Shelters fight myths about black cats

Ladybug and Dragonfly began their feline lives with a stroke of luck.

Their scared, homeless mother was rescued in March from behind an apartment complex in Cary, just in time to deliver her kittens at a shelter.

Cat Angels, the group that rescued them, delighted in their personalities. Ladybug and Dragonfly would gently place their paws on the cheeks of anyone who scooped them up.

After being fixed, dewormed and vaccinated, the cats - along with siblings Grasshopper and Junebug - were ready for someone to take them home.

Grasshopper and Junebug were snatched up in August.

But Ladybug and Dragonfly lingered. As of Wednesday, Ladybug was still featured on Cat Angels' Web site. Such is the life of a solid black cat.

Superstitions that black cats are evil or bring bad luck have lingered for centuries. Halloween images of a black cat arching its back at the feet of a witch have created a stigma, causing fewer cat lovers to opt for inky felines.

"I really have had people tell me that black cats have demons in them," said Megan Chavis, director of operations at AniMall in Cary. "Or they're just not friendly or they have a bad personality."

Black cats are half as likely to be adopted as tabby cats and two-thirds less likely than white cats, according to a 2002 study by the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, which gathered data at a California facility over a nine-month period.

And a disproportionate number of black shelter cats are eventually euthanized, according to the study.

A number of western Wake County pet-rescue groups have tried to fight the stigma by offering promotions to encourage black-cat adoptions.

Through Halloween, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Wake County offered a discounted adoption fee of $31 for all black and orange cats, compared with the usual $95.

Marley's Cat Tales, a cat rescue group in Cary, this summer sponsored "Adopt a Carolina Panther," offering some black cats in teal collars, capitalizing on the football team's mascot. Up to 20 cats were put on display in cages decorated like mini-football fields, complete with litter box end zones.

"We did average five adoptions per week, which was phenomenal for black cats," said Carol Deolloqui, director of Marley's Cat Tales.

The promotions also try to call attention to cats that fail to stand out at a shelter.

Black pets are hard to photograph, putting them at a disadvantage for adoption Web sites, said Deborah Fox, co-founder of Cat Angels. They fade into shadows of crowded shelters. It's hard to see their expressions.

"They're featureless," said Fox.

Another strike against black pets comes from their genes. The color is dominant in dogs and cats - meaning there are just more of them.

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