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If we look at their history, we can see that there might be reasons for black cats to be a bit shy. Black cats are the cats with the most superstitions about them. In different cultures they can bring bad, or good, luck. They were supposed to have magical powers, and have been adopted as a symbol by many different types of people.
I think black cats got this reputation because of their invisibility at night. Seeing only a pair of glowing eyes at night, before flashlights and streetlights, would have been a jolting experience. The reputation began to stick to the cat.
Then, in the Middle Ages, religious hysteria targeted cats, especially black ones. The exact number of cats destroyed in panics are disputed; what it is not disputed is the fact that they were targeted. So the better the cat was at actually being invisible, the more black cats would descend from that cat.
Black cats come in all shapes and sizes. They can be as sweet, and as friendly, as any other cat. That black fur can be shiny velvet, or dark and fluffy and as chocolate cake. Their eyes are shown off to great advantage with the dark background. If they are a bit shy, that only means they will be all the more devoted when they do thaw.
But if you hesitate about bringing one home, out of some vague feeling that black cats are bad luck, remember that many people think black cats are good luck.
And taking one home… might be magic.
Read more about black cats on Wikipedia.
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There’s more to choosing a cat with The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See my CHOOSING A CAT.
