[Fwd: [catsndogs] Horror of toys made of cat fur]

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http://www.thisisjersey.com/news/news8.html

 

Horror of toys made of cat fur

BY ANDY SIBCY

 

 

 

PRODUCTS made from skinned cats are being imported from China and

sold to unsuspecting customers in Jersey, the JEP can reveal.

 

Tests carried out by the States Vet for the Animals Shelter prove

that a £4.70 toy bought from Hallmark Cards is in fact made from real

cats, farmed and slaughtered on a massive scale.

 

Recent campaigns in the national media have alleged that millions

of cats and dogs are being skinned alive to satisfy a market in the west

for the lifelike toys. The toys are now flooding into Britain after

being banned in America.

 

The owner of Hallmark Cards, Alison Baker, said that she and her

staff were horrified to find out yesterday that real cat fur had been

used. She added that the product has now been taken off the shelf.

 

There is no law banning cat or dog fur products from being sold in

the Island because importation restrictions apply only to material from

animals on the endangered list.

 

In addition to the toy tested from Hallmark Cards, whose label did

not reveal the source of the fur, several local shops are selling toys

and ornaments labelled as being made of rabbit fur.

 

Documentation from the suppliers of the toy cats in England states

that the rabbits used are farmed in the same remote mountains of China

as the cats and dogs. However, these products have yet to be tested.

 

The report by the States Vet on the product bought from Hallmark

Cards concluded: 'Microscopic examination of the hair shows them to have

cross-section, medulla and scale margins typical of cat hairs. These

features enable the hairs to be distinguished from other domestic

animals such as rabbit and dog. The animal hairs show structures

consistent with having originated from a cat.'

 

The manager of the Animals Shelter, Pru Bannier (pictured), said

that the trade in animal skins to make such toys was 'completely

horrific', adding: 'Most people would not buy them if they realised a

real cat was killed to make the toy.

 

'From our point of view, it is equally disturbing that rabbits are

being killed to make these toys, and £4.70 doesn't seem very much for

the life of a cat. If people stop buying these toys then the demand

would dry up and perhaps fewer animals would be killed.'

 

Bridget Murphy, of the Jersey Animal Rights Association, said: 'If

you care about these things then don't buy anything that's furry unless

it has got a definite label saying that it is made of man-made material.

There are so many man-made furs these days, there is no need to harm

animals any more.'

 

Claire Austen, of Nauticalia, who supply several shops in the

Island with their Intrepid Ship's Cat range, said that the rabbits used

to make their products were kept in humane conditions checked by animal

welfare groups. And she insisted that the company carried out random

checks on all the imports to make sure that the toys were rabbit and not

cat fur.

 

'The rabbits are farmed for food in remote mountainous parts of

Shandong Province in northern China,' she said. 'The meat is sold for

human consumption and as dog and cat food by major supermarket and pet

food brands, including Sainsburys, Winalot, Tesco and Whiskas. The skins

would otherwise be thrown away.'

 

She added that their cats were good for old people who could not

look after a real pet and for children to wean them off an attachment to

blankets and other items.

 

Anyone who wishes to have a product checked should apply to the

States Vet. The cost of the test is £20.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adrian

 

 

 

 

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