The research for this article has been very hard for me to be honest. But to close your eyes to the truth is not a solution. Please read the article.
I used to think that furs are a thing of the past. But the furs are back. Not as a fur coat, but in more innocent portions: as a fur collar on the hood or as accessories. 90% of the foxes from fur farms are processed into accessories and clothing with fur trimmings. Furs are „naturally“ fluffy. But one can hardly i imagine how animal disdaining furs are.
Facts about furs
- Fox and mink are by far the most common furs. Dogs, cats, beavers, chinchillas, marten dogs and rabbits follow.
- Fur trimming does not originate from the „recycling“ of the fur coat production. The animals get killed specifically for this purpose.
- There is no species-appropriate keeping in fur farms. They do not even meet the animals‘ minimum requirements.
- The most important countries for fur production from farming are China, Denmark, Russia, Finland, USA, Netherlands, Norway and Poland. In Denmark, fox breeding for furs will be banned from 2023. In Holland, mink breeding for fur is prohibited from 2024 onward. In Germany, there is no comparable ban in sight.
- For cost reasons and to avoid damaging the coat, no method of killing is painless. The „happy“ animals die from electric shock, gassing or poison. The „unlucky ones“ are beaten to death, thrown into boiling water or skinned alive.
- If a garment consists of 51% of fabric, it is marked as pure textile. This means that the reference to real fur is missing as well as the type and origin of the animal are unknown. A new regulation on labeling, adopted for the EU in 2011, is not yet in force.
- Nowadays, there are much better garments for warming than furs. Is fashion a reasonable reason for the suffering of animals?
- Approximately 100 different chemicals are needed for tanning the fur. There is nothing environmentally friendly left whatsoever.
Furs in numbers
- In 2012, USD 15.6 billion in fur was traded worldwide. Sales have therefore increased by 70% since 2000/2001. Approximately 50% of the turnover is generated in Europe. Emerging markets are China and Russia.
- 65 million animals die every year, of which 57 million are mink and foxes and 2 million dogs and cats.
- 80-85% of the fur in the fur trade today comes from industrial fur farms. 15% of the skins come from hunting.
- 90% of the foxes from farms are processed into accessories and clothing with fur trimmings.
- 50% of all fur articles come from China, where there is no regulation for keeping and killing methods.
- In Germany there are 10 mink farms and 6 chinchilla and rabbit farms.
- 31 million times larger than an average farm cage, the average habitat of wild mink is 31 million times larger.
- Up to 60 mink, 20 foxes, 50 raccoons or 200 chinchillas die for a fur coat.
The real fur test
- Pull apart the upper hairs of the fur. With real fur you can see an undercoat.
- With real fur, the hair sticks to real leather.
- Blow very fine over the fur. Does all hair move? Most likely, it’s real fur.
More detailed explanations can be found here under „labeled„.
What can we do
- NEVER buy furs or products/accessories with fur trimmings; NO exceptions.
- Never wear old furs, e. g. heirlooms or flea market, because this is a billboard for furs.
- Wrong buy? Return immediately.
- Boycott shops that sell furs.
- Raise awareness and engage in discussions. Facts about this are at the top and in the following infographics.
- Get further information. Good sources are www.pelzfarm.info, www.pelzinfo.de, www.pelzinfo.ch, www.tierschutzbuero.de, www.nackte-wahrheit.com and www.gelabelt.de. There you will find – whoever is willing to do so – pictures (fearful, but unfortunately true). The pictures of the articles are taken from a Peta-campaign.
- Support the aforementioned organizations with donations or assistance.
Artikelbild: PETA Deutschland e.V. / Karreman http://mediathek.peta.de/de/