Black Cat Myths, Debunked (They're Actually Good Luck)

Black cats have one of the most unearned reputations in the animal world. The superstition is old, widespread, and almost entirely disconnected from anything about the actual cats.

Where the bad-luck myth actually comes from

The association with bad luck traces back largely to medieval European folklore, where black cats got tangled up with fears about witchcraft — the idea that a black cat might be a witch’s companion or even a witch in disguise. It’s a belief rooted in superstition about the supernatural, not in anything about the cats themselves, and it stuck around far longer than the fears that created it.

The cultures that say the opposite

Plenty of places never picked up the bad-luck version at all. In parts of the United Kingdom, a black cat crossing your path is traditionally considered good luck, not bad. In Japan, black cats are associated with good fortune and are even believed to attract suitors. The “unlucky” reputation is really a regional superstition that got exported more widely than the traditions that contradict it.

Why it matters for adoption rates

The lingering superstition has a real, measurable downside: black cats are statistically among the hardest cats to get adopted from shelters, purely because of a folklore reputation that has nothing to do with their actual temperament. They’re not more standoffish, more unlucky, or harder to live with — they’re just wearing a coat color that inherited some bad PR centuries ago.

Wearing the myth ironically

If you already know better, there’s something fitting about a black-cat design that leans into the “spooky” reputation on purpose rather than taking it seriously — Pet Me, I Dare You and Witch Way to the Candy both play with that same witchy folklore as a joke, which is a very different thing from actually believing it.

Shop the collection

Browse the full Halloween Cats subcategory for more black-cat and witch-cat designs that know exactly what they’re referencing.