LANGLEY ADVANCE

Site updated Friday, August 19, 2005 10:05 AM

Animal welfare: Demand keeps fur farms

Dear Editor;

Instead of "barbaric," I'd have to say "heroic" [Fur industry barbaric, Aug. 12 Letters, Langley Advance].

The fur trade has been around for as long as people have been wearing clothes. Canada would be a very different place if it hadn't been for our ancestors of the fur trade.

At one time, this country was proud to be built on the demand for our fine North American furs, and the industry had our people's support. Unfortunately for fur farmers, this support is getting harder to get.

Readers are getting the wrong information on how fur farmers treat their livestock. It has been said that modern farmers use barbaric brutality and inexpensive methods of raising them in appalling conditions, until they inhumanely kill them off.

Only the opposite is true. A fur farmer, like any farmer who raises an animal for a finished product, only gets back what is put into the animal. If the animal is mistreated or abused, the end product is worthless on the global market. Because of the financial risk and hard work involved in raising a healthy animal, farmers cannot afford to have worthless livestock due to improper care of the animal's needs.

The fur industry is on a supply and demand market.

There is a demand for fur. Many of our fine North American skins are shipped overseas to China, Europe, Russia, and Korea, to name a few.

Many garments are worn for the warmth they provide, especially those sold in cold climates such as Russia and China. Notice how there are no anti-fur movements there: people would rather be warm than complain about other people's livelihoods.

As for the trends of fashion, I see nothing wrong in enjoying the fruits of nature.

The animals are raised for a purpose: to generate money in the economy, to create jobs, and to fulfill the needs of demand on a global scale.

Fur farmers are only continuing what this country's legacy was built on.

The fur industry is only to get bigger before it dies, but before it can start taking the necessary steps forward, there needs to be support from people who agree, instead of constantly hearing how barbaric fur farmers are.

Joseph Williams, Aldergrove

published on 08/19/2005

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