What do you do With a fur Present?
May 20th 2009 21:00
Photo by Mickey Bohnacker. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
A few weeks ago, one of my friends came back from holidaying in China. She had bought me something.
I didn’t know what to say when she handed me the present. I don’t expect presents from anyone so I often don’t know how to react apart from saying, “Thankyou” and “You shouldn’t have.”
I said both as I looked at my gift. It was a long furry toy. It was lovely and cute but there was just one problem: the fur felt real.
As a little voice screamed inside me, saying, “I’m sorry, I can’t accept this,” my real voice asked, “Is this real fur?”
“No,” said my friend. “I’m sure it isn’t.”
But I was sceptical as I have seen her with other furry toys that also felt like real fur. When questioned, she always said they were faux fur. Either my friend didn’t know or didn’t care.
The reason why I am raising the latter as a possibility is because she once told me that while she had no problem with buying leather or goat skin goods, she drew the line at cat or dog fur because they were “pets”. The problem with this argument is that cows and goats can also be pets. If the definition of a pet is a companion animal, then basically any sentient being can qualify as one.
The other problem with her argument is that it suggests some animals are more important than others. Having said that, it could also be argued that technically, leather and goat skin are by-products of animals that are killed for food.
***
When I was a little girl I used to play with my mother’s fur coats until I realised they came from a living animal. Once that connection was made, I refused to go anywhere near them. I also threw out the koala bear my father bought me for the same reason. So I had a good idea of what real fur feels like and that toy felt like real fur.
I wanted to give my friend the benefit of the doubt, though, so I took it home so I could examine it properly. I remember from playing with my mum’s fur coats that real fur feels very smooth and silky, like an oriental cat’s coat. I also remember seeing a sign at Taronga Zoo or at a museum explaining how to tell the difference between fake and real fur: basically you spread the hairs apart with your fingers and see what they are attached to. Fake fur will be attached to a piece of fabric and you should be able to see the weave of it. You will not be able to see this effect on real fur.
I did the hair separation test and the toy failed it. Disgusted, I pushed the toy to the side, wondering what to do with it. I might give it to my mother. She is the only person I could think of who would accept it as my sister and all of my other friends are dead against fur products.
For more on how to tell if fur is real or not, check out the UK RSPCA’s link below:
RSPCA
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Comment by Nevar
Is Why
Comment by Queenie
Quirky Folk
Quirky Queenie
I try not to impose my views on anyone, particularly my friends but it's hard when one does something that does not sit with my idea of ethical behaviour. My sister didn't like the toy any more than I did and we both agreed to donate it to our mum who still has her fut coats even though she is now Buddhist.
Comment by samaritan
Fringe Faith
Samaritan's Stories
Samaritan
Comment by Queenie
Quirky Folk
Quirky Queenie
My sister can really relate to this. My father had a small statue of a knight. It used to give my sister the creeps and she made my mum hide it.