Why Black Cats Are Harder to Adopt
Why Black Cats Are Harder to Adopt
Yes, black cats stay in shelters longer than more brightly colored felines.
“There is anecdotal and empirical evidence for black cat bias, the phenomenon where cats with black coats are viewed more negatively, adopted less often, and euthanized more often than lighter colored cats,” authors Haylie D. Jones and Christian L. Hart wrote in their study, “Black Cat Bias: Prevalence and Predictors.”
That study, published in 2019, confirmed older studies that drew the same conclusion.
Coat color is, in fact, the second-most important factor when it comes to adopting cats, as a group of Canadian researchers found in 2016.
“It has been found that black cats take the longest to adopt,” that study said, “with black cats taking approximately two to six days longer to adopt than cats with another coat color.”
A similar study in Colorado following more than 15,000 cats through the adoption process found that black cats spend an average of 26.25 days in a shelter — the average for other-colored cats was 24.01 days.
“Black cats, regardless of age or sex, require the longest time to adopt,” the study, out of Colorado State University, said. “This additional time in shelters negatively impacts the health and therefore, the welfare, of black shelter cats.”
That’s as true in Connecticut as it is elsewhere.
