Halloween and International Black Cat Awareness Month

October is Black Cat Awareness month due to the fact that many people worry that folks are going to do terrible things to black cats around Halloween. While this has largely proven to be a myth, black cats are already 50% less likely to be adopted than other cats in shelters, so the cards are really stacked against them. So I guess it is good we have a day devoted to this issue in August—and now a whole month!

I hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween this year. Here are some quick tips to ensure that your kitties stay safe this Halloween:

1. Designate a safe space for the cats earlier in the day. Set the room up with a litter box (or two or three, depending on how many cats you have). Set up food and litter. Bring in some catnip and treats to be used later.
2. I had several very shy cats in my house when my kids were young and doing active trick-or-treating, so I would focus on getting my shyest cats into a bedroom early in the afternoon before the kids got crazy about costumes and candy. My friendly guys, I assumed I could pick up and move into the bedroom about an hour before trick-or-treating time.
3. If I am having a hard time getting the shy cats to move, I sometimes had to be flexible … so it was not unheard of that I might lock them in my closet with food and a litter box. I felt this was the safest option for them at times, as I didn’t have double doors at my house and the front door was open for much of the time from 5-7.
4. Remember Halloween food. If you have kids bringing food home or you have candy out to give out to the many trick-or-treaters visiting, please be careful not to leave it out unsupervised. We have all heard the stories about dogs eating chocolate and getting sick from that, but this can happen with cats too. They also may bat the candies around and you will get to find the candies under your couch 10 years later when you move out of the house!
5. Kids, cats, and sugar=catastrophic combination. Be willing to keep the cats in their safe space until after the kids have had their candy and gone to bed. Letting the cats out while the kids are home with crazy costumes and candy can be a nasty combination. Always remember that cats are creatures of routine. They don’t like change and the craziness of Halloween can stress them out.
6. Do you dress up your cat for Halloween? I have to say that none of my cats appreciated the desire my kids had for dressing them up. About 2/3 of my cats were semi-feral, so my kids had to acknowledge that there was no hope with those guys, but the rest of my group was sometimes fair game. None of them seemed to enjoy this so we don’t do it, but my daughter Rachel has a cat that doesn’t seem to mind it. So if you do have a cat that is okay with being dressed up, just make sure there isn’t anything that they can get caught up on and definitely don’t let them outside dressed up! Please monitor them closely. If they feel at all upset, bring them to a quiet space and take off the costume.

I hope these tips will help you have a fun, safe and enjoyable Halloween.