National Black Cat Day2026 · Date · History · Messages
Cats Protection states that National Black Cat Day is held each year on October 27, that it launched the first campaign on 27 October 2011 as Black Cat Awareness Day, and that it renamed the campaign National Black Cat Day in 2012.
About National Black Cat Day
National Black Cat Day is a Cats Protection campaign held in the United Kingdom on October 27 each year.
Cats Protection launched the campaign on October 27, 2011 to draw attention to black and black-and-white cats that were taking longer to find homes in its care.
Why National Black Cat Day matters
The campaign promotes fair consideration of black and black-and-white cats in adoption and challenges stigma or superstition that can affect how people view them.
It is an animal-welfare and rehoming awareness campaign, not evidence that black cats share one temperament or that superstition about coat colour is factual.
History of National Black Cat Day
Cats Protection launched the first campaign on October 27, 2011 under the name Black Cat Awareness Day.
The charity says the first campaign responded to its finding that black cats in its care took longer on average to find homes than cats of other colours.
After the first campaign’s response, Cats Protection made the event annual.
In 2012 the charity changed the name to National Black Cat Day and continued developing annual campaigns around rehoming and public awareness.
Cats Protection continues to identify October 27 as National Black Cat Day and remains the campaign’s current steward.
How the observance developed
This timeline uses documented milestones from reviewed sources. Missing stages are left out rather than guessed.
Black Cat Awareness Day
The first campaign became an annual event; in 2012 Cats Protection renamed it National Black Cat Day.
Cats Protection
Cats Protection states that it launched the campaign on October 27, 2011.
Cats Protection
The charity created and launched the campaign itself.
First documented observance
Cats Protection’s campaign history identifies October 27, 2011 as the first edition.
Changed the campaign name from Black Cat Awareness Day to National Black Cat Day while retaining the October 27 annual campaign identity.
Cats Protection · 2012 campaign continuation
Cats Protection
Cats Protection continues to maintain the annual National Black Cat Day campaign page and identifies October 27 as the recurring date.
What the evidence establishes
Confirmed institutional roles and milestones are shown first. Details that could not be established from the reviewed sources are listed separately below.
4 fields not established in reviewed sources
Predecessor and precursor observances
Earlier or merged observances are kept separate from former names and later institutional actions.
Later institutional actions
Later recognition, renaming, mergers or date changes are kept separate from original establishment.
How to Observe National Black Cat Day
If considering adoption, assess the individual cat’s health, temperament, needs and household fit rather than choosing or rejecting an animal because of coat colour.
Support a reputable rescue or shelter through an appropriate donation, volunteering or sharing verified adoption information.
Learn about common black-cat superstitions as cultural beliefs, not facts about animal behavior or welfare.
Use calm, welfare-first handling and seek qualified veterinary advice for health concerns instead of relying on social-media myths.
Avoid impulse adoption: long-term care, cost, housing rules and the needs of existing pets should be considered before bringing home any cat.
National Black Cat Day Facts
National Black Cat Day is held on October 27.
Cats Protection created the campaign on October 27, 2011.
The first edition was called Black Cat Awareness Day.
Cats Protection changed the name to National Black Cat Day in 2012.
The campaign is UK-based and is distinct from other black-cat observances with different names, dates or organizers.
National Black Cat Day Messages
Happy National Black Cat Day—celebrating black and black-and-white cats with care, respect and responsible adoption in mind.
Wishing every well-loved black cat a calm and happy National Black Cat Day.
May National Black Cat Day bring more attention to individual cats waiting for the right homes.
Happy National Black Cat Day to everyone challenging myths with kindness, good welfare and thoughtful adoption.
Topic and context
What this page does not assume
- Keep the source-defined country, community, organizer or institutional scope; do not silently broaden it.
- Do not treat the title alone as proof of government recognition or public-holiday status.
- Do not add a creator, founding story or origin claim unless the supporting evidence establishes it.
Evidence & sources
Sources used across the guide are gathered here. Labels show how each source supports the page, and contextual references are kept separate from primary evidence.
Cats Protection — history of National Black Cat Day (opens in a new tab)
Creator Campaign History
Cats Protection — National Black Cat Day (opens in a new tab)
Creator Current Campaign
Understand it, compare it, then explore further
Start with the most common factual questions, then compare closely related observances and explore useful connections.
Frequently asked questions
When is National Black Cat Day?
27 October annually The documented recurrence rule is: 27 October.
Does National Black Cat Day fall on the same date every year?
Yes. It uses a fixed annual date unless stronger evidence changes the pattern.
Is National Black Cat Day an official public holiday?
The reviewed sources verify it within this scope: United Kingdom / Cats Protection annual adoption-awareness and animal-welfare campaign. That recognition does not by itself make it a statutory public holiday; the site only makes public-holiday claims when reliable evidence explicitly does so.
Who established or recognizes National Black Cat Day?
The reviewed sources identify Cats Protection as the proclaiming or establishing body. Current facilitation or coordination is recorded as Cats Protection.
Is National Black Cat Day international or country-specific?
This observance is specific to United Kingdom. Its fuller verified scope is: United Kingdom / Cats Protection annual adoption-awareness and animal-welfare campaign.
How is this page verified?
The factual information is checked against reviewed sources, including the date pattern, scope and institutional history. This page was checked on 2026-09-23.
When is National Black Cat Day?
Cats Protection holds it each year on October 27.
Who created National Black Cat Day?
Cats Protection created the campaign in 2011.
What was it originally called?
The first 2011 campaign was called Black Cat Awareness Day. Cats Protection changed the name to National Black Cat Day in 2012.
Is this the same as Black Cat Appreciation Day in the United States?
No. This guide covers Cats Protection’s UK campaign on October 27; similarly named observances elsewhere should be treated separately.
Should someone adopt a black cat just because it is National Black Cat Day?
Adoption should be a considered long-term decision based on the individual cat and household fit, not an impulse tied to a calendar date.
Other observances on October 27
These observances are also listed on October 27, 2027.
Cranky Co-Workers Day
The first-party Wellcat Holidays calendar lists Cranky Co-Workers Day on October 27 and identifies the collection as created by Thomas and Ruth Roy.
National Mentoring Day®
The official organizer and founder-authored 2015 material establish a 2014 founding, first public edition on October 27, 2015 and continuing October 27 recurrence.
World Day for Audiovisual Heritage
UNESCO 33 C/Resolution 5
World Occupational Therapy Day
WFOT first-party material verifies annual October 27 observance, first launch on 27 October 2010 and continuing international professional stewardship.