BBC
NEWS
Cats 'farmed for skins in EU'
By Tim
Franks
BBC correspondent in Brussels
BBC News has seen
evidence which suggests that cats are being farmed for their skins in the
European Union.
Cats and dogs are not farmed for
their fur in the European Union
EU website
It is thought that tens of
thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands of cat and dog skins are traded in
Europe each year.
Campaigners say that now
is the time for national governments or the European Commission to act.
Europe, it seems, is a
magnet for cat and dog fur.
Cat blankets, so the
aficionados say, are good for rheumatism and dog pelts are, according to
campaigners, often labelled misleadingly and sold as the fur of some exotic,
even mythical beast.
Cat and dog fur trade
Campaigners claim 2 million cats
and dogs slaughtered every year
Main exporter: China
12 to 15 adult dogs needed to make
a dog fur coat
Up to 24 cats needed for cat fur
coat
Cat and dog fur also used in hats,
gloves, shoes, blankets, stuffed animals and toys
Dog fur sometimes labelled as:
Gae-wolf, sobaki, Asian jackal, goupee, loup d'Asie, Corsac fox, dogues du
Chine, or simply fake or exotic fur
Cat fur sometimes labelled as:
house cat, wild cat, katzenfelle, rabbit, goyangi, mountain cat
Since the US has banned the trade
of cat and dog skins, the European market has expanded.
A video seen by BBC News
shows one Belgian furrier displaying a blanket he says was made from cats farmed
in Belgium.
What's more, he says that
stray cats and dogs are rounded up and skinned.
That would seem to
contradict the assertion from the officials who help run the EU at the European
Commission that there is no cat or dog farming inside the union.
The Commission says that a
ban on the trade is not really in their power - it would be better left to
national governments.
So far, though, only Italy
has brought in such a ban.
Story from BBC
NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/europe/3009537.stm
Published:
2003/05/08 06:31:40
© BBC MMIII
(eufur2.doc)