Black Friday Revisited
The busy holiday season begins in November. It is a time of family gatherings, and special sales geared toward celebrating the season and the array of holidays that happen in these last two months of the year.
One recent tradition to encourage holiday gifting is “Black Friday” which began as a single day and has blossomed into a much longer time of special buying. There are “Pre-Black Friday Pop Ups” and “Black Friday Sneak Peeks,” mailers, ads, and messages everywhere.
What is missing from Black Friday Special Days? Black Dog & Cat Fridays!
What about focusing on even bigger, much more rewarding special deals – pets who need a home, especially black dogs and cats. An organization called Wondercide is asking us to help fight the stigma associated with these precious fur babies! And while everyone loves a good deal, Wondercide is focusing on an even bigger deal: pets who need a home, especially black dogs and cats.
There is a long standing need
- The Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science studied shelter adoption rates and found that coat colors (black or brindle) negatively influenced adoption rates for both cats and dogs, (other factors include age, gender, breed, size, neutered or not, reason for impoundment, and health status.)
- Researchers noted that adoption rates were much lower in pure-black animals. Animal shelters often use the term “Black Dog Syndrome” or “Black Cat Syndrome” to describe this phenomenon when they experience it. But we know that black pets are beautiful and lovable!
- During the month of November, Wondercide is showing the love and will highlight black pets across the US who are available for adoption, encouraging families to start or expand their pack during Black Pet November. Through a partnership with other pet organizations, pet stores and shelters, they will match adoption fees at that shelter when black pets are adopted, up to $10,000.
Myths and legends
It’s not really clear why adoption rates of black pets suffer in favor of pets with a lighter coat, and thankfully not all shelters experience what’s been dubbed “Black Pet Syndrome.” But many do. Data from the Austin Animal Shelter website was analyzed by a publication called Towards Data Science, and confirmed that this unfortunately is not uncommon in the rescue community.
- It is possible that there is an unconscious bias against dogs with a black coat due to their role in movies, mythology and folklore. Large black dogs are often portrayed as guardians of the underworld. In movies and television, black dogs are often shown to be aggressive security guards.
- Black cats have a long history of being associated with witchcraft and superstitions about causing bad luck. Even though the hysteria around witches and associating black cats with demons has mostly disappeared, maybe some of that bias stuck around to subconsciously impact the draw of black cats to a potential adopter.
- Visibility? Or perhaps the black coat simply leads to a visibility problem. We wear black clothes to give a slimming effect, because the black tone hides some of the contour of our bodies. And the black color does the same thing to hide the features of a dog or cat. When rescues post pictures of their adoptable pets, the pictures of black pets can appear more plain, making it difficult for their features or personality to shine through in the photo. Even if there’s no negative bias based on coat color, it’s still possible for a black pet to have a difficult time standing out against their competition for adoption.
How can you help?
- Having this awareness is a great step. Black dogs and cats are just as sweet with as much personality as any other pet. The best way to help black pets have a home is to adopt one! Social media will be highlighting available pets for adoption throughout November because #BlackPetsAreWonderful.
- If you are not able to adopt a black pet of your own, you can donate to local shelters and rescues. Boosting their finances can give a rescue more resources to help care for black dogs while they continue to wait for adoption. You can also volunteer your time to support the operations of a shelter or rescue. Many shelters offer volunteers the opportunity to walk or play with dogs to help bring them some joy. You can help give a black dog hope without taking on the financial responsibility of pet ownership.
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