1ST DECEMBER 2007 - MILAN AND OTHER CITIES IN ITALY

The fur ads you might see in magazines and commercials portray fur coats as a symbol of elegance. But these ads fail to show how the original owners of these coats met their gruesome deaths.

Millions of fur-bearing animals including foxes, raccoons, minks, coyotes, bobcats, lynxes, opossums, nutria, beavers, muskrats, otters, and others are killed each year on fur farms by anal and vaginal electrocution and in the wild by drowning, trapping, or beating. The fur trade is a multi-billion dollar worldwide industry. From animal to coat several sectors of the fur industry are involved.

The breeder or the trapper kills and skins the animals. Through a dealer or co-operation the skins are sold at auctions. The buyers are dealers or larger manufacturers who buy the skins and stitch them into coats or plates.

To kill the animals without damaging their fur, trappers usually strangle, beat, or stomp them to death. Animals on fur farms may be gassed, electrocuted, poisoned with strychnine, or have their necks snapped. These methods are not 100 percent effective and some animals "wake up" while being skinned.

Every year, millions of animals are killed for the clothing industry. Whether they come from Chinese fur farms, Indian slaughterhouses, or the Australian Outback, an immeasurable amount of suffering goes into every fur-trimmed jacket, leather belt, and wool sweater.

What You Can Do:
Consumers need to know that every fur coat, lining, or piece of trim represents the intense suffering of animals, whether they were trapped, ranched, or even unborn. This cruelty will end only when the public refuses to buy or wear fur.
Do not patronize stores that sell fur, and let the stores’ owners know why you won’t buy from their establishments. Educate others about the cruelty involved in the fur, leather, and wool industries.

Stylish cruelty-free clothing is available in every price range from a growing range of catalogs, specialty shops, and department stores.