For the second year in a row, the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria put a new twist on the annual Black Friday shopping tradition by offering discounted adoptions on fully or partially black pets.
For coverage of the rest of ‘Black Friday,’ CLICK HERE
    
They’re often the most difficult animals to find new homes for, said Sara Glennon, adoptions manager at the Eisenhower Avenue shelter. Legends about the dark furred pets abound, from the misfortune of a black cat to the black dog as a harbinger of impending death. 
    
It’s referred to as black dog syndrome, Glennon said. There are a lot of negative stigmas. Black cats are unlucky; black dogs are evil. They’re often overlooked.
    
It doesn’t help that many shelters are dimly lit, making it harder to see their eyes and faces, she said. People don’t come out and say it and, but she believes there’s an irrational, subconscious fear of black animals.
    
They’ve grown up hearing a couple of these stories and because they’ve heard so many negatives they think, ‘no, this isn’t the right pet for me,’ Glennon said.
    
Partly to dispel the myth and mostly to encourage adoptions, the welfare league threw their first annual Black Friday drive in 2009 to coincide with the shopping sprees across the nation. By the end of the day, 20 animals had been adopted. To put that in perspective, the shelter usually finds homes for about 100 animals a month, Glennon said. 
    
This is a great weekend to do it, she said. People are in town, they’re with the family, maybe the kids are home from college and maybe now is a good time to get the process [of adopting] started.
    
Kathy Carroll was one of many packed into the shelter’s narrow, concrete hallways Friday afternoon, filling out an adoption form for a new kitten. She’s hoping an extra addition to the home there’s another dog and cat waiting for her there will improve the overall atmosphere. 
    
My current cat is a stray and she wants to go out a lot, Carroll said. I’m hoping having another kitten to play with will keep her inside more.
    
The welfare league reached out to her after Carroll posted a message on the organization’s Facebook page. Then she heard about the Black Friday promotion and had to stop by for the deals. From November 26 28, 60 percent of adoption fees for all fully or partially black animals will be waived. 
    
Though Carroll is adopting, she passed on the promotion.
    
I think [the Black Friday event] is cute and they do have a lot of cats, Carroll said. Of course, my cat has no black.