Halloween superstition haunts shunned black cat at Plymouth rescue shelter

A Plymouth animal charity is hoping to break the spell that will leave a frightening number of black cats without a loving home this Halloween.

Woodside Animal Welfare Trust is conjuring up ways to end the bad luck of black cats whose place in folklore puts them paw in hand with Halloween.

Currently around 60 per cent of the 75-plus cats being looked after by the charity at Elfordleigh, on the edge of Plympton, are black or black and white.

Finding mummies (and daddies) for these cats is proving tricky – with the treats of a loving home tending to go to tabbies, tortoiseshells, grey or white cats.

Without a magic wand to wave, the Plymouth sanctuary is conjuring up tricks to entice potential owners this Halloween.

Deputy manager Dawn Cornish said the sanctuary had tried mixing up its feline inhabitants, placing a black cat between two tabbies, for example, to draw more attention.

Colourful collars have been used to catch the gaze of visitors, and detailed, favourable descriptions put up on pens in the hope of leaving prospective owners spellbound.

Dawn said: “If you walk around the sanctuary most of the black cats look the same. You sometimes get a black cat with green or bright yellow eyes who will draw people’s attention, but otherwise people will walk on by.

“People will come in and say they are looking for a cat and they don’t mind what kind, so long as it’s not black.”

Since the Middle Ages black cats have been associated with witches. In the UK, a black cat crossing a person’s path is commonly said to bring good luck. Yet black cats tend to be unlucky, frequently being the last to be adopted from animal shelters.

“We think it’s because of the sheer number of black cats we have, also it could be to do with superstition,” Dawn said.

Among the black cats looking for a home at Woodside is Smudge, an eight-year-old male.

Dawn said: “We are looking for a barn-type home for Smudge. He needs to be able to wander and doesn’t want to be overly fussed.”

For more information on Smudge and any of the cats looking for a home at Woodside call 01752 347503, email generalenquiries@woodsidesanctuary.org.uk, visit www.woodsidesanctuary.org.uk or find the sanctuary on Facebook.