Dog ann cat fur - (Part 2) Please spread the word!! Crosspost!

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France may be a country of dog lovers, but investigators found that dog

fur imported from China is used to make jackets sold mainly in the

French Alps. Documentation shows that one French company had 2,000 dog

fur plates on hand, with another 1,000 expected to arrive within the

month. A pricing sheet from the company shows that in addition to dog

fur (which is called loup d'Asie, or " wolf of Asia " ), the

company offers furs and skins of goat, pony, reindeer, and antelope.

The Price of Suffering

* At a German auction, one Korean dog fur (German shepherd) was $9.

* At one Chinese company dealing in " animal by-products, " a fur " plate "

of 6 to 8 gray or orange cat pelts may be purchased for $21. Two plates

make a short jacket. Three plates make up a coat. That's 12 to 16

cats who suffer and die for each jacket, 18 to 24 cats killed for each

coat. Cat-head plates are also available at this factory—36 cat

heads per plate, at a price of $15. * A Beijing company declared its

ability to export 20,000 cat skins as well as 20,000 dog skins between

January and March 1998. In January the company had in stock the pelts of

50,000 cats and 50,000 dogs. Gray and orange cat pelts were $2.60 each;

gray and yellow dog pelts were $8.50 each. * Gray and orange cat

skins at one Chinese company, were priced at $2.60 each; gray and yellow

dog skins were $8.50 each. * A fur plate of 6 to 8 cats was priced

at $21 at one Chinese company. * At one Chinese factory, one cat

skin cost $50; at another, $2.09; in Beijing, $2.15.

9999The Effect on U.S. Consumers

The extent to which dog and cat fur products are for sale in U.S. stores

cannot be known. But investigators have found jackets with fur labeled

" Mongolia dog fur " in a major retailer with stores across the

country. Many other fur-trimmed items look and feel like the cat and dog

fur investigators saw in factories in China and at retailers and other

companies in Europe.

The problem is that it's not easy in fact, it's not possible to

identify many fur items. Each year millions of animal fur pelts are

imported into the United States from countries all over the world,

including China and other Asian countries.

Statistics on fur and leather imports and exports are kept by the U.S.

Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. But species-specific data

are recorded only for certain animals. A wide range of pelts and

fur-skin products are grouped together in one category, designated NESOI

(Not Elsewhere Specified or Otherwise Indicated). This category includes

pelts from any species of animal not specifically defined by the bureau,

including cats and dogs. Federal law in no way prohibits the importation

of domestic dog or cat pelts into the United States.

Investigators learned that many companies and individuals involved in

the trade of cat and dog fur use ambiguous terms and mislabeling to

disguise the true identity of their products. Complicating the labeling

issue even more, 1998 amendments to the U.S. Fur Products Labeling Act

exempt from labeling requirements all fur products costing less than

$150—a price range into which most fur-trimmed garments and

accessories fall.

Other major items of production (aside from fox and mink) include

weasel, kolinsky, goupee (an animal unique to China), fox, rabbit,

leopard cat, squirrel and lamb. [Emphasis added— " goupee " is

another term for dog fur.]

——Fur Age Weekly (1995)

The " Mongolia dog fur " -trimmed jackets are not the first products to be

openly labeled " dog fur " and sold in the United States. In 1994 Tecnica

USA, an affiliate of Tecnica S.p.A. in Italy, paid a fine and halted

importation of boots lined with dog fur. Animal lovers had protested the

company's use of dog fur after it was reported that its after-ski

boots carried a label marked, " trim: Chinese dog fur.' These products

were being sold in 600 stores around the United States. Company

representatives in New Hampshire claimed the fur was from " a

long-haired coyote type of dog, " but few wild dogs inhabit Asia, and

coyotes exist in the wild only in North and South America. It is

reasonable to assume that there are more companies like Tecnica and more

products like the " Mongolia dog fur " -trimmed jackets, yet

undiscovered, using the fur of companion animals and selling it in U.S.

stores. In addition, investigators found a number of companies that

expressed their ability and willingness to export cat and dog fur to the

United States and companies that said they had exported dog fur to the

United States in the past. U.S. citizens by the millions travel to

Europe and Asia, where dog and cat fur products are sold every day,

though the products are rarely labeled as such.

U.S. consumers can buy an endless array of fur-trimmed items at

virtually any department store. But what are they buying? The ear muffs

are labeled as being rabbit fur. The coat trim is labeled as " blue

fox. " The glove trim is simply labeled " Genuine Fur. " The

point of origin for the fur used on these items is China. Without DNA

testing, investigators—or consumers—can't be sure

So the very real probability exists that American consumers could be

buying dog and cat fur—in this country or while

traveling—whether they mean to or not.

Conclusion

 

We are a nation of pet owners. There are an estimated 53 million owned

dogs and 59 million owned cats in the United States. Few if any pet

owners would knowingly subject their own beloved pets to the horror and

pain suffered by dogs and cats caught up in the global fur trade. Yet

can anyone be sure that the pair of fur-lined gloves or the fur-trimmed

jacket in a department store isn't made—literally—from the

misery of companion animals just like ours? The truth is, we can't.

DOG FUR—

Also Known As or Labeled As:

* Gae-wolf * Sobaki * Asian jackal * Gou-pee * Goupee

* Kou pi * Gubi * China wolf * Asian wolf * Pommern wolf

* Loup d'Asie (wolf of Asia) * Asiatic raccoon dog * Corsac

fox * Dogues du Chine

DOG SKIN—

May Be Declared As:

* Special skin * Lamb skin * Mountain goat skin * Sakhon

Nakhon lamb skin

CAT FUR—

Also Known As:

* Housecat * Wild cat * Katzenfelle * Goyangi *

Mountain cat

Nonlabeling, mislabeling, and the wide use of pseudonyms for cat and dog

fur make it nearly impossible in many cases for virtually any consumer

to know what he or she is buying, whether in the United States or when

traveling. The trade in fur involves global interaction and exchange.

Animals may be killed in one country, processed in another, and the

finished garment or accessory sold in a store or market anywhere in the

world.

That alone would be enough reason to stop buying fur. But there's

more. The fact is that dog and cat fur is just a part of the fur

industry—it's all connected, and the trade in domestic cat and

dog fur and skin is closely linked to the mainstream fur trade.

Investigators found that furriers dealing in all species of animals

traditionally exploited for " pelt production " may trade in dogs

and cats as well. The availability and use of dog and cat fur is

documented in standard trade journals used in the fur industry. But it

is unlikely that consumers know the truth, and it is probable that even

retailers, store buyers, and designers may be unaware of the real source

of some of the fur they buy or use.

The bottom line is that buying any fur product serves to support the fur

industry as a whole and sends the message that fur is desirable instead

of deadly.

Any demand for fur ensures that somewhere an animal is suffering and

dying to fill that demand—maybe, in some cold, dark corner of the

Earth, an animal just like your own pet.

 

 

THE SKIN TRADE

 

Investigators also went undercover to look into reports of horrific

conditions at cat slaughterhouses in the Philippines and dog

slaughterhouses in Thailand. We found that these activities were not

specifically part of the fur trade, since these animals were killed

primarily for their skin (though the corpses of dogs killed in Thailand

are also used for meat, animal feed, lard, and aphrodisiacs).

The dog and cat skin trade is, like the fur trade, global in scope.

Companies that use cat skins from the Philippines and dog skins from

Thailand may also be using skins of dogs and cats killed in China and

other countries. Any of these skins could be used in products made and

sold in Asia, Europe, or even the United States.

What is different between the fur trade and the skin trade is the

product. What is the same is the suffering.

 

Philippine Cat Slaughter

Investigators located one cat slaughterhouse on the island of Mindanao

that may kill and skin as many as 100 cats on a given day. Some skins

are exported to Japan for use on drums and guitars. Only male cats are

killed for their skins because the nipples of female cats reduce the

usable size of the skin. This has led to a scarcity of male cats in the

city where the slaughterhouse is located, and collectors now drive to

distant cities to round up cats in the street. Some of these cats are

strays, but according to sources in the Philippines, most are stolen

pets. The cats are stuffed into sacks and driven to the slaughterhouse,

a journey that can last up to six hours, without food or water.

Innocent cats, many of them stolen pets, are slowly and cruelly

strangled while other cats watch, terrified, and await their fate. The

end product of this horror? Skin drums and other cat skin products sold

around the world.

 

While the owners of the cat slaughter operation are extremely wary of

strangers, investigators were eventually able to get inside the

facility. They found cats crammed into cages, some trying in vain to

escape, others paralyzed with fear.

In 1996 the Philippine secretary of agriculture was quoted as saying the

slaughter of cats was legal so long as the animals were humanely killed.

There was nothing humane about the killing witnessed by the

investigators.

One by one, cats were hung from their necks by ropes while other cats

watched helplessly. They didn't scream, since the rope was pulled

tighter and tighter as they struggled and slowly suffocated.

The cats were then skinned, and the skins were thrown into ice water.

Later, workers scraped off the fat, then salted and folded the skins in

preparation for packing and shipping. Each skin was valued at about

$12.50.

Thailand Dog Slaughter

Even though the government of Thailand largely disapproves of

slaughtering dogs, as do most Thais, massive numbers of dogs are killed

in the lucrative trade for dog flesh, hide, and other body parts.

Investigators documented the slaughter of dogs in the vicinity of Sakhon

Nakhon in northeast Thailand.

Trucks transport dogs crammed into cages on their terrifying journey to

slaughter. The trip from villages across Thailand can last for up to

three days while the dogs suffer without food, water, or shelter from

the elements.

Many different breeds of dogs, collected from all over the country, are

brought to Sakhon Nakhon to be killed. One estimate is that 30,000 dogs

are killed in the area of Sakhon Nakhon monthly. Many of them are

puppies.

Typically, dogs are brought into Sakhon Nakhon from other villages,

crammed as densely as possible into a cage on the back of the

collector's truck. The journey can take up to three days, and the

dogs are denied food and water during the trip. By the time they reach

the slaughterhouse, many are sick, some are dead. But their weakened

state makes the dogs easier to kill.

 

It wasn't easy for the investigators to get inside the

slaughterhouse because police investigations and unfavorable press

reports have made workers suspicious of strangers. But the investigators

eventually succeeded. There, they watched as workers sorted dog skins in

the dim light.

The next night investigators watched a truck arrive at the

slaughter-house carrying 70 dogs—mixed breeds, German shepherds, and

others. Some—possibly strays—were shy and frightened.

Others—possibly stolen pets—looked well-groomed and trusting.

All met the same fate.

Two men with heavy sticks stood ready atop the roof of a low structure

onto which the dogs were unloaded. One dog after another, howling in

terror, was pulled from the truck with a wire noose attached to a wooden

catch pole. In plain view of the animals still inside the truck, each

dog was clubbed several times over the head and on the nose. The dogs

screamed in pain. The victims were then thrown to the ground and dragged

off by other workers to an area where their throats were slit. In

graphic footage, investigators captured some dogs still moving their

tails just before their throats were cut.

Our investigation found no evidence of cats being used as part of the

Thai skin trade.

How Cat and Dog Skins are Used

In Germany investigators talked to the president of a company dealing in

cat furs and skins. The company openly uses cat skin products as

rheumatism aids. They make bandages, pulse warmers, and a variety of

so-called " medicinal " products. Investigators also found dog

skins sold in Germany as orthopedic products.

Elsewhere, dog and cat skins are not quite so visible. Just as labeling

is a problem with fur, especially fur trim, knowing what kind of leather

is being used in a product can be difficult or impossible. Dog skin may

be declared as lamb skin, mountain goat skin, or even " special

skin. "

Some such products are undoubtedly sold in the United States. In fact,

investigators found dog skin plasters in New York's Chinatown, sold

in pharmacies as a cure for rheumatism. In addition, U.S. travelers to

Europe, Asia, and elsewhere may run the risk of unwittingly buying dog

and cat skin products.

Investigators have been told that dog and cat skins are used for:

 

* Apparel * Bed sheets * Car upholstery * Drums and

musical instruments * Handbags and small leather goods * Golf

gloves * Gardening gloves * " Medicinal " and orthopedic

products * Sporting goods

In a particularly grisly twist, the skins of brutally slaughtered dogs

in Thailand are mixed with other bits of skin to produce rawhide chew

toys for pet dogs. Manufacturers told investigators that these chew toys

are regularly exported to and sold in U.S. stores