An unlucky time for black cats

Mathis Winkler

Cuddling up to his sister Carrie, Spooky -- too sleepy to utter a

sound -- opened his big, round eyes.

Unlike Elvira, Phantom and Freddy Krueger -- the last having six

fingers on each paw -- the 6-week-old black kitten at the Newport Beach

Animal Shelter has already found a permanent home.

Any other time of the year, Spooky would be in his new home already.

But the upcoming Halloween holiday will keep him behind bars for a few

more weeks.

Like many shelters around the nation, Newport Beach’s facility won’t

release black cats for several weeks before the night of dark spirits.

While many cite the ritual killings of black cats as the reason for

safeguarding the animals, Jamye Rogers, the city’s animal control

officer, offered a different explanation.

“The ritual stuff has gone more underground,” she said. “But people

are using [black cats] for Halloween props and dumping them after the

season.”

Rogers’ Costa Mesa counterpart said his department hasn’t historically

seen an increase in cruelty to black cats in October. Costa Mesa’s animal

control people can come across animal sacrifices at any time of year.

“Every once in a while, we’ll have something that seems a little

suspicious,” said Robert Bork, the animal supervisor for the Costa Mesa

Police Department, adding that other animals, such as birds, were also

used in rituals.

Whether an animal has been killed by other animals or humans is often

hard to determine, Bork said.

“A lot of times, a coyote will leave a head behind,” he said. “It’s

hard to tell if an animal’s killed in a ritual or by other wildlife.”

Others who have long monitored ritualistic animal killings said black

cats were definitely not the only animals in danger of becoming victims.

“I’ve stood next to the body of a mutilated cat many times and heard,

‘But my cat wasn’t black. I thought I didn’t have to worry,”’ said Janet

Hampson, the president of Tustin Residents against Animal Killers.

Hampson, who began researching the topic when a neighbor’s black cat

was cut in half and left on his front porch in 1988, agreed that animal

sacrifices can take place any time.

“There’s a whole calendar of satanic holidays,” she said. “A full

moon, the fall equinox, the summer solstice, any time someone is inducted

into a cult.”

But mistaking a ritual sacrifice for a coyote kill seems almost

impossible, Hampson said.

“Coyotes leave a ragged mess,” she said, adding that she hasn’t heard

of a sacrifice cat killing in Orange County since last Halloween. “They

are messy eaters with strong jaws. You see a cat that’s been pulled

apart. When you have people who have done it, you almost always see clean

cuts.”

While the Newport Beach Animal Shelter and the National Cat Protection

Society outright ban adoptions of black cats in October, other shelters

and organizations will release animals under certain conditions.

“We’re kind of just screening,” said Julie Douglas of the Orange

County Humane Society, which serves as Costa Mesa’s animal shelter.

She added that about 10 black cats were ready for adoption. “If it’s a

mom and dad and three children [who come to adopt a cat], then it’s not a

problem.”

Fuzzier, a 9-month-old male black cat who’s friendly with dogs and

walks on a leash, is staying with foster parents through the Newport

Beach-based Animal Network of Orange County.

He’s also ready for adoption, but those interested in taking him home

will have to agree to a stringent screening that includes references and

a checkup visit at the beginning of November.

“We’re taking precautions,” said DiAnna Pfaff-Martin, the

organization’s president. “But we don’t have a moratorium because of our

great clientele.”

Hampson’s done her own bit for black cats. Three years ago, she pulled

Lucky off the streets.

“I told him that he’s one black cat that won’t be sacrificed,” she

said. And her advice for owners of any pet? Keep them attended or inside

at all times.

FYI

The Newport Beach Animal Shelter is looking for donations to pay for

keeping the black cats safe during the month. It costs $7 per cat, per

day. Donations of more than $25 are tax-deductible.

The Animal Network of Orange County will hold adoption days from noon

to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Russo’s Pet Experience at Fashion Island

in Newport Beach.

Animal Network of Orange County (949) 759-3646

National Cat Protection Society (949) 650-1232

Newport Beach Animal Shelter (949) 644-3656

Orange County Humane Society (714) 536-8480

Tustin Residents against Animal Killers (714) 832-1100