Fur has become very popular recently. It’s available from cheap stalls to high street shops. Fur is in everything from coats to pom pom hats. There are some fur sellers that claim that fur is "responsible" and "ethically sourced". They say that endangered species are not used and that it is possible to trap animals humanely. All of this is false.

There is no such thing as a "humane" trapping system. The traps don't just catch the animals they are supposed to catch, but can catch cats and dogs, often people's pets. Furthermore, when the trap snaps shut, it causes the animal intense pain. Unless the traps are checked frequently, a trapped animal can die of hunger and animals have been known to try and chew off their own legs to escape traps.

Animals raised for fur are often kept in small, dirty cages and are deprived of everything that is natural to them, leading them to be driven insane.

Animals killed for fur are often anally electrocuted and there have been cases of animals skinned alive. This has been filmed in China, where fur is very cheap and is often from cats and dogs. This is sold to the UK and mislabelled as faux fur.

There are some easy steps to check if fur is real or fake.

1.       Separate the fur and look at the base. Genuine fur usually protrudes from skin or leather, while faux fur generally has a mesh or threaded backing. If the backing looks like skin don’t buy it.

2.       Look at the tips of the hairs. Real animal hairs taper to a fine point unless they have been sheared or cut. Faux fur, on the other hand, typically does not taper at the ends. So if the ends of the hairs taper to a fine point, play it safe and leave it on the rack.

3.       Do a burn test. Remove a few hairs and hold them with tweezers over a non-flammable surface. Light them with a match or a lighter and let the smell do the talking. Burning animal hair smells like burning human hair. Fake fur, which is commonly made from acrylic or polyester, smells like melting plastic when burned.

Fur farming is banned in the UK on ethical grounds so why do we still allow businesses to sell it? We, the undersigned, ask that North Tyneside council prohibits the sale of fur.

 

Some useful links below;

Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade

http://www.caft.org.uk/

 

Anti-fur society

http://www.antifursociety.org/

 

International anti-fur coalition

http://www.antifurcoalition.org/