Myths of the Fur Industry

The main reasons some people support the cruel fur industry is money for those who breed for fur, and fashion and status for those who like to wear it. Unfortunately history has proven that we do need laws and enforcement to help protect people and animals from abuse, not everyone has the morals and ethics not to do wrong without this.

Like anyone involved in any type of abuse, perpetrators will always try to justify their actions, and this is no different for the fur industry. Below are the 15 top excuses fur supporters will use to try and justify the cruelty, and the real truth behind them:

1. Killing a chinchilla for fashion is no different to eating meat or wearing leather

Whether you're a meat eater, vegetarian or vegan, you still have every right to be against killing an animal just for their fur! Killing millions of chinchillas just so they become a stylish fur coat or cute pom pom for your handbag is very different to eating animals for meat, which can be considered as part of the food chain.

Breeding chinchillas in mass quantities to be killed purely for vanity is not part of nature, does not offer any health benefits and is nothing less than a terrible waste of life.

2. None of the chinchilla is wasted, the leftovers are used for meat

Unlike leather which is a byproduct of beef used as food, chinchilla fur is not a byproduct of chinchilla meat being used for food. Underneath all that dense fluffy fur, chinchillas are actually very bony with little meat. Don't let pro fur supporters lead you to believe that chinchilla meat is sustaining food for many communities, that is simply not true. Some fur breeders will sell the little meat from their deceased chinchillas to bulk up cat and dog food or other animal feed. This is not an act of heroism as some will claim, but just an extra way to make a bit more money from a animal that was slaughtered primarily for their fur. If these breeders were not allowed to kill chinchillas for fur, they would not breed chinchillas for their meat instead as there simply isn't enough of it!

3. Killing chinchillas is totally painless

Many chinchillas are slaughtered by cervical dislocation, where the chinchilla has its neck broken. This ensures none of the fur gets damaged and is cheap to carry out as the neck is broken by hand. Many breeders who carry out cervical dislocation describe it as some special form of a wonderful mystical procedure - whereby the chinchilla suddenly transforms into a fur coat without any harm to the animal. This is not the case of course, quite simply put, healthy chinchillas are dying in their masses by having their necks forcefully broken.

For those who say that cervical dislocation is quick and painless, can they honestly say they wouldn't mind if someone ended their life, their family's life or another human's life by breaking their neck? If it's not ok to do that to a person, then why is it ok to kill a defenseless chinchilla for the purpose of fashion? Animals have emotions and are proven to feel fear and pain. To needlessly slaughter them based on the prejudice that they're different to us so do not matter scarily resembles other atrocities in history, where people were murdered based on the "justification" that they were different to their abusers.

4. It only matters how the chinchilla was killed not what they were killed for

Many fur supporters seem to believe it only matters how a chinchilla is killed and the reason for their death is irrelevant. However this has been proven time and time again not to be the case. If someone decided to kill their pet dog for a dare it would be considered a crime, even though the act of killing the dog may be far quicker and less painful than if the dog died from a natural illness. If an intruder shot you in your home, your death may be less painful than if you passed away slowly from a nasty accident. Does that mean we should legalise murder too as long as the method is fast?

Police will shoot someone dead if they're threatening the lives of others, some countries have the death penalty for the most serious crimes, yet in all civilised nations killing people for say population control is a crime against humanity. This shows time and time again that the reason to kill an animal or person is vital and can't be disregarded. Killing a chinchilla for their fur is totally unnecessary, all life should be considered sacred - just because humans have the ability to kill those more vulnerable than us doesn't mean we should without very good reason.

5. Fur is environmentally friendly

Please don't be fooled into thinking you are going to save the planet if you wear fur, this is just not true. There are plenty of other fabrics you can wear that are environmentally friendly without having an animal's blood on your hands. Organic cotton and fabrics such as tencel, which can be easily recycled, are just a few. Aside from this, repairing existing garments instead of throwing them away or giving any unwanted clothing to charity are some ways to help unnecessary waste. In reality, saying fur is environmentally friendly is just an weak excuse to try and justify it. Most of us are guilty of doing far worse to the environment such as driving vehicles or using plastic items end up filling landfills, or in the seas and oceans where they cause extensive damage to sea life.

6. I need to wear chinchilla fur to stay warm

Chinchilla fur is very expensive, if you can afford this, then you can definitely afford a warm home to live in and a heated vehicle! Even in the coldest climates, there are still many people who would never dream of wearing fur. Layer up thermal clothes to stay warm in winter months. Should you feel you need to wear an animal based product to stay warm, there are plenty of alternatives available that are byproducts from animals who were used for food, such as leather or sheepskin, not just killed for their fur as chinchillas are

7. Wild chinchillas are not hunted as they're a protected species

This is because wild chinchillas were hunted until virtual extinction due to the fur industry so there are none left to hunt anyway! This has made any wild chinchillas remaining a protected species, so it is illegal to hunt them in the wild. However this is not a problem for fur breeders, in counties where this is legal, they are able to breed as many chinchillas babies (kits) to kill for their fur as they like. Killing captive chinchillas is easier anyway because their diet can be controlled for the best quality fur and you don't don't have to try and capture the chinchillas first to kill them. Instead the animals are at their complete disposal to be killed on demand.

8. Chinchillas pelted for fur must be well looked after because their fur is in good condition

A chinchilla's coat is only one sign that the chinchilla is happy, healthy and well cared for. As fur farmers breed for fur quality alone, this cannot be used to assess the overall wellbeing of the animal as they are solely focusing on this and nothing else. This morbidly obese fox has been kept in a tiny cage and bred this way to have a surplus of fur. Just because its fur will be good for the fashion industry does not mean this fox is healthy or well cared for. Chinchillas bred for fur are kept in tiny cages, never have any exercise or room to move about, or mental stimulation. They are feed pellets to encourage a premium coat and the fluffiest chinchillas who don't have a history of fur chewing (there's a strong genetic link) are the ones bred for their fur. Chinchillas produce high quality fur because they have been bred specifically for this purpose, not because they are well cared for.

9. Fur breeders don't want to kill your pet chinchilla. There's a difference between pets & "livestock"

Just because your own chinchilla isn't going to be killed and made into a fur coat, doesn't mean you shouldn't care about this happening to other chinchillas. As a chinchilla lover it's only natural to care about chinchillas as a whole species and not just your own. Being empathetic to others' suffering is an important part of human nature and shouldn't be ridiculed or belittled. Labelling certain chinchillas as "livestock" does not mean their needs are any less than pet chinchillas, they are all the same species who deserve to live a life free from slaughter for the sake of fashion. These chinchillas would love the opportunity to move around freely in a space big enough and exhibit natural chinchilla behaviours. Just because humans put the artificial label "livestock" on certain chinchillas does not suddenly make their needs any less, or make mistreating them ok.

10. We should be grateful to the fur industry, it gave us pets and a lot of the information we have today

Despite hunting chinchillas to extinction in their natural habitat and continuing to unnecessarily slaughter them today, there is the strange belief amongst some that we should be grateful to the fur industry for this. Pet chinchillas originated from the fur industry and compared to being killed at a young age just for their fur, being kept as pets is a massive improvement. However that being said, had chinchillas not already become domesticated and unable to survive in the wild due to being bred in captivity, taking them from the wild to be kept as pets would also be cruel.

Chinchilla fur breeders have been behind quite a lot of the information we have in terms of understanding dietary needs and health ailments. However this is not out of the kindness of their own heart, but for commercial reasons. If you are killing chinchillas for their fur then you need to know what to feed them so they have the best coat and how to treat any illnesses so you don't lose money. This research for their own gain does not justify the cruel acts of the fur industry.

We couldn't ever imagine asking the descendants of slaves to be thankful to their ancestors' captors for bringing them to the county they now call home today. That would be totally wrong, abhorrent, inappropriate, and quite rightly so. So why is it ok to say chinchilla owners should be thankful for the millions of chinchillas needlessly slaughtered, just because the lucky ones get to kept as pets now?

11. Animal welfare groups exaggerate the extent of cruelty

Animal welfare groups will often portray the most extreme forms of cruelty used in the fur industry, often in countries like China, to try and shock people into listening. Fur supporters on the other hand will naturally showcase fur farms with the best conditions and regulations. The reality is actually probably somewhere in the middle.

There may be some animal rights groups you personally don't agree with, or perhaps you wouldn't even class even yourself as an animal lover at all. That's ok, you don't have to be to be against animal cruelty. Just like you wouldn't expect someone to declare themselves as loving all kids in order to be against child abuse.

Even if all fur farms followed the regulations and recommendations, such as providing chinchillas the minimum cage space and killing them via strangulation, this doesn't change the fact chinchillas are still being needlessly slaughtered for fashion. Animals are amongst some of the most vulnerable as they don't have a voice, so it's up to us to protect them against needless abuse and killing. Whether you support animal rights groups or not, please don't let this stop you making a stance against the fur industry.

12. There are other forms of animal abuse too

Bizarrely, the fact that unfortunately other animals suffer abuse too, is sometimes used as a justification to tell people they can't be against the fur industry. Just because investigating the fur industry may bring up other forms of animal cruelty you weren't aware of, does not make any of it ok! Instead we should look to combat all forms of animals abuse.

13. Abuse against animals doesn't matter, they're not people

People will always have more rights over animals, with funding for housing, food and healthcare often provided for those in need. Any government funded provisions for animals in need are far, far less and therefore mainly rely on limited charitable funding for support. Just because people will always come before animals in society, does not mean they should be at our disposal to abuse and slaughter. They are still living beings who experience fear and pain, and should have a right to be alive! Chinchilla fur, and any other animals' killed just for fashion, is totally unnecessary and beyond wrong. Part of the reason humans are given more rights than animals is because we are perceived to have a deeper range of feelings and morals. Yet those supporting the fur industry, sadly stand as a direct contradiction to this.

14. Being pro-fur is a "personal choice"

Unfortunately there will always be some people who do bad things unless there are laws in place to prohibit it. After all, domestic violence, sexual abuse, racism and slave labour were once all defended as someone's "personal choice" until it became illegal. The same principles apply with the fur industry, someone's "personal choice" should not permit the needless killing and suffering of defenceless animals. The only way to stop this is a complete ban of any animal slaughtered for the purpose of their fur, feathers or skin, along with the sale of such items.

15. People only care about chinchillas being killed as they're cute and furry - if it was another animal they wouldn't care

At Chinchillas as Pets we are firmly against any animal being killed for their fur, feathers or skin. There is no need or benefit to this, purely human greed and vanity - neither of which are a valid reason to end an animal's life. This applies to every animal being needlessly slaughtered in this way, not just chinchillas! Just because humans have the ability to kill those more vulnerable than us at our disposal, doesn't mean we should!

Check out the what you can do to help section to play your part in killing the Fur Industry, not the animals, for good!