HOT TOPICS

Question 5: Are coats in Canada made from dog & cat fur?

• Animal activists often make this claim to discredit the fur trade -- but they have yet to find a single dog or cat fur garment in Canada.
• The Fur Council of Canada has adopted a formal policy confirming that Canadian fur manufacturers and retailers do NOT use domesticated dog and cat fur in the garments they produce or sell. Why would they? Canadian consumers are not interested in such products, and we have so many beautiful Canadian furs to choose from!
• Garments sold in reputable fur stores always carry a label indicating the fur type. When in doubt, consult your fur retailer. 
• Sometimes activists claim that “raccoon dogs” are dogs, because they are classified by biologists in the larger canidae family. But Nyctereutes procyonoides is really a completely distinct species that resembles a North American raccoon much more than it does a coyote, wolf or other members of the dog family. This Asiatic raccoon is native to Asia and is also farmed in Scandinavia where they are known as Finn Raccoons.It is true that in some countries dogs (and other animals we think of as pets) are used for human consumption. For us Westerners this is unthinkable. But who are we to impose the values of our rich and well-fed societies on developing nations with different customs? (And, of course, we also kill millions of unwanted dogs and cats each year; are we morally superior because we are rich enough to throw them away unused?)