As I travelled Europe as I grew older, I realised it was the same story everywhere.
Twelve years ago I was in the Czech republic and a friend took me to a fur farm. The welfare was very good, and the rabbit is used for meat and also fur felt. I could not see the ethical differnce between ma and fur. In fact, I sill can’t understand it. Does an animal give permission to kill it for meat but not fur? Of course not. Do we need to eat meat. No. Its a luxury. In fact, I am very unhappy about the welfare I have seen on factory meat farms; and it bemuses me that people can eat a £1.99 chicken and object to fur. Because since on my travels, I always asked to go to fur producing areas. What I saw everywhere was the best animal welfare practices of all; and the fact that small communities that survived on this keep the countryside free of urban invasion and economic development for things like intensive crops. In additon, I began to speak with native people in Canada Nunavut and the Sami in scandinavia and the Siberian peoples. All were furious with western prejudice against their fur trade. in Poland where I went to buy a horse, I underwent something of an odyssey in this dirction; meeting fascinating rural people who fed nutria meat to wolves when it didn’t end up on the menu of a Polish or Czech pub. It is coypu. The fur is fantastic; and their management of them as a resource admirable. In Britain, we wiped them out of existence just a few years ago. A crime IMHO. So I now use nutria fur.

In northern Scanidnava I saw amazing animals like wolverine in the forests where fur is produced, and reindeer herds. The alternative economic activity open to them is to destroy the foress for cheap wood furniture which people do not think twice about buying then chucking when the fashion changes. The fur trade I have seen is thw only thing stopping the bulldozers and logging.

I made myself a promise. I have always been interested in fashion and if life had not taken me in the direction of a Fine Artist specialising in animals, I would have gone to fashion college.
So I resolved that if ever I could, and for sound ecological principles (I am a strong Conservation lobbyist) I would source furs from the places had been and the people I had spoken too, and use them in a small collection. The more fascism and ignorance I encountered from groups llke PETA made me more resolved to do it. I have now done it in a small way, and am also supporting the designs of a young Czech fur designer who thinks similar to me. In a very real way I see how what I am doing is protecting habitat from modern development by supporting small fur producers in rural areas, often wilderness. I have also seen the production on SAGA fur farms and the animals are the best cared for I have ever seen of all agricultural animals. From just norh of there, I am talking to Sami as I wrote this about incoroprating their reindeer lather into my range. It will all be small; maybe just 12 items; but it’s ethically conceptual not financial motivated. I want people to think before they condemn.

Does NOBODY see that the areas that produce fur have the greatest wilderness; the best habitat protection, the most amazing animals? Many of these bearskins for busbies are produced by the Cree Indians; whose Consevation record is second to none. FUR PRODUCTION protects HABITAT.

The Coronation cast supporting PETA is just hysterical: talk about urban ignorance.
Well I have a reaction for them from the native hunters of Siberia:
“Where are your bear in urban Britain? You didn’t kill them for fur and meat; you killed them to build your Coronation streets. Now you destroy your songbirds with your modern ignorance. Look after your own wildlife; and we will look after ours. Because we need them to trade for fur, they will always be plentiful. And know it is our way of life, not Peta’s stupdity, that means the Tiger’s last sanctuary is here.”

You may wish to read how the siberian hunter (oh yes and by the way the eat the bear there too) directly does this and the result is a beautiful sable coat:
query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9802E6DA1038F934A15751C1A9669C8B63 - 44k

That is why true Conservationists support them now and the WWF and World Conservation Union fully support areas of indgenous traditional use. It shouldn’t take a genius to work out re. the busbies that culling a few brown bears actually protects the more vulnrable grizzly and kodiak. Also, animals rights groups like ifaw are consistently refused entry to the World Conservation Union as they are regarded as dangerous to Conservation principles.
Check out the Fur is Green Campaign and before you think it’s fur trade propaganda , realise this. That it is the work of Paula Lishman the Canadian fashion designer who’s husband is William Lishman the famous Conservationist;
http://www.furcouncil.com/ecological.aspx

I am not using fur in designs to make money. As an Artist I am doing it conceptually to make people question how we think about renewable resources because its cheap mass produced synthetic clothing made from oil and abusive cotton production that is the real danger to animals long term. I am creating a concept of beautiful durable clothes that support small poduction, rural economies, and protect habitat as a result. I also use Scottish tweed for example. I am also doing it to make people question the whole idea of a dumbed down society in which people take more notice of soap stars and animal rights fascists than conservationists.

I live in Wales, have a horse, and on the land around are many sheep. The red Kite still flies here and as long a there is a demand for sheep there shall always be lambs in spring and the kite and buzzard will fly overhead. The fox will prey on them, and the Hunt shall chase it away. The free range ducklings and chickens will sometimes fall prey to the mink. This is nature. We are part of it. If there are too many rabbits we call the ferre man; to many rats the terrier man, too many pigeons we shoot and eat them or call the hawk man. It is how things have always been here.
When I get my horse from his stable I look that two swallow chicks have gone from their nest. The magpie has been. I go to the tack room for the saddle and see the owl chicks , who screech at me to get out of their place. I ride to the forest and on the way rescue a lamb from the ravens. And on the edge of the forest look down over the landscape. The bio fuel crops and urban expansion are slowly eating it all away. I am joined by the Master of Hounds, though he is not hunting that day. In summer the fox is not hunted as it rears is young. A vixen and her cubs play nearby.
“Is all going to vanish isn’t it?” he says sadly with a sigh “and they (nodding at the foxes) will be first to go because of those who profess to protect them”.
I smile.
“No…it is the reign of urban ignorance that is finished not us.” I say with a smile.

Bio fuels have caused a world food shortage; and he change of land use from animal to intensive crop caused wildlife devastation.
Soya and palm oil plantations are devastating habitats of spotted cats protected for thiry years yet decline rapidly.
The appalling damage of the Aral sea by cotton has halted as the people return to fishing.
Let us hope that the British Guards always wear the busbies with pride knowing that doing so protects the Canadian wilderness from this madness too.
The great land grab that animal rights ideology has covered up for is now exposed and it stops now. Please do your bit to support traditional animal use with good land management and good welfare practices, remember that animals are an infinitely renewable resource, and therefore our wildlife the world over will prosper. Put the ignorant in their place. Thankyou to this site for doing just that by exposing this stupidity of PETA and the coronation street cast. Elsie Tanner a great fur fan will be turning in her grave.

Well, you fill in the gaps. When PETA, or one of its similar groups, starts its usual display outside a Harley store I wonder what sort of reception it will get!

Bear skin hats, fur coats, leather shoes and jackets. Just where will this go……

SG

http://www.igorilla.com/gorilla/animal/Bear_kills_two__injures_two_in_Brit.htm

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/06/10/bear050610.html

Mmm, bacon, rghrghrgh…

And I’m not so sure they’re wrong. Let’s say you hit a hog while going 70 MPH on your average highway. (dream with me…) You stop and curse the luck that bent your front fender, and then decide to claim the pork-belly as your just compensation.

The next morning, your neighbors are awoken to the smell of bacon. Lots of bacon. The aroma wafts down the block. There’s no avoiding it. By noon-time, there’s a run on bacon at every grocery store within 3 miles.

Are you starting to see where I’m going here? Yes? Good. Because frankly, I’ve forgotten. I just have a hankering for bacon.