Fur Trade Ethics

Each year, billions of animals are brutally slaughtered, solely for the use of their fur for human needs. The fur industry is a completely unnecessary, inhumane, and cruel practice. Although some of our group members had prior knowledge on the industry, the group was shocked after researching and educating ourselves further on the horrors of the fur trade. Killing animals for fur is unnecessary, considering all the cruelty free options that we available today in our modern society. Besides the ethics side of the argument, the fur industry is an environmentally destructive process. Similar to other forms of factory farming, the fur industry is a threat to the earths natural resources. People who wear fur claim that they do so for reasons such
While one side has their opinions and ethical beliefs, so does the other side. In this section, we will briefly look into the opinions and reasons to why both sides believe what they do. As mentioned previously, some people use fur products to keep warms, as well as fashion and wealth reasons. These can be respectable reasons for individuals who are in these situations. Another reason why people depend of the fur trade is because of jobs. According to our resources, the fur trade industry employs around 60,000 Canadian residents per year, both full and part-time. Of the 50,000 active trappers, only 25,000 of these employees are of aboriginal status, while the rest are not. It is also recognized that Canadian fur farm owners and trappers make well over $320 million per year on pelt sales alone. The fur trade industry not only supplies jobs to 60,000 Canadians, but it also benefits to our economy by contributing almost $1 billion every year. Fur trades in Canada began in the early 1500’s when a French explorer began trading with Europe. For hundreds of years this has been both socially and economically ethical for Canadians everywhere, up until
For instance, we have so many options of other fashion choices that we could choose, which can also tie into “quality of the product”. In the past few years, there have been several companies arising with cruelty-free products including coats, hats, and mittens. The options of cruelty-free products and companies offer an alternative to purchasing and wearing fur. This creates a statement that metaphorically gets sent to the companies that sell fur. It shows that we do not support the idea of trapping and brutally murdering the helpless animals that are involved. Mentioning the treatment of the animals while trapping, we acknowledge the fact that defenseless animals lose their lives every day from hunters who only want their fur and skin. Within the seal hunt, it's been reported that seals slip underneath the surface of the water, where they are left to slowly die and are never found. Regarding the brutality of the animals, we found that the Canadian Marine Mammal Regulations that govern the hunt stipulate sealers may kill seals with wooden clubs, hakapiks, and guns. We also noticed that although the commercial hunt of nursing seal pups is banned, seals are still hunted, leaving over one million seals slaughtered and injured in the past five years. Another reason why some individuals choose not to wear fur is because of their