Tradition / Region: Luxembourgish Mythology
Alternative names: Cat Team
Category: Cat
The Myth
The Katzengespann consists of three cats harnessed together to pull a wagon. They serve as the supernatural draft animals of a witch.
According to the legend, near the village of Nittel stood a high hill topped by a chapel. One evening, after finishing his prayers there, the local pastor was walking down the steep path when he encountered an elderly woman from his parish. To his astonishment, she was hauling a wagonload of buttermilk up the mountain, not with horses, but with three cats pulling the cart.
Although shocked by the sight, the pastor concealed his surprise and calmly remarked that she seemed to have a very heavy load. The old woman, who was in fact a witch, replied, Just look how my horses are stretching out their tails.
Realizing he had encountered witchcraft, the pastor immediately made the sign of the cross and hurried home without another word.
Sources
De la Fontaine, Edmond. Luxemburger Sagen und Legenden. Luxembourg: Jos. Beffort, 1882. Accessed July 28, 2026. https://viewer.eluxemburgensia.lu/ark:70795/rvks9k