Records Show People Actually Still Buy Fur

Documents obtained via a public records request with the Massachusetts Department of Fisheries & Wildlife reveal that, despite the obvious and widely-acknowledged cruelty, the fur business is still a thing.

Included in the released records is a database of individuals licensed to trap fur animals for the years 2015 and 2016. There were approximately 670 Mass. residents permitted to trap in 2015; that number fell to 403 in 2016, suggesting that the fur business may be experiencing a down turn.

Interestingly, only 14 and 15 people (around half are taxidermists) were licensed to purchase fur in 2015 and 2016, respectively. That’s about 38 trappers per buyer.

The documents also included a breakdown of which animals were killed during the 2014 to 2015 season.

In all, 1,251 animals were trapped and subsequently killed for their fur; 44% of these were beavers, unsurprisingly. It is possible that many more muskrats, opossums, raccoons, skunks, and weasels were trapped, as the number for each of these species was collected through voluntary surveys, while data for all other species in the graph above were collected via mandatory harvest reports.

Assuming the number of licensed trappers for the year 2014 was similar to the number for 2015, that means that less than two animals were trapped during 2014–2015 per one licensed trapper.

It’s now commonly accepted that wearing fur is unnecessary, rather barbaric, and a great way to support a cruel industry that probably should have gone extinct long ago (no pun intended).

One can always point to the harsh New England winters to justify wearing fur, but alternatives are ubiquitous and often less expensive than animal skins. While most people — and, by extension, most omnivores — recognize this, they still engage in a quite similar practice that is also unnecessary, cruel, and barbaric.

If only someone could let them know.