The Black Cat as a Symbol of Halloween?

Along with the pumpkin, ghost, witch and skeleton, the Halloween cat is an icon of the season. Always depicted as a solid black short-haired cat, the animal may be pictured on the prowl, puffed up in a hiss, or riding on the back of a witch's broom. Cardboard cutouts of the black cat are a popular Halloween decoration. Children's Books and movies about Halloween often include a Halloween cat as a character. Cat Halloween costumes, especially black cat costumes, are popular.

How the black cat came to be associated with Halloween, and what this association means for actual black cats, is the stuff of legend. Every autumn, rumors circulate of witches and satanic cults seeking black cats to sacrifice in Halloween rituals. Animal shelters throughout North America have been known to disallow adoptions of black cats right before Halloween. Owners of black cats are advised to keep their pets indoors, lest the cats be stolen for cult sacrifices.

These rumors are apparently nothing more than urban legend. According to snopes.com, no solid evidence of black cat sacrifices, at Halloween or any other time of year, has ever been found. While there may be a slight uptick of animal abuse incidents around Halloween, these incidents are attributable to malicious pranks and do not necessarily target black cats in particular. Wiccans, neo-Pagans and others who may call themselves witches typically do not practice animal sacrifice at all. The main threat to cats of any color at Halloween is being annoyed by trick-or-treaters and loud parties.[http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/blackcat.asp]

The black cat's association with magic and witches makes it a Halloween symbol. For many generations, cats, and black cats in particular, have been associated with witchcraft and magic. Hekate, the Greek goddess of the underworld, later known as the queen of witches, was said to sometimes take the form of a black cat. In times past, if you met a black cat, it was understood that you might be meeting Hekate herself. From this comes the superstition that having a black cat cross your path is bad luck. Halloween, being a holiday associated with magic and death, claims the magical black cat one of its symbols.[http://www.helium.com/items/1603215-how-do-superstitions-originate]