Black Cats Aren't Getting Adopted Because They Look Bad in Selfies

[Demovictory9]

https://www.wideopenpets.com/black-cats-getting-passed-look-bad-selfies/


A shelter in England has gotten some pretty ridiculous feedback.
When asking adopters if they were flexible with the color cat they were interested in, the cat rehoming shelter The Moggery in Bristol, England would get the answer "yes, as long as it's not black."

While black cats have always had trouble getting adopted from shelters due to their unfair association with bad luck, the shelter says it's worse now more than ever. Founder of The Moggery told Unilad.

It's worse now because black cats don't show up in selfies. Now everybody wants to take selfies and put them on Facebook. It's a very narcissistic use of social media.

The Moggery has near 40 black cats that need to go to good homes.

[madaboutharry]

1. I love black cats.

They’re magical.

[mgardener]

39. We've always had a black cat

For over 30 years.
Our first one, named by our kids, was called Spooky.

[trueblue2007]

88. My MINI PANTHER .... my Black Magic Woman is INKY. We rescued her. Hubby takes care of feral cats

she is gorgeous ~~~


http://tinypic.com/f/eq0pd/1

[2naSalit]

2. But they're awesome!

[RandySF]

3. .

[Leghorn21]

4. If you don't like black cats, you're an idiot.

That is all.

[zazfan]

56. I don't like cats at all. What am I?

Don't hold back, let your prejudices show.

[eShirl]

58. looks like you answered your own question

[zazfan]

62. How?

I am "a person who doesn't like cats", is that it?

[billh58]

87. Gone and forgotten...

[drmeow]

5. I lost one of my cats about 2 months ago

and I'd love to replace him with a black cat!

[PoliticAverse]

6. "black cats don't show up in selfies." - that's only the vampire ones. n/t

[ToxMarz]

47. Thanks, that confused me too. Now I understand.

[rustysgurl]

7. I have had many cats in my lifetime ...

tabbies, gingers, torties, graylins, kitlers, Siamese, etc. But my favorites have always been my black kittehs. Now that we are reaching retirement age, our animal horde has decreased. But if we end up adopting again, it will always be a black cat or dog. I just don't understand the black animal prejudice. Black labs are COOL. Black cats are even COOLER!

[Lisa0825]

8. Black cats have always been less adoptable.

Mostly due to superstition.

The photo issue has another angle. When I was a rescue volunteer, I maintained the website, and it was really hard to get good photos of black cats, and those with the cutest photos got the most adoption inquiries.

[RobinA]

35. I Can Vouch

for the photo issue, I have a black cat and it’s really hard to get a good picture of her. Now, I wouldn’t confuse that with a reason not to adopt a black cat, but some people..,🙄. I actually set out to adopt a black cat, which is what I did.

[mopinko]

38. i thought that was what they meant. the idea that someone would pick a pet

based on how they look in selfies just boggles my mind.

but i bet there are some tricks you could use for this.
if nothing else desaturate the finished photo. i think most phone cameras can do that these days.
it would probably also help to get some uplight on the face.
the best ones seems to be the cats w nice shiny coats. even a little mist of water would add some light, i think.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

9. Pretty savvy marketing.

1. Call up a "social-first" website.

2. Give them a nonscientific, clickbaity, "kids these days" reason black cats aren't adopted.

3. Wait for the calls to come in.

Disclaimer: I'm fine with more animals getting adopted.

[Maraya1969]

52. Can you be more specific and give and example please?

I want to understand what you are saying but at this point I'm kind of lost

[WhiskeyGrinder]

65. I'm saying it's not hard for a shelter to call up media outlets and say "we've had people

say they won't adopt black cats because they don't show up in selfies" and the media to eat it up and writes articles that get the shelter a lot of attention and create a demand for black cats. There's nothing to fact check, but there's not necessarily any truth to it, either.

Animal shelters deal with a constant level of supply, so they have to come up with different ways to create demand.

[Maraya1969]

66. Oh! That's pretty clever.

[aeromanKC]

10. If that's the criteria used by an Owner

Then that's NOT a good owner for a cat to be adopted by.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

11. Aww, I love them! I love how their big yellow eyes show up against their black fur!

And selfies are just fucking stupid. If your fucking selfie is more important than your pet, you don't deserve to have a pet.

[no_hypocrisy]

12. An equivalent is redheaded babies don't get adopted as readily.

My friend got on a waiting list for adoption and was advised it would likely be about three years before an infant would be available.

She got a call about three weeks later, indicating there was a baby but it was one that made it hard to place. My friend thought it was a birth defect, a mental challenge, a deformity, etc. It wasn't that. The baby boy was a redhead and adoptive parents assumed that the child would become a terror.

As she was Irish, she raced to get the baby.

As a redhead myself, I don't get the black cat and redhead stigma.

[ret5hd]

17. Well, that explains your attitude around here!!!

(I kid, I kid!)

[no_hypocrisy]

20. There may be some truth to it.

My parents were in denial when I was born. They couldn't accept they had a redhead.

[mopinko]

32. i would have raced to get that baby too. aalllways wanted a redhead, as did

my mom. she was a redhead, her mom was a redhead, but had no redheads herself. none of my 5 have red hair.
but-
she did have several redheaded grandkids. the only boy of the bunch actually was a holy terror. my sister was always grateful that she worked at the hospital where he was always in the er.
even in the days when parents got away w that shit for the most part, she was pretty sure she would have at least been investigated if she were a stranger.

then again, the blond kid is the one who went to jail. lol.

[CurtEastPoint]

13. Ridiculous. I have THREE solid black kitties and they are the absolute sweetest and best cats.

[shanti]

14. That's exactly why I adopted my Manny!

Well that and because he sought me out. Black dogs get the same treatment as black cats.

[UniteFightBack]

91. Me too! nt

[lilactime]

15. I have 2 black cats and anybody who uses that as a reason to not adopt a

black cat does not deserve to adopt any cat, or any other pet for that matter.

[AllyCat]

45. Exactly

[ellie]

16. I want all of the cats!

[diane in sf]

18. I have 3 black cats, they're all beautiful. To get good photos take them in daylight with the sun

lighting up the cat.

[Mariana]

26. My parents had a gorgeous big black cat they took in

when a friend had to move. When the light was on him just right, you could see that he had faint Tabby stripes.

[procon]

19. That's just horrible.

My dearest friend for over 18 years was Rasputin, a lovable and funny black cat that always looked like a wandering ragamuffin with his long scruffy coat. Still miss that little guy. If I could take in another puss, I wouldn't hesitate to bring home a black cat.

[Beringia]

21. I never had a superstition about black cats

My first cat in our family was black and I was madly in love with her.

Later in life, I had a dream with a black cat, like it was warning me of danger, and then I picked up the superstition unfortunately.

[Demovictory9]

22. ...

Link to tweet

[Beringia]

30. Nice pic

[Doreen]

34. My friend and I had an Onyx also.

Very pretty kitty.

[Judi Lynn]

60. Beautiful! Wow. n/t

[applegrove]

23. They are so pretty.

[Codeine]

24. Black cat hair doesn't show up on my shirts.

The ideal pet.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

25. I'm a cat lover who has nothing against black cats,

Last edited Tue Mar 12, 2019, 11:43 PM - Edit history (2)

but I'm far more likely to adopt any other color. Other than all white. Not sure why I don't like either of those two.

Right now I am without any cats, and travel too much to have so much as a potted plant in my care. Someday, though, someday.

When I am ready for new felines, I will go to my animal shelter and ask for the oldest cat they have. I'd prefer if they have two or three whose owner has died or gone into a nursing home and they want to home them together. If one is a black or a white cat I would NOT turn them down.

My son knows that if he ever has to put me in a nursing home, try very hard to find one that has resident cats. I will never be so senile that I wouldn't want to be around them. Oh, and if the home has a resident cat who seems to instinctively know when a person is ready to pass on and spends the last few hours with that person, THAT'S the home for me. To leave this world with a cat on my lap or alongside me purring would be as wonderful a way to go as I can imagine.

[demigoddess]

29. agree with you. We had a cat that the first night cuddled up to our

handicapped daughter, retarded and has scoliosis. first night he cuddled her back to warm it and help her sleep. Later on he had a game to play with her. He would pretend to bite at her finger and she would pull it back in time. She loved the game and I am sure that is why he played it with her over the years. He died over 25 years ago and we still miss him. I also believe he sits in heaven and is happy as a clam.

[Guilded Lilly]

27. My daughter rescued 2 black cats :). N/T

[lapfog_1]

28. I personally rescued 4 cats from a motel parking lot

3 were feral and are now homed at a feral colony ranch after I paid to get them fixed, vaccinated, etc.

The one black kitty was not feral... clearly adopted me as his "buddy" and is now laying at the end of my bed. His name is Shadow... because whenever I walk around in my place I have to be careful not to step on my Shadow.

He is the 4th "adopted" rescue... 1 is with my niece, 1 is with a friend... and sadly, one never recovered from illness.

[Ms. Toad]

31. We currently have one black one,

and I've had one other black cat years ago. Not terribly fond of either one. The tabbies, calico/tortises, and yellows were a better fit for my idea of a cat. But I'm the current one's person - so he spends a lot of time around me (and I can say whatever I want about him and he loves it as long as I say it in a loving voice )

We'll be looking for another soon (we had to put his "sister" to sleep as a result of a massive kidney incident in January and it is clear from his behavior that he is lonely). I won't exclude another black one - but we'll be looking for another of similar age that is in need of a home, and I want a lap kitty.

(All our cats have been rescues - our current one lost his family trying to cross a major road, someone picked him up and thought they would keep him, but passed him off to our vet, who passed him off to my spouse. He was supposed to be her cat - but she is his least favorit person.)

[Shrike47]

33. We have one. He's a real sweetie. We also have his black and white brother (not tuxedo; blobby.)

We went to the animal shelter to get a black kitten but they won’t let you leave with just one! We are so glad we took them both.

[912gdm]

36. that's horrible.

superstition is bad enough, but not wanting them cause of selfies?

[MarianJack]

37. Three of our five cats are black, and WE...

...love them like you wouldn't believe!

BTW, I think they look just fine in selfies. I don't though.

RESIST!

[BigmanPigman]

40. The people with that sort of attitude are in the same group

who ignore warning signs at zoos that say, "Do not enter the animal enclosure for your own safety" then climb over the fence and sign only to fall into the enclosure, the animal defends itself and then gets euthanized while the idiot with the camera gets to sue the zoo.

[jcgoldie]

41. Heres Boca

We literally smuggled her through customs at the airport in a duffle bag from Boca de Tomatlan Mexico when the lady who was renting us a casa refused to feed her the food I bought for her.. she loves Illinois!

https://ibb.co/pWXXgwY

[femmedem]

69. beautiful photo of a beautiful cat!

Thanks for taking the time to post a photo of her.

[jcgoldie]

72. Awwe thanks so much!

She's in her screened in kitty porch I made for her off a window in the laundry room

[Demovictory9]

79. off topic. I had that same rug

[AllyCat]

42. Yeah, but my black cat shows up for a snuggle

Several times a day. He is such a character that a photo does not capture his expression at all.

[Doreen]

43. The one cat who was closest to me was black.

He was tall, slinky, and long. He had a long ass tail. He could jump from the ground to the top of 7 foot pole with out touching the side of the pole. I never have seen another animal as graceful as my Lunar. He knew I had a tubular pregnancy that was about to kill me and kept snuggling tightly up to me until I found out and got it taken care of. He died shortly after that. It just about destroyed me when he died. I miss him.

[shenmue]

44. SQUEE

[Niagara]

46. We have a black cat

His name is Bermuda.

He's extremely affectionate, thinks he's on the top of the pecking order, and supervises in the kitchen while we're cooking.

[crazycatlady]

94. what a beautiful kitty

Love the eyes

[benld74]

48. We love our little black Bombay

Named her Cocoa
She’s a little troublemaker
But
We really don’t care

[George II]

49. Our last two cats are/were black, we love(d) both of them, they have more personality than others.

[UpInArms]

50. I have two black cats

And have never worried about selfies ... sheesh

[TDale313]

51. Black cats are awesome.

And a lot of people are just really, really dumb.

[CountAllVotes]

53. I adopted a black kitten from the local KILL shelter

She on her way out, sick sick sick.

They wanted me to take her back and they would have gotten rid of her quickly.

I didn't do that though. I kept her and nursed her back to health.

That was three years ago almost.

She is absolutely the most beautiful cat I have ever had.

Its like having a mini-black panther!

People don't realize how cool black kitties are!

Adopt one and find out what you are missing!

#ADOPTDONTSHOP

& recommend!

[area51]

54. I used to have a black cat;

she was the sweetest, bravest cat I've ever owned. Still miss her.

[moreland01]

55. If you see a black cat . . .

. . That knows how to take a selfie, adopt it! That's one smart cat! 😁😂🤣🤣😃😄

[Meowmee]

57. What a bunch of nonsense

I took hundreds of very beautiful pics of and with my sweet boy, who loved me like never before. I miss him so much. I rescued him. I’m so glad I have all of those photos. #blackcatsrule

[democratisphere]

59. Have had several black cats over the years. Love them.

Selfie addicts. Not so much.

[Dorian Gray]

61. I love my black cat

We got her four years ago, and she's a love muffin. A lap cat, she follows us around, kneads our laps and proceeds to fall asleep right on us.

If people want a cat for good selfies, they're doing it wrong.

[crazycatlady]

63. I almost adopted two black kitties

Only thing holding me back is my cat then didn't get along with other cats.

They were a pair of big burly black brothers. Their elderly owner passed away so the cats went to the SPCA. Very sweet, affectionate (appropriately named) lover boys-- Romeo and Casanova.

When I retire from my political career on the road, I'll have a black cat.

[LiberalFighter]

64. I was part of a dog rescue and took photos to post.

It was difficult to get a good photo of a black dog cause their features weren't easy to define.

[maxsolomon]

67. There should be fewer cats.

Then they'll be fewer cats going un-adopted, black or not.

More spaying, more neutering.

[Meowmee]

68. There are numerous smaller animal rescue groups

that you can donate to help stop the euthanization millions of cats and dogs every year in this country at kill shelters. Alley Cat Allies is a group that promotes tnr of community cats all over the country.

[maxsolomon]

73. there are lterally 1,000s of organizations that need donations.

I focus on affordable housing and homelessness.

[Meowmee]

74. Well then

Maybe don’t make comments about animals since you’re not willing to support them as well.

[Mariana]

75. Do you oppose more spaying and neutering of cats? nt.

[Meowmee]

81. Did you read what I wrote?

I guess not. I suggested donating to allie cat allies a group that promotes tnr and I do tnr myself.

[Mariana]

85. Yes. You gave the poster a bunch of grief.

Why? The poster merely advocated for spaying and neutering cats, so there will be fewer homeless cats. You went off on some ridiculous tangent that had nothing to do with what the poster said.

I understand if you want people to donate to your favorite charities, but telling people they shouldn't express an opinion unless they do isn't a very good way to convince them.

[Meowmee]

93. I misunderstood what he said

It seemed to me at the time he did not care about black cats and dogs having a harder time which they still would even if the overall population was reduced. And that maybe he didn’t care about the overall siuation when he said he didnt want to donate etc. I have apologized.

[maxsolomon]

82. so, unless i donate money to a specific charitable cause

I can't have an opinion on that topic. got it.

do you donate to every cause that solicits you?

[Mariana]

86. I think the poster may be trying, in some weird way

to convince you to donate to that particular cause. It's not a very effective technique, I must say.

[Meowmee]

92. You are free to have and to express whatever opinion you want etc. of course

If I misunderstood your comments I apologize. Your comment seemed out of place on a post about black cats and dogs having a hard time getting adopted which is a well known by anyone who does rescue. When you said there are just too many but did not want to help it gave me the impression of someone who did not care and who simply wanted to criticize. Even if there were less homeless, abandoned and dumped cats and dogs, the black cats and dogs would still have a harder time. Let me just say I am sorry period😊

[madinmaryland]

70. I've had four black cats over the last 30 years. Even adopted one from DUer Flaxbee 15 years ago!

[Volaris]

71. 'its a very narcissistic use of social media.'

And, in other news, Irony passed away today. It succumed to wounds it had suffered in a confrontation with Western Civilizations social apathy. The weapon of choice in this brutal assult was Facebook.

When asked about the initial attack, Mr. Zuckerberg offered the following quote from NASA engineer and former Nazi Vernar Von Braun:
'i aim for the moon. Occasionally, I hit London.'
Mr. Zuckerberg then brandished the sword he has been known to carry at his side on occasion in Facebook's corporate offices, and asked the gathered reporters what they thought of the idea of lowering the tax rates of 'sword-affiliated incels'.

"Coverages of the Services at eleven, and the family states they would prefer charitable donations to flowers.

[BeyondGeography]

76. I have one who's 13 now

So sweet. Love her to tears. Don’t get me started.

[Calista241]

77. Fuck selfies. I've been feeding a neighborhood black cat for a year now.

And she’s adorable.

[2naSalit]

78. People need to learn to take better selfies.

[Initech]

80. People have lost their damn minds lately.

I mean seriously, does everything have to be instagrammable?

[maxsolomon]

83. there's also the possibility

that this story is clickbait anecdotal bullshit, and people have always adopted black cats in lower numbers, because there are so many black cats.

[wishstar]

84. Ours was cutest, feistiest, funniest cat we ever had-took it on our boat, camping, hiking everywhere

It was a manx cat too, so it looked like a little bear cub. He slept with us and made sure there was never a dull or lonely moment for the entire 13 years he lived with us.

[FakeNoose]

89. They need to teach people how to take good photos of a black cat

Probably a cellphone camera won't have the features you need, so I suggest experimenting with a digital camera. Try opening up the aperture and extending the exposure time. Experiment with depth of field.

A little bit of trial and error, and you'll get awesome photos, far better than anything you can get on your phone. DU has some really gifted and well-trained photographers. They surely know more than I do.

[Meowmee]

95. I got amazing pics of mine with all my cams

But digital would be easier for most with lots of settings or with manual. I always shoot manual or aperture when using my real cams. But I mostly shoot with my tablet now and it is a matter of lighting and angles. Many people are very superstitious about blackcats especially though, they think they are bad luck etc. But better pics would help.

[Liberal Veteran]

90. I have a black cat. He was a neighborhood stray. Not quite adult when I got him.

He was vicious for about 10 seconds when I first caught him and took him inside. Pooped out a worm in the basement where I kept him in quarantine for a few days.

A couple of days later, he shredded my arm at the vet's office.

Within a couple of weeks, he was sitting in my front window waiting for me to get home and following me around the house like he was my shadow.

He had no grace at all for the first year or so. He got nicknamed "Plopper" because he would literally climb on my lap and plop down like his bones had turned to water.

Now he's 2000 miles from where I found him (we made a big move and kitty came with us) and still follows me around the house and he has the most adorable silent meow ever (he gets a little squeak out every now and then, but mostly he just makes the meow face without actually making any noise).

And I love him.