-
1951 - Fur Products Labeling Act
made into law
"The introduction, or manufacture for introduction, into commerce, or the sale,
advertising or offering for sale in commerce, or the transportation or
distribution in commerce, of any fur product which is misbranded or falsely or
deceptively advertised or invoiced, within the meaning of this subchapter or the
rules and regulations prescribed under section 69f(b) of this title, is unlawful
and shall be an unfair method of competition, and an unfair and deceptive act or
practice, in commerce under the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et
seq.)."
The law in its
entirety
-
1988 to 2006: PETA's campaign
history against the fur market
Source: PETA
-
1997 - Humane Society launches
its campaign
The campaign to ban the trade in cat and dog fur items in the U.S. in 1997 (and
EU in 1998)
when the HSI first revealed the inhumane treatment and cruel
deaths of dogs and cats in China during its 1997 investigation “Betrayal
of Trust”.
Source:
Respect for Animals,
HSUS
-
December 17, 1998 - Vendor
Explains Dog Fur
Citing confusion over the source of the fur, Stanley Nankin, owner of ACME
International, a coat supplier in San Antonio, stated he requested coyote fur
coats when ordering from China. These coats were sold to Burlington Coat
Factory, which returned them to Mr. Nankin
Source:
New York Times
Special Note:
Of the 25 garments tested by the HSUS in December, 2006, five were purchased
from Burlington Coat Factory - all five were found to be Raccoon Dog.
Eight years later and nothing has changed???? See
HERE for the HSUS test results.
-
March 11, 1999 - Plea for Asian
Dogs
An animal welfare organization has urged British breeders of pedigree dogs to
stop exporting them to the Far East until the region introduces better laws
banning cruelty to animals.
Source: BBC
coverage
-
July 25, 1999 - China Journal of
Animal Husbandry and Aquatic Productions Report
""Because foreign people resent the dog-eating habit in some areas of China,
they are not willing to sell their pet dogs to China which causes some
difficulty to our importation. Currently we are trying to negotiate with foreign
companies on how we can import stud dogs in order to meet the internal needs".
Affidavits exist from breeders approached by people with businesses in China
wanting to buy whole litters of Saint Bernard puppies. Source:
Sirius
-
April 1, 2000 - Int'l Association
for the Protection of Animals
Requests the Swiss Cabinet to prohibit the sale of dogs to Asian countries,
particularly China, Korea and Vietnam. Source:
Sirius
-
June 17, 1999 - $1.27 Billion
in Retail Sales in 1998
Despite an effort by environmentalists to end the killing, one out of every five
women in the United States still owns a fur coat. Fur designers have increased
from 42 private designers in 1985 to more than 200 in 1998. Fur sales then
climbed to $1.27 billion in U.S. retail sales during 1998. Source:
Sun
Advocate archives
-
November 9, 2000 - Dog and Cat
Protection Act of 2000 signed into effect
Prohibits "....imports, exports, sale, manufacture, offer for sale,
transportation, and distribution in the United States of dog and cat fur
products." The Act is designed to deter any operations that may cause brutality,
suffering, or torture to cats and dogs and that may expose them to
unjustifiable, inhumane living conditions.
Special notes:
1) Violators of the Act will be fined up to $10,000 for each item containing dog
or cat fur.
2) Repeat violators will be prohibited from importing, exporting, or selling any
fur product in the United States.
3) A "watch list" of businesses and individuals known to trade in dog and cat
fur will be published on an annual basis in the Federal Register starting
November 2001.
Source:
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol
Text of the Act HERE
-
January 2001 - Italy Bans Dog and
Cat Fur and Skin Products
Source: Voice4Dogs
-
November 24, 2001 - Survey
Says People Prefer Social Responsibility
The survey revealed that 54% of consumers consider selling fur products to be
socially irresponsible. By more than a four-to-one margin, consumers prefer to
shop at stores which do not sell fur. The preference consumers have for
department stores not selling fur is further evidenced by the fact that 47% of
consumers disapprove of stores selling fur, compared to only 35% who approve.
Source: Neiman Carcass
-
October 11, 2002 - Cuddly Dog
Toys & Chew Toys Made from Dead Dogs
Richard Swain, the Humane Society’s undercover investigator and a former
Maryland police captain, said, “Make no mistake about it, this fur is being sold
throughout Europe. In China I have seen warehouses the size of football fields
piled to the ceiling with dog and cat fur waiting to be exported to the West.”
Source: Sirius
-
2003 - Denmark Passes Its Law on
this topic
Source: Voice4Dogs
-
May 29, 2003 - Carpet of Cruelty
Hours before this town center of Huangchen, China was filled with alive,
tail-wagging dogs... now it's a vast sea of dog fur pelts spread out like a vast
carpet. All parts of the dogs are used, except the feet which are left
rotting outside of the town to be boiled down for glue. The meat is sold for
eating, the teeth are shipped to Thailand to be mixed in with ivory and sold as
pure ivory. But the coats have the most value - to be shipped off for the fur
trade worldwide. Source:
Sirius
-
September 2003 - British Fur
Trade Association Volunteers Labeling
Voluntary actions and not mandatory - also not enforceable
Source: Voice4Dogs
-
November 7, 2003 - French
Government Passes Legislation
Regulation bans cat and dog fur; requires customs officials to enforce the law
Source: Voice4Dogs
-
December 3, 2003 - The Fur
Keeps Flying
Cat and dog fur is regularly used in linings or as trim - Struan Stevenson
continues the fight, hoping to gather enough signatures to prompt a ban.
Source:
Time
-
January 31, 2004 - Belgium
Joins In On Banning of Dog & Cat Fur
Belgium now joins Italy, France, Greece and Denmark. Historically, most of
the dog and cat furs that have been traded in Belgium have come from China, but
in some cases they have been alleged to come from animals picked up on the
streets in Belgium itself.
Source:
Buzzle.com report
-
February 3, 2004 - Sharon
Osborne Dumps the "F" Word
Sharon rids her closets of fur coats and asks her TV show viewers to donate
their furs to PETA
Source: PETA News
-
May, 2004 - Australia
Amends Law to Ban Dog & Cat Fur
In May 2004, the Australian government amended the Customs
(Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956 and the Customs (Prohibited Exports)
Regulations 1958 to ban the import and export of fur from domestic cat and dog
species. Minister for Justice and Customs Chris Ellison told the media that the
government took action in part because of the more than the 9,000 comments in
support of the ban from citizens across the country. Ellison stated that it was
the largest volume of correspondence he had received on a single issue in almost
four years as minister.
Source:
HSUS
-
April 8, 2005 - "Fur Trade
getting on the right track" per Chinese spokesperson
More than 30 million pieces of fur are traded at the Shangcun market each year.
Zhang Shuhua, deputy chairman of the China Leather Industry Association, told
reporters yesterday that China's fur industry has experienced rapid growth in
the past few years. Last year the import and export volume of fur products
increased by 54 per cent and 123 per cent respectively (exports in 2004 were
over 2 billion USD).
Source:
People's Daily Online
-
October 27, 2005 - PETA
Criticizes J. Crew For Using Fur
Source:
The California Aggie
-
November 28, 2005 - McCarthy
Attacks China Over Fur
Sir Paul McCarthy vows never perform again in China as well as to boycott the
2008 Beijing Olympics after viewing the videos.
Source:
Details from the BBC
-
December, 2005 - HSI Uncovers
Czech Republic Participating As Well
More recent evidence uncovered, and presented to the European Parliament in
December 2005, by a HSI investigation indicated that dog and cat fur may also be
coming from a source much closer to home - "the Czech Republic". The undercover
video showed a factory worker in a Czech warehouse telling investigators that
most of the cat and dog skins hanging from nearby rails were obtained
domestically. A few, he said on tape, were imported from China, where HSI
estimates that at least 5,400 cats and dogs die horribly every day for fur.
Source:
Respect for Animals
-
December 11, 2005 - Transcript
- CNN Larry King Live
Dogs and cats abused for their fur - Ryan Seacrest, Guest Host, CNN
Transcript HERE
-
December 21, 2005 - Sky News Team
Detained In China
Chinese authorities tried to prevent the reporting of the investigation by
detaining the journalist, producer and driver for ten hours
Source:
Sky News report - also
Prying Eyes Not Welcomed in China (bottom of page) by Dominic Waghorn,
Beijing correspondent for Sky News
-
January 2006 - Eastern Europe is
back in the fur trade
BRUSSELS, BUDAPEST, SOFIA––Dog and cat fur of eastern European origin appears to
be back on the market, almost a decade after the post-Communist rise of animal
advocacy put an official end to the centuries-old budka system of funding animal
control by selling pelts. Source:
Animal People
-
January 26, 2006 - Is Dog &
Car Fur Being Used in Coats?
The HSUS's
undercover investigation concluded that the business of killing cats and dogs
for fur is thriving in the Czech Republic and other Eastern European countries.
This comes as a direct reaction to thriving fur sales and a noted market shift
since the U.S. banned the import of domestic pet fur, experts say.
Source: ABC News
-
March 8, 2006 - Truth in Fur
Labeling Act of 2006 introduced by Rep. Mike Ferguson (NJ)
-
March 17, 2006 - Truth in Fur
Labeling Act of 2006 referred to the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade
and Consumer Protection
-
March 8, 2006: Truth in Fur
Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Moran, James P. [VA-8],
Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9],
Rep Kucinich, Dennis J. [OH-10],
Rep Platts, Todd Russell [PA-19],
Rep Smith, Christopher H. [NJ-4],
Rep Simmons, Rob [CT-2]
-
March 16, 2006: Truth in Fur
Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Schakowsky, Janice D. [IL-9]
-
March 28, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51],
Rep Saxton, Jim [NJ-3]
-
February 13, 2006: First
International Day of World-wide Protest
Over 40 locations worldwide participated in this organized effort
Source: In Defense
of Animals
-
April 5, 2006: Truth
in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Blumenauer, Earl [OR-3],
Rep Gordon, Bart [TN-6],
Rep Leach, James A. [IA-2],
Rep LoBiondo, Frank A. [NJ-2],
Rep Lofgren, Zoe [CA-16],
Rep Miller, George [CA-7]
-
April 26, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Brown, Henry E., Jr. [SC-1],
Rep DeFazio, Peter A. [OR-4],
Rep Sherman, Brad [CA-27],
Rep Smith, Adam [WA-9]
-
May 4, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Nadler, Jerrold [NY-8]
-
May 24, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Gallegly, Elton [CA-24],
Rep Van Hollen, Chris [MD-8]
-
May, 2006 - It's not China's
fault - it's the Europeans' & Americans' fault
In May 2006 a spokesman for the Chinese Ambassador in London told the BBC: "The
fur trade mostly feeds markets in Europe and the US. Most of this fur is not for
the Chinese market. So the Europeans and Americans should accept the blame".
Source: Voice4Dogs - Consumer
Alert - Fake Fur - Chinese Fur Farms
-
May 24, 2006 - Chinese
Officials Vow to Stamp Out Trade
“Senior officials in the Chinese government yesterday vowed to stamp out the
trade in cat and dog fur which they described as ‘illegal and barbaric,’”
European Parliament member Struan Stevenson’s office announced from Brussels.
Source:
Animal People,
Animal
Activism Queensland,
Danmex China Business Resource
-
July 13, 2006: Truth in
Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Maloney, Carolyn B. [NY-14],
Rep McCollum, Betty [MN-4]
-
September 6, 2006: Truth
in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Andrews, Robert E. [NJ-1],
Rep Eshoo, Anna G. [CA-14],
Rep Shays, Christopher [CT-4],
Rep Waxman, Henry A. [CA-30]
-
September 20, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Weldon, Curt [PA-7]
-
September 26, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Capps, Lois [CA-23]
-
September 29, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Berman, Howard L. [CA-28]
-
October 12, 2006 - European
Parliament endorses resolution plan for
2006-2010
"...Supports the proposal to ban imports of cat and dog fur and calls for a ban
on all seal products and what it calls “cruelty products” from third countries."
Source:
International Fund for Animal Welfare
-
November 15, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Towns, Edolphus [NY-10]
-
November 20, 2006 - European
Commission Drafting Legislation
EU Commissioner Markos Kyprianou announced that the European Commission is
putting forward draft legislation to ban the marketing and import of cat and dog
fur.
Source:
Respect for Animals
-
November 25, 2006 - Mercury &
Climate Changes Date Back to the Fur Trade
Source: Anti Fur
Society
-
December 6, 2006:
Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006 Status
Co-sponsored by
Rep Moore, Gwen [WI-4]
-
December 15, 2007 - Macys is
Third Major Chain Found Selling Real Fur as 'Faux'
Shoppers beware! Source:
HSUS
-
December 20, 2006 - Tests Show
Major Retailers Are Selling Mislabeled Fur Coats
Investigation by HSUS goes public
Source:
HSUS
Just who is selling these coats and exactly what they are :
Test Results
-
December 22, 2007 - Tests
Reveal Canine Fur on Diddy's "Sean John" Coats
Sent out for testing, the results are now in - Raccoon Dog and not 'faux' fur
Source:
HSUS
-
January 16, 2007 - Jay-Z's
100th Problem: Canine Fur Coats
"Jay-Z" Carter now has a hundreth problem on his hands - coats sold under his 'Rocawear'
brand have been found to not contain 'faux' fur as advertised, but in fact tests
by the HSUS show them to be Raccoon Fur. Source:
HSUS
-
December 21, 2006 - Kennel
Club of the UK Pressure Focuses on China
(Press
Release)
-
February 7, 2007 - Rep. Jim
Moran Introduces Dog & Cat Fur Prohibition Enforcement Act
Representatives Jim Moran (D-Va.) and Michael Ferguson (R-N.J.), along with 25
additional cosponsors, today introduced the Dog and Cat Fur Prohibition
Enforcement Act, which aims to protect consumers and animals by outlawing the
import of fur from raccoon dogs and requiring all garments trimmed with fur to
be labeled, regardless of value.
Source: Rep. Jim Moran's website
-
February 13, 2007 - IDA
Descends Upon Chinese Consulates to Protest Fur Trade
Members of In Defense of Animals (IDA) will join activists in 26 cities
worldwide in a day of protest of the fur trade in China. Activists will gather
in front of the Consulate General of China to expose passersby to the brutal
trade in dog and cat fur taking place in China. The protest is concurrent with
demonstrations organized at Chinese Embassies and Consulates around the globe.
Source: In
Defense of Animals
