It is estimated that more than 100 million animals worldwide are exploited for their fur each year, most of them on “fur farms”, where they spend their lives in inhumane conditions before being cruelly killed. Animals such as mink, foxes, rabbits, chinchillas and raccoon dogs – a member of the canid family – are among those bred and killed for their fur. As of November 2020, there were about 35 to 40 mink farms in Sweden, 10 of which were infected with COVID-19. The government had not planned to cull the animals as of November 9, 2020, but animal rights group Djurens Rätt lobbied to downplay the risk of a mutation that could affect a COVID-19 vaccine. [106] There were approximately 950 active fur farms in Finland as of August 2016. Fur farming has a long tradition in Finland and has been practiced professionally since the 1920s. Up to 90% of the fur community is located in the rural areas of Österbotten and employs four to six thousand people. Today, fur farming is strictly regulated by law. The Finnish Association of Fur Animal Producers has developed its own national animal health and certification scheme, bound by ISO 9001 and controlled by Det Norske Veritas. Furry animals are housed in shelter buildings or rooms where each animal has a specific place marked with a kit card. [ref.
needed] The Humane Society of the United States released videos in 2019 and 2021 showing mink with untreated wounds, as well as foxes with allegedly deformed feet, missing ears, or diseased eyes on farms. [94] [95] Fur farming will likely continue to be the primary source of fur for the fur industry, as keeping animals normalizes their reproduction and coat quality. The United States lags behind the rest of the world in regulating the treatment of these animals. Some countries have banned or strictly restricted fur farming, Israel has introduced a possible ban on fur production and sale in its country, the EU has recently banned the sale of seal products, and some Asian countries have strengthened law enforcement and communications to curb illegal wildlife trade. However, China`s growing role in the industry and the lack of regulation are the areas that need to be improved the most to bring about meaningful changes in the treatment of furbearing animals. It remains to be seen whether China will create these laws, as the fur industry has grown recently, in part due to increased demand in Asia. Are killed every year for their fur; About 85% comes from factory fur farms – the rest is caught from the wild. The farming of fur animals has been banned in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and the United Kingdom.
Legislation is also progressing in France and Ireland, and a number of other countries are currently considering banning fur farming. In Germany (from 2022), Sweden and Switzerland, stricter animal welfare requirements for fur farms have effectively made the practice economically unprofitable. In New Zealand, the import of mink is banned, effectively banning mink farming in the country, and fur farming has been discontinued in Japan. View the current list. There are some state laws on trapping and breeding furbearing animals, but they generally do not apply to the actual treatment of the furbearing animal. For example, there are many fisheries laws regarding state licensing requirements and determining appropriate seasons when a hunt can be conducted. Some states prohibit the use of a plate trap, but many states do not limit the types of traps that can be used. Similarly, some states have laws that establish licensing requirements for fur farms, define farms as “farming activities,” and treat fur-bearing animals as livestock or pets. Many states define their anti-cruelty laws to include the treatment of all animals, but then exempt animals hunted in the wild or raised on fur farms. In addition, some states have labeling laws that are stricter than federal law, and a handful of states prohibit the trade in dog and cat fur. International laws vary in strength, but some are much stricter than U.S. federal and state laws.
China has virtually no regulations to protect fur-bearing animals. However, some countries have strictly regulated or completely banned fur farming (Austria, the United Kingdom, and Croatia have bans, the Netherlands has a ban on fox and chinchilla farming, and New Zealand, Sweden, and Switzerland have strict regulations), more than 60 countries have banned certain types of traps, and some countries have labeling laws. Israel is waiting for a law that would ban the import, export and sale of fur within its borders. Canadian fur farms in the province of Ontario have been repeatedly targeted by the Animal Liberation Front (ALF). Thousands of mink were culled from their farms across the province in 2013[57] and 2015. [58] The Ontario Mink Breeders` Association responded with a bounty of one hundred thousand dollars, which led to the conviction of those responsible. [59] Undercover footage was also released by the ALF in 2015 from several mink farms in Ontario, showing injured animals and mink cages covered in feces and maggots. [60] Animal rights organizations across the province have taken a wide range of measures to end the fur trade, such as public demonstrations and disruptions to fur fashion shows. [61] [62] The United States banned the import, export and sale of dog and cat fur products in 2000. [31] Italy, France, Denmark, Greece, Belgium and Australia prohibit the importation of cat and dog fur, but the sale is still virtually legal.
[32] In most countries, novelties made from cat and breeding dog fur are available as animal toys or as garment fillings such as boots, jackets and handbags. The European Union banned imports in 2009. [33] The Estonian Parliament banned fur farms on 2 June 2021. There is a transitional period to keep mink and raccoon dogs on farms until the end of 2025 if the licence was granted before July 1, 2021. [88] Millions of rabbits are slaughtered for meat, especially in China, Italy and Spain. Once considered a mere by-product of this consumption, the rabbit fur industry requires thicker fur from an older animal (rabbits raised for meat are killed before the age of 12 weeks).5 The United Nations reports that at least 1 billion rabbits are killed each year because of their fur. which is used in clothing as bait in fly fishing. 6 A PETA Asia investigation into fur rabbit farms and a slaughterhouse in China found that rabbits were forced to live in cramped and dirty cages before finally being lined up and skinned – sometimes still alive. Fur-bearing animals have been hunted throughout history. Since the 1800s, fur-bearing animals have also been raised on farms in North America.
Today, fur farming accounts for the majority of the fur trade. The two most frequently bred animals are mink and fox. European fur farms produce more than half of all mink and foxes for the global fur trade. North American fur farms bred the first black mink, the most popular species. U.