Fashion designers are banning animal fur, one by one. This is great news. However, will this stop the real fur industry around the world? It will decrease it but not completely stop it. The reason why I think this way has to do with the articles that are frequently popping up about cats’ or dogs’ fur coming from China as fake fur. One should note that there is a ban on the selling of cat or dog fur in Europe.
However, there seems to be a trick which I use to make sure that what I am buying is fake fur. What I do is, I check whether the root of the fur is sticking to something that looks like a scalp or a net/weave. When it is a net or weave I am sure that it’s fake fur. However when in doubt I just do not buy.
Two weeks ago I posted facts that I gathered about down feathers. This week I thought of listing facts about real fur.
- The original use of real fur is for its insulating properties. However, now it’s mainly used for aesthetic reasons.
- Real fur can be skinned from mink, foxes, rabbits, squirrels, badgers, wallabies, possums, racoons, beavers, lynxes, coyotes, seals, otters, bears, chinchillas, martens, bobcats, dogs and cats are also killed for their fur.
- Fur which is coming from China has most of the time a wrong label. So you would not know if the fur you bought is from a cat or a dog unless you check it at a lab.
- Animals could be both killed or left alive when skinned.
- Many fashion brands are publicly announcing that they will stop supporting the fur industry.
- Faux fur is a cruelty-free alternative to fur. However, it might not be environmentally friendly.
These are the facts I know about animal fur. Do you know of others? Your input could help others in choosing cruelty-free.
