MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Long stigmatised for bringing bad luck or for links with the occult, black cats have found salvation in a Spanish town that has temporarily banned their adoption to ward off potentially sinister Halloween “rituals”.

Any adoption or fostering request for the felines will be denied from October 1 to November 10 to prevent “possible risk… derived from superstitions, rituals or irresponsible uses”, the animal welfare service of Terrassa, a town north of Barcelona, announced on October 6.

The decision was taken “due to the arrival of the Halloween period and following the prudence criteria applied by various animal protection entities”, added authorities in the town in the northeastern region of Catalonia.

Local newspaper Diari de Terrassa quoted animal welfare councillor Noel Duque as saying last week that adoption requests for black cats increase close to Halloween “for ritual purposes” or “as decoration because ‘it’s cool'”.

The town hall “could not look the other way” when faced with “a grim topic”, said Duque, who sits next to a ginger cat in his Facebook profile picture.

Animal welfare groups warn cats can be hurt, killed or used as props during Halloween rituals.

Exceptions will be “duly justified and assessed by the technical team of the centre, where there is a full safety guarantee and a reliable history of the applicant”, the animal welfare service said.

The normal adoption and fostering process will resume after Halloween, it added, not ruling out a similar ban in the future.

Terrassa is home to more than 9,800 cats, according to the municipal authorities.