Thanks to shelters, there are plenty of stray dogs and cats who manage to find a new home. However, some animals definitely have a harder time getting adopted compared to their friends.

This is particularly true for those with health issues, those who have already reached senior age, or the ones that simply don’t look too appealing.

However, there is another major group of canines that are much less likely to be adopted: black dogs.

Research suggests that there’s a thing called Black Dog Syndrome.

What it means is that black-haired dogs are less likely to be adopted (and as we all know, this includes black cats as well). If they’re in a kill-shelter, they’ll also be more likely to be euthanized.

Even though some studies suggest the existence of black dog syndrome, there are also other studies who claim that the situation is much more nuanced. However, things are always different in practice than in theory.

Staff members of Humane Society shelters definitely have a few things to say about these poor black dogs, and you’ll find plenty of them who can confirm the syndrome to an extent.

Let’s take a look at the research that scientists have done. In 1998, a study reviewed 1,468 dogs at a local humane society shelter.

They did find a statistical correlation with black dogs and adoption: black dogs were more likely to be euthanized.

What the study also found was that dogs of a different color could even pre-determine successful adoptions.

Four years later, a study was done in multiple shelters in California. This study focused on cats, and they found a similar pattern for felines.

The adoption rate for both black cats and dogs was in the negative, which should say enough.

It doesn’t seem like this syndrome is present everywhere, however.

A 2008 study done over a 12 month period at the Los Angeles Animal Services reviewed just a little over 30,000 adopted dogs. The results were quite surprising, as it was the black or mainly black dogs that got adopted the most.

Nonetheless, there’s been plenty of focus on ‘Black Dog Syndrome’.

After all, if it has its own Wikipedia page, it means that it’s certainly nothing superficial.

Another interesting story that relates to this is the adoption story of a black Labrador named Henry.

Labradors are quite popular at shelters, but because he was a big black dog, the majority of people thought that he was going to have a very hard time getting adopted. However, the dog actually became a poster image for the syndrome and a local hero in Fort Worth.

Henry managed to raise more than a million dollars for the shelter he lived at back in 2014.

What could explain the black dog syndrome?

Scientists aren’t really sure why people choose to adopt fewer black dogs, they were mostly focusing on the numbers. Of course, there are plenty of theories.

One theory is that people (subconsciously) associate bigger black dogs with evil.

Such notions could be inspired by the things we see in movies or television shows. Black dogs are often portrayed as aggressive and more likely to bite humans.

Another explanation that doesn’t have to do anything with superstitious beliefs, is the fact that the black fur makes it harder to see their facial expressions. That’s why it’s important that animal shelters take decent pictures when they publish adoption ads online.

A good tip is to really highlight the personality of these black pooches who have trouble getting adopted. Such as sharing videos of them, for example.

The important thing to remember is that there is no legitimate reason people should shy away from adopting a black pooch into the family. They are just as intelligent, expressive, and lovable as dogs of any other color.

As for the ones who end up in the animal shelters where they’ll likely be overlooked, well, they will appreciate you more than you could ever hope for.

To learn more about Black Dog Syndrome and the unfair prejudice many of these animals face, watch the video below.

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Source: Independent, Wikipedia, The Animal Rescue Site