Good News for Furry Animals
by Linda DeStefano
Translated by Rob English
According to the Sept./Oct. 2019 issue of ALL ANIMALS, there is good news in the ongoing battle to free animals from being killed for their fur. More and more designers are rejecting animal fur and using other materials. These materials are becoming easier for the designers to work with and, in some cases, more environmentally friendly – some being made from recycled plastic. Currently, research is being done on making “fur” from plants.
Other advantages are that they are less expensive and easier to maintain than animal fur, and they are warm, and stylish.
Best of all, these products save animals from the excruciating pain of being caught in a steel jaw, leg hold trap before being bludgeoned to death. The animal may be struggling for days before the trapper checks his traps. Perhaps suffering even more are the foxes and other animals who are kept in tiny, filthy cages with no veterinary care until they endure anal electrocution to obtain their fur.
On the legislative front, West Hollywood, Berkeley, San Francisco and Los Angeles have all banned the production and sale of animal fur, and the New York City Council has considered a ban.
As an individual, you can help by avoiding any animal fur – even fur trim. Garments are supposed to be labeled as animal fur or faux fur but this isn’t always reliable. You can examine the material the “fur” comes out of to make sure it is woven fabric and not skin.
If you want to read the entire article, go to https://www.humanesociety.org/news/out-style
If you want to grapple with the issue of our responsibility to animals, come to a free People for Animal Rights talk, short film and discussion on “Moral Responsibility Toward Animals as Reflected in the Major Religions of the World” at 7 p.m. on Mon. Oct. 21 at Onondaga Free Library, 4840 W. Seneca Turnpike, Syracuse (Onondaga Hill).
Linda is President of People for Animal Rights (PAR). For more information about PAR and a sample of our newsletter, contact us at PAR, P.O. Box 15358, Syracuse, NY 13215-0358, or call us at (315)488-PURR (7877) between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. or email us at people4animalrightscny@gmail.com
