In Europe a ban has been passed to stop the trade of dog and cat fur. I can’t imagine who would even want a dog or cat fur coat. I didn’t realize in Europe this type of trade even existed, or that there were already laws in other countries banning such a thing.
The man who has campaigned for the ban for nine years, Conservative MEP Struan Stevenson, welcomed a move he said would save the lives of millions of animals slaughtered every year in Asia – mostly in China – to serve a European market.
But he warned it was now up to importers and retailers to stay vigilant against a “vile” trade in which cats and dogs are rounded up and often skinned alive.
Heather Mills collected over 250,000 signatures to help get the ban passed. Hollywood celebrities, at the urging of the director of Sex And The City, wrote to the European Commission supporting a ban.
The resulting law prohibits all EU imports and exports, or any trade in cat and dog fur, in the 27 EU countries from the start of 2009, although five EU countries have already unilaterally banned the trade – Italy, Denmark, France, Belgium and Greece.
There is already similar legislation in the US and Australia, but China continues trading dog and cat fur to a thriving market in Russia.
