatDay. Let’s work together to revitalize the black cat’s image and help all of those black cats that are currently in animal shelters find a forever home.