Illigalize fur in Europe

Looking at a fur coat in a glossy magazine or a store window, you might not realize that animals were beaten, electrocuted, or even skinned alive for their skin. Are you ready to find out what really happens in the name of fashion? Here are nine shocking fur facts that will make you think twice about wearing the corpse of any animal:

Fur Fact 1: Electrocuting fur-bearing animals anally and genitally is an agonizing slaughter method used frequently to limit damage to fur. New York is the only state in which this inhumane method is illegal.

Fur Fact 2: Eighty-five percent of the fur industry‘s skins come from animals who were captive on fur factory farms, where they are crammed into severely crowded, filthy wire cages and later often skinned alive.

Fur Fact 3: There are no penalties for people who abuse animals on fur farms in China, which is the world’s largest fur exporter, supplying more than half of the finished garments in the United States.

Fur Fact 4: One billion rabbits are killed each year so that their fur can be used in clothing or for lures in fly-fishing or trim on craft items.

Fur Fact 5: In China, more than 2 million cats and hundreds of thousands of dogs are bludgeoned, hanged, bled to death, and often skinned alive for their fur.

Fur Fact 6: Fur farms harm the environment. One million pounds of feces are produced annually by U.S. mink farmsalone. One dangerous component of this waste is nearly 1,000 tons of phosphorus, which pollutes nearby rivers and streams.

Fur Fact 7: Fur farms in the U.S. are the only sector of animal agriculture unregulated by the federal government.

Fur Fact 8: After an animal has been slaughtered, his or her skin is treated with toxic chemicals to keep it from rotting and decomposing in the buyer’s closet.

Fur Fact 9: One-third of all fur sold in the U.S. comes from animals killed in steel-jaw traps, which are legal in 43 states. These traps slam shut on an animal’s limb, which causes excruciating pain and leaves the animal stuck and starving, sometimes for days. The conibear trap crushes an animal’s neck by applying 90 pounds of pressure per square inch, leaving the animal to suffer for another three to eight minutes while he or she slowly suffocates.

Surprised by these shocking fur facts? Sign the pledge to go fur-free today! And tell your friends about the cruelty of the fur industry by tweeting one of these shocking fur facts to them.