Very few people nowadays want to wear real fur. But the industry is trying to push their product back on the market by adding fur ‘trims’ to coats and other fashion items. Many people who naturally expect this to be faux fur end up buying real fur unintentionally.
Before you buy any product with fur, make certain it is faux. First read the label carefully — even on brightly dyed fur, or garments that only have fur ‘trim’. Fur ‘trims’ are not off-cuts — they were once animals too!
Then do the following tests:
|
Test |
Real fur |
Faux fur |
| Feel: Roll the hairs between finger and thumb. |
Feels smooth and soft and easily rolls between the fingers. | Feels coarse. |
| Look: Blow on the hairs so you can see the under layer. |
Is made up of several layers of thin, almost curly hairs which form a dense furry under-wool. Often the longer, thicker hairs stick out and sometimes have a different colour at the bottom. The base is animal skin. | Has a simpler structure with individual hairs often having the same length, thickness and colour. The base is of fabric. |
| Pierce: Pierce through the base with a pin. (Note: Don’t get yourself in trouble in the store!) |
The leather base of real fur resists and the pin is hard to push through. | The fabric base of faux fur easily lets the pin go through. |
| Burn: Pull (carefully) a few hairs from the fur and hold them to a flame. (Note: Don’t get yourself in trouble in the store!) |
Singes like a human hair and smells similar. | Melts like plastic and smells like burnt plastic. It forms small plastic balls at the end that feel hard between finger and thumb. |
If you still have any doubts after these tests, don’t buy it!
Note! Some people might try to convince you that rabbit fur is just a by product of the meat industry. This is only true in some cases. Millions of rabbits are specifically bred and killed on factory farms for their fur, as the rabbit-fur industry demands the thicker pelt of an older animal (rabbits raised for meat are killed at the age of 10-12 weeks). Regardless, rabbits raised for meat and fur are reared and killed in similar inhumane ways and the use of any fur is unethical.
You Can Help — Make Compassion the New Fashion!
- Learn more about the fur trade
- Sign the Fur-Free Pledge
- Check out this Fur-Free Shopping List for retailers who have formally pledged not to sell real fur
great tips, i wont buy either though