Looking at a fur coat in a glossy magazine or a store window, you might not realize that animals were beaten, electrocuted, or even skinned alive to make it. Have you ever asked yourself, where does it come from?

Vulnerable dogs and cats are specifically killed to supply the fashion industry with not only traditional fur coats but, increasingly, real fur trim for hooded jackets, pompoms used on hats, gloves, shoes and a range of other clothing accessories.

Some factories in China have been found to use fur from slaughtered and mistreated foxes, minks, rabbits, dogs, and cats. 

In the situation with dogs, they are yanked from their cages, thrown to the ground and then stomped on before getting hanged by their tail and legs to be skinned alive. If they struggle too hard the workers will stomp on their necks to get a clean cut. however, this is not the worst of the treatment as dogs are electrocuted before being skinned.  

When investigators went into another animal market in southern China, they were horrified to find dogs and cats being hanged, bleeding to death, and strangled with wire nooses.

They found mistreated and suffering cats and dogs trapped in tiny cages, some fighting, some frightened, and all in pain. Some had been on the road for days, transported in flimsy wire-mesh cages with no food or water. These cages of suffering animals are stacked upon each other and often fall 3 meters to the ground smashing the limbs and bodies of the animals. Many of the animals still had collars on, a sign that they were once someone’s beloved companion, stolen to be made into a fur coat.

Up to twenty cats were forced into a single cage. Because of the cross-country transport in such deplorable conditions, the investigators were able to see animals with open wounds dying inside these cages.

Worldwide, each year over 100 million animals, many dogs and cats, are killed for their fur on fur farms around the globe. The majority of the fur trade's skins originate from animals who are confined and killed on these farms. On average, a facility can go through 200 dogs daily.

There are no penalties for abusing animals on fur farms in China, which is the world’s largest fur exporter. Nobody would know what pain and depression these poor animals have gone through just to be turned into a pom pom or the inner lining in your jacket. All you see is a fluffy bit of fur that used to be a poor suffering animal - I wonder what fur is used for our favourite childhood soft toys and where this is produced?

Nobody would know it could have been somebody's beloved pet.

Nobody would know it could have been fur belonging to a mistreated cat or dog.

As an alternative to animal fur, most major brands offer animal-free leather these days, from affordable options from stores such as Top Shop and Zara to high-end designers such as Stella McCartney and Bebe. Look for “vegan leather” on clothing, shoe, and accessory tags. High-quality animal-free leather is made from many different materials, including non-animal microfibers, recycled nylon, polyurethane (PU), and even plants, including mushrooms and fruit. There are also international organisations that promote the welfare of animals where fur is used for clothing. Suppliers of animal fur must pass strict criteria to receive a certified approval for their goods to be used for the manufacturing of clothing. i.e. welFur 

I for one will be ensuring that I look at alternative options or encourage people to purchase animal fur from certified organisations that promote the well-being of animals. 

If we get enough signatures for this petition we can save so many innocent dogs and cats lives so they can live happily amongst themselves, with their owners, and better quality of life away from such suffering and cruelty.

"Animals are not ours to experiment on, eat, wear, use for entertainment, or abuse in any other way."

 - PETA https://www.panaprium.com/blogs/i/fashion-brands-fur

References

-https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-clothing/fur/chinese-fur-industry/ 

-https://www.lcanimal.org/index.php/campaigns/fur/chinas-cat-a-dog-fur-trade

-https://www.peta.org/features/nine-shocking-fur-facts/