There were, of course, ritualistic aspects to the killing of the mole to ensure its medicinal or talismanic properties - e.g. These practices were prevalent in Europe dating all the way back to Ancient Greece and Rome. to produce talismans and treatments for a variety of ailments. The House will spare its gentle readers the gruesome details, but suffice it to say that moles were smothered, disemboweled, crushed, impaled, etc. Many animals - but moles in particular - suffered at the hands of folk medicine practitioners. (Please indulge The House in somewhat of a digression after viewing the collection of images below. Rabbits’ feet were not the only animal paws used as lucky amulets or as folk medicine - moles’ paws, badgers’ paws and bears’ paws were all used for these purposes. In the late 20th century, rabbits’ feet were commonly dyed bright colors and used as novelty keychains, though nowadays they are made from faux fur and latex bones. As such, minstrel show songs would feature the the rabbit’s foot as a lucky charm in ways that would offend our modern ears. The rabbit’s foot as a lucky fetish was tied to the practice of African-American hoodoo in the Southern United States. Also, the left hind leg of the rabbit was preferred.

Although the specifics differ, these are all thought to be “unlucky” conditions. in a cemetery, on a Friday, on Friday the 13th, under a full moon, with a silver bullet, by a Black man, by a cross-eyed man, by a man with red hair, etc.). While this may strike the gentle reader as somewhat counter-intuitive, in order to be truly lucky, the foot had to be collected in a particular way (e.g. The appendage derives its lucky properties from a string of “unlucky” circumstances. The Rabbit’s Foot has a fairly convoluted history as a good luck charm. (Not to be confused with the grouse’s foot, a popular Scottish good luck charm often used as a kilt pin.)

Over time, the rabbit’s foot, specifically, became a gambler’s and hunter’s good luck charm. In many cultures, rabbits are symbols of fertility, strongly associated with sexual potency, spring and renewal. The Lucky Rabbit’s Foot Charm…and other animal paw amulets

Why are rabbit feet lucky