Boycott products made of real fur (From News Shopper)

Boycott products made of real fur

10:33am Tuesday 16th March 2004 in Letters

RACHEL Bradman is right to highlight the cruelty caused by the trend for wearing fur (He Says/She Says, February 18).

Fur is obtained from animals either bred in fur factory farms or trapped in the wild.

The Government has banned fur farming for reasons of public morality and a new report from a European veterinary committee concluded the conditions found in fur farms cause "serious problems for all species of animals reared for fur".

Those include 20 per cent mortality for mink kits, stereotyped behaviour, self-mutilation and high levels of cannibalism.

The steel traps used are cruel and indiscriminate. In fact, one of the main devices used, the steel-jawed leghold trap, is so barbaric it has been banned in this country for more than 40 years.

Animals caught in its jaws go to tremendous lengths to try to escape and will even chew off their own legs.

Most fur in the UK now appears in the form of fur trim, which is invariably bought by consumers believing it to be fake due to misleading or non-existent labelling.

We urge readers to boycott all real fur products. For more information, call 0115 952 5440 or visit www.respectforanimals.org

Richard De Ville
Research and campaigns officer
Respect for Animals