Fur Farms
When I decided to add a category to my Blog on fur farms and fashion I came to the task with childhood memories. I started to read and do some research and I was soon horrified and repulsed by what I learned.
When I subsequently viewed some of the online, undercover footage of fur farms in China – Poland – Ireland- Finland – Denmark – the USA – Canada – Norway and Portugal – my sense of what it means to be human was sorely challenged and remains so today. I left the writing of this particular post to the end of my Blog design as I wasn’t sure I could tackle it at all.
“Behind Every Beautiful Fur – There Is A Story. It Is A Bloody, Barbaric Story” … Mary Tyler Moore
The farm across the highway from my childhood home raised mink. It was called a mink ranch. After school I used to help my friend Patricia – “feed the mink”. I was not completely naive – I knew these animals were going to be killed for their fur. The term they used was “farmed”. But I was paid 50 cents an hour and I was saving to buy a horse – so that $5.00 a week was really important to me.
I thought that the mink were treated incredibly well. There were long rows of wire cages. Each cage was probaly 14 inches wide – 14 inches high and 3 feet long. The floor of each cage was half wire and half wood. Each animal had it’s own drinking cup and food cup and the ground beneath the cages was cleaned every day. At the back of every cage there was a box probably a foot square with a 4″x4″ opening in the front so the mink could go inside if it wanted to. Only rarely were there 2 animals in a cage. Fresh straw was put into the boxes every other day. In the winter big shutters folded down to cover the cages. In the summer they were left open so fresh air could circulate through the rows of cages.
Of course, with adult hindsight, it was a fur farm. The mink, who are semi-aquatic animals were captives and they were being raised to become fur coats! There were black – light grey – darker grey – chocolate brown and a stunning mink called a violet. They had bright, curious, intelligent eyes and would come to the front of the cage as soon as I arrived with their food and water. I remember how incredibly beautiful they were – with clean, shining, sleek coats and quizzical expressions. I had a soft heart and I didn’t like to think of them dying – so I didn’t. It was strangely quiet there after the end of the season! Then the breeding mothers gave birth to their kits again and I was back to earning my 50 cents an hour. I was ten years old – I didn’t know.
I’m going to add some important facts and pictures about fur farms today. You can decide for yourself if this awareness is important to you.
Animals typically farmed: Mink – Rabbit – Chincilla – Fox – Bobcat – Raccoon – Cats – Dogs. China has no regulations on cruelty in fur farms. Outsiders are banned from visiting them. China is the largest importer of fur pelts in the world – making it the largest re-exporter of finished fur products and fur trinkets globally.
China often mis-labels fur products. More than 2,000,000 cats and dogs are killed in China every year and funneled into the fur farm industry. Many are healthy, stolen pets . The rabbit or raccoon fur coat you think you bought may be someone’s pet. BTW – the sale of cat and dog fur is legal in Canada. It has been banned in most Western Countries.
World-wide – millions and millions of animals are killed every year to feed the frenzy of the global fashion industry. These animals spend their short misery-filled lives in appalling conditions.
They are brutally killed by one of 5 methods:
Gassing – Often Put In Boxes and Killed By Car Exhaust.
Neck Breaking – Stomping – Beaten Until Resistance Ends – Some Regain Consciousness As They Are Being Skinned.
Lethal Injection – right into the gut.
Anal Electrocution – The Animal’s Mouth Is Clamped Shut First. This Method Is Commonly Used With Foxes.
Skinned Alive – Their Bodies Are Tossed Onto a Huge Pile Where They May Live For 10 – 15 Minutes Gasping and Blinking.
Because some many animals are often crammed into one cage they suffer from – eye infections – horrific bites – broken legs – the pacing and bobbing and weaving of cage madness – skin infections. In a frenzy they will also cannibalize each other.
In many fur farms – the skinned carcasses are ground up and fed to the living animals.
Fur Farms exist throughout Norway – Finland – Denmark – Poland – China – Japan – the USA – Canada to name a few of the countries involved in this unconscionable industry. In the USA – the major fur farming states are called The Dirty Dozen: Idaho – Illinois – Iowa – Michigan – Minnesota – Montana – Ohio – Oregon – Pennsylvania – Utah – Washinton – Wisconcin. Most have limited regulations or inspectors working in the field.
NOTE: Be Advised That Some of These Images Are Very Graphic!
60 female mink pelts or 35 male mink pelts = one coat.
40 rabbits = one coat
White Rabbits In Poland
Portugal
Mink In China
Location Not Known – But “Where” Doesn’t Matter
Dogs In China
A German Shepherd Being Skinned In China
China
Ireland – Fox Farm
Electrocution of a Fox
She Has Apparently Viewed Fur Farm Footage With PETA
Well Known PETA Supporters: Pamela Anderson – Ricky Gervais – Olivia Munn – Stella McCartney – Twiggy – Joaquin Phoenix
And Then: The Killing of Millions of Animals For Wild Fur or Free Range Fur.
To Understand What It Would Be Like To Be Trapped Alive – Try Slamming Your Fingers In Your Car Door. Trappers DO NOT Visit Their Trap Lines Every Day!
This Is An Evil Industry.
This Raccoon Dog in a Chinese Fur Farm – Skinned Alive – Was Able to Life It’s Head And Follow The Camera With It’s Eyes!
See Olivia Munn’s Heartfelt Video For PETA In The Video Section.
