Scared of a little black cat?
We've all heard about black cat superstitions from thousands of years ago, but there are still people who believe in them.
I grew up with a black cat. His name is Link and he is family. I was three when my family brought him home and he is now 17 and is still as sweet as ever.
I am the middle sibling of three girls. My older sister Shannon is about two years older and my younger sister Candace is about two years younger. So, you can imagine what Link went through growing up with us three.
We used to dress him up in our doll dresses and make him necklaces and carry him around like a rag doll. But he was kind and gentle and put up with all of that for all these years. He has seen each of us grow into young women and has watched each of us come home with our own cats, but he still loves us the same. Eventually, he accepted that he was at our mercy, and he still sleeps in one of our pink doll cradles.
Link resides at my parents' house in Calgary and has always gone outside when he wants to. He will walk down the block for some fresh air and come back home. However, we never let him outside during the month of October, because some people are cruel to black cats specifically around Halloween. People will kick them and throw things at them – you name it.
After doing some research, I found out a few things.
In Europe, in the Middle Ages, poor and elderly ladies often fed alley cats. After the witch hysteria struck Europe, homeless women were accused of witchery, and their black cat companions were deemed guilty of witchery by association.
Some believe that if a black cat crosses their path by moonlight, it means death in an epidemic. In the 1560s in Lincolnshire, a man and his son were walking one night when a black cat crossed their path. They began to throw stones at it and the cat ran into the home of a woman who was suspected of being a witch. The next day, the woman was bruised and scratched and from that day on, some believe witches transform themselves into black cats as a night disguise.
However, not all black cat superstitions are negative.
When the black cat was first domesticated around 3000 BC in Egypt, it was held in high esteem and protected by law from death.
Some believe that black cats are of good fortune and in south France people believe they bring good luck to the owners that feed them well.
Black cats used to be treated like royalty in the homes of English sailors. They believed that keeping them happy would ensure good weather when they went to sea.
Christy Thompson with the Calgary Humane Society said black cats are always the last ones to be picked, so they are always trying to highlight them.
The reality is, Link, and other black cats, are not going to cast a spell on you or cause death if they cross your path in the moonlight. Believe it or not, they may approach you and roll around at your feet for attention. So please, be kind to all of the black cats running around town. They aren't any different.
