The first time I heard any allusion to dog fur trimmed hoods on winter jackets was while I helped a friend shop for a jacket at Club Monaco. The content label was vague as to what the fur trimming was and the sales clerk said it was fake, even though it didn’t look that way. We thought that fake fur had come a long way and he bought the coat. Shortly after that I started to hear rumors of dog fur being used in China.
The fact that they are raising and killing kittens and dogs in China to use their fur simply to trim our jackets and boots is bad enough, but the way they keep them and tortuously kill them makes the entire practice totally unconscionable.
It is pure sadism as evidenced by the information below:
China’s Shocking Dog and Cat Fur Trade
Even our veteran investigators were horrified at what they found: Millions of dogs and cats in China are being bludgeoned, hanged, bled to death, and strangled with wire nooses so that their fur can be turned into trim and trinkets. This fur is often deliberately mislabeled as fur from other species and is exported to countries throughout the world to be sold to unsuspecting customers in retail stores. China supplies more than half of the finished fur garments imported for sale in the United States, so the bottom line is that because dog and cat fur is so often mislabeled, if you’re buying fur, there’s no way to tell whose skin you’re wearing.
Progress: The fight to end the trade in dog and cat furs is finally paying dividends. As recent as in 2003, you could still see this kind of headline: Puppy love; The fur trade.(European Union not likely to ban use of dog and cat fur). Then, in 2007 the good news that a ban would eventually take place – European Union agrees to complete ban on dog and cat fur.
On April 12, the European Parliament voted in favor of a complete ban on the import, export and sale of dog and cat fur across the European Union. The ban was prompted by public outcry over evidence that dog and cat fur products are still entering the EU.
The ban was first proposed in 2006 after several national and regional investigations found that cat and dog fur products were being traded in the EU despite a voluntary ban by European fur traders. Over a million EU citizens signed a petition calling for an end to the trade of cat and dog fur, and a number of Member States requested action from the European Commission.
And finally, the day has come when the EU-ban took effect – 1 January 2009.
EU bans trade in dog and cat furs
The trade in cat and dog fur across Europe has been outlawed following a nine-year campaign by a Scottish MEP.
Tory MEP Struan Stevenson said he hoped the total ban on fur imports would put pressure on China to curb its slaughter of millions of cats and dogs.
Chinese cat and dog fur is often used in coats, boot and glove linings and stuffed toys.
The ban on the trade came into effect in all 27 EU members states at midnight.
But the fight is not over – the trade continues in other markets, such as Russia.
he EU-wide ban follows similar legislation in America and Australia. But China continues trading cat and dog fur, with a thriving market in Russia. Mr Stevenson said: “I urge the Chinese authorities to ban this trade and in particular to close down the export of cat and dog skins to Russia.”
So I would like to encourage everyone to take a simple action – write to the Chinese Ambassador and demand the end to this trade:
His Excellency Zhou Wenzhong
Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China
Embassy of the People’s Republic of China
2300 Connecticut Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20008
202-328-2574
202-328-2582 (fax)