The near extermination of the cat was a by-product of the Inquisition, a period of violent reaction against people, and occasionally animals, convicted of offenses against Christian orthodoxy. Instigated by decrees of the church, Europe experienced a descent into barbarism that resulted in the torture and execution of hundreds of thousands of individuals accused of such things as heresy, sorcery, and witchcraft. Cats were caught up in the net due to the belief that they were the familiars of witches.

Familiars were said to be demons who took the form of small animals and acted as servants to witches; carrying out their orders, observing and reporting back to them. Ownership of a cat, physical deformity, or mere ugliness could bring about charges of witchcraft.