Is using animals for their fur moral or immoral?

[Rence]

I adore animals and used to be a PETA supporter until their ads kept getting tackier and tasteless. The going naked instead of wearing fur. I’d take the fur in an instant! I won’t even get started one that one…:nope:
Besides, we would be quite the hypocrites because of our leather shoes, belts, wallets and purses. People seem to forget about that one.

I would agree with you on some of what you said, but leather comes from cattle, and we use the whole animal before it’s hide is made into leather. Just saying So it’s not the same as killing an animal for it’s fur and discarding the rest of the animal in a burn pile.

 

[vsedriver]

I find that most people that make laws or rules are in their ivory towers and away from the people in the trenches managing everything, and basically, the ones with the most knowledge and experience. The ban on horse slaughter is one of the reasons why you can take a horse to the sale, not sell it for the cost of a bag of grain, and when you return to your trailer there are one or more horses in your trailer waiting for you…

Also why people simply turned their horses loose to try and survive on their own. They generally end up starving to death or dying of disease or causing car accidents. Horses are made to suffer a long truck trip to Mexico or Canada where they are still slaughtered. If we had several, monitored facilities in each state the horses could be processed with less trauma and the meat put to good use.

 

[benidict]

I have a difficulty keeping warm in winter. I’ve tried all kinds of modern coats but confess that the one natural fur coat that I have is the warmest and most comfortable coat to wear. It’s not a fancy fur but a coyote. I didn’t know it was real fur when I bought it. I got it at an auction and thought it was fake fur.

I also read that they did tests in the arctic and found that the Inuit people’s natural fur coats were warmer than the most advanced modern fabrics.

Im partial to leather myself.

 

[Young_Thinker]

The ban on horse slaughter in the USA has increased the suffering of horses a great deal. All because people who don’t understand the horse industry are making the laws.

If so, then how do you propose to deal with this problem? I also would not call a horse otherwise unusable or “excess” just because he is not fast on a racetrack.

 

[Rence]

If so, then how do you propose to deal with this problem?

Re-opening the horse slaughter houses would be a start…

 

[vsedriver]

If so, then how do you propose to deal with this problem? I also would not call a horse otherwise unusable or “excess” just because he is not fast on a racetrack.

First the majority of horses are not bred to race. Most are bred for the pleasure horse market.

A horse becomes unusable when it can no longer perform a function. An excess horse is any horse who can’t be placed with an owner. Few people can afford to keep ‘pasture ornaments’. Reopening the slaughterhouse facilities puts a bottom line price on the value of a horse. It creates a ‘market’ for unwanted horses. Horses are unwanted for a variety of reasons such as, poor training, poor health, and crippled. I’ve personally known several horses who I felt were a danger and would be better off as dog food than killing some kid or greenhorn.

But I see this is getting OT.

 

[benidict]

First the majority of horses are not bred to race. Most are bred for the pleasure horse market.

A horse becomes unusable when it can no longer perform a function. An excess horse is any horse who can’t be placed with an owner. Few people can afford to keep ‘pasture ornaments’. Reopening the slaughterhouse facilities puts a bottom line price on the value of a horse. It creates a ‘market’ for unwanted horses. Horses are unwanted for a variety of reasons such as, poor training, poor health, and crippled. I’ve personally known several horses who I felt were a danger and would be better off as dog food than killing some kid or greenhorn.

But I see this is getting OT.

Some cultures find them tasty. cant we sell black beauty to them??

 

[vsedriver]

Some cultures find them tasty. cant we sell black beauty to them??

actually we do in a round about way. Horses slaughtered in Canada are shipped to France. It’s cheaper to ship meat than live animals though.

 

[Brendan]

As for horses, why do they have be killed in the first place? Cannot dogs (and people) eat beef or chicken instead?

Why eat cows and not horses? What is inherintly more consumable about beef over horsemeat?

If it’s some sort of emotional attachment to horses over cows, I think that is misplaced.

 

[porthos11]

Hey everyone. I recently learned that in China, it is a common practice to kill cats and dogs for their fur. I am thoroughly disgusted by this myself. But anyway, is it moral or immoral? Here are the relevant passages of the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

First, in paragraph 2416, we see that mankind owes animals kindness. Then, in paragraph 2417, we see that it is legitimate to use animals for food and clothing. Finally, in paragraph 2418, we see that it is contrary to human dignity to cause animals to suffer or die needlessly. Therefore, I think it would be correct to say that it is only okay to kill an animal for its fur if it the fur is needed for clothing! However, that simply is not the case in the vast majority of the world. It is well known that fur is primarily a luxury item. We have plenty of clothing available and the vast majority of this clothing comes from plants such as cotton and synthetic materials. Therefore, can the fur trade even be justified? Personally, I am not sure. I don’t think it can in the vast majority of cases. It might be justified for someone living in a very cold climate where it is next to impossible to import other clothing and the only plentiful resource is animals that could be killed for clothing.

However, if animals are to be killed for their fur, I think it would be prudent to also use the rest of the animal for food. Unfortunately, I think that most fur companies do not do this. Most of the time the animals are simply skinned, sometimes alive (which is extremely cruel), and then their fur is prepared and sold. The meat simply goes to waste. To me, that is wrong. If an animal must be killed for its clothing then its meat should be put to use as well, if only to feed those who are very poor.

What do you think about all of this? Can the fur trade be justified?

It is amoral, that is, neither right nor wrong. This passage from the Catechism does set the guidelines. Animals may be killed for their fur. However, it should be done with proper regard for stewardship of creation and not to cause the animal unnecessary suffering. Skinning an animal alive is abhorrent if the animal is conscious. It should be swiftly and painlessly put to death before the skin is harvested. Another thing to be conscious of is whether the species is endangered or not. It would such a waste for to deprive future generations of such a beautiful animal as the tiger.

Other than that, I see no issue using skins even for luxury purposes, just as we eat fine meat for luxury (AAA Alberta Beef mmmm). Animals are, after all, at man’s disposal subject to proper respect for creation.

As for meat, I’m not sure if all animals valuable for their skins are as valuable for their meat; I hear some mammals taste pretty vile.

 

[benidict]

actually we do in a round about way. Horses slaughtered in Canada are shipped to France. It’s cheaper to ship meat than live animals though.

I have never had it myself. How does it taste?

 

[vsedriver]

I have never had it myself. How does it taste?

I wouldn’t know, I don’t live in France.

 

[Young_Thinker]

Why eat cows and not horses? What is inherintly more consumable about beef over horsemeat?

If it’s some sort of emotional attachment to horses over cows, I think that is misplaced.

Why would you say that this attachment is misplaced? Is just because horses are herbivores (which some may take to mean that they should automatically be on our plates)?

 

[Young_Thinker]

First the majority of horses are not bred to race. Most are bred for the pleasure horse market.

A horse becomes unusable when it can no longer perform a function. An excess horse is any horse who can’t be placed with an owner. Few people can afford to keep ‘pasture ornaments’. Reopening the slaughterhouse facilities puts a bottom line price on the value of a horse. It creates a ‘market’ for unwanted horses. Horses are unwanted for a variety of reasons such as, poor training, poor health, and crippled. I’ve personally known several horses who I felt were a danger and would be better off as dog food than killing some kid or greenhorn.

But I see this is getting OT.

I understand what your perspective. However, I am more of an idealogue than a pragmatist. And for me, pragmatics usually have unfortunate (often unintended) consequences.

 

[Joe_Kelley]

I have never had it myself. How does it taste?

My grandparents had to put a young horse down because of some injury. On the farm you don’t waste anything. My grandmother said it was much like beef.

 

[Joe_Kelley]

Why eat cows and not horses? What is inherintly more consumable about beef over horsemeat?

If it’s some sort of emotional attachment to horses over cows, I think that is misplaced.

The acceptability of horse meat seems to vary from country to country. The only places I am familiar with that eschew it are the English speaking countries. I wonder if this comes from the attachment to horses in fox hunting. It is probably reinforced in the US because of the role of the horse in the West.

 

[benidict]

My grandparents had to put a young horse down because of some injury. On the farm you don’t waste anything. My grandmother said it was much like beef.

Hey good deal. As long as I did not know what I was eating I guess it would be ok.

 

[aicirt]

What about deer? We lived in an area where they ran amuck because of the laws against killing them. Consequently, they overpopulated the area, ate flowers and hedges, ruined the landscape, ran out into traffic and got hit by cars. Ever see an injured deer dying by the side of the road? Ever hear its cries? The driver called the police to come finish it off. Took a lot of time for the car to get there. Very upsetting.
And the deer dead by the sides of the roads don’t represent all of them. Take a walk through the pastures and woods adjacent to the roads and we counted ten to twelve who obviously had been injured by cars and ran off.
It would be much more humane to let the hunters go in and cull the herd every so often rather than see this mayhem. But most don’t see the dead in the woods so they think there isn’t a problem.
All the meat and by products could serve a purpose rather than this waste.
Lastly, a deer, can kill when it hits a car. The driver loses control or the deer comes through the window. Let common sense prevail.

 

[Young_Thinker]

What about deer? We lived in an area where they ran amuck because of the laws against killing them. Consequently, they overpopulated the area, ate flowers and hedges, ruined the landscape, ran out into traffic and got hit by cars. Ever see an injured deer dying by the side of the road? Ever hear its cries? The driver called the police to come finish it off. Took a lot of time for the car to get there. Very upsetting.
And the deer dead by the sides of the roads don’t represent all of them. Take a walk through the pastures and woods adjacent to the roads and we counted ten to twelve who obviously had been injured by cars and ran off.
It would be much more humane to let the hunters go in and cull the herd every so often rather than see this mayhem. But most don’t see the dead in the woods so they think there isn’t a problem.
All the meat and by products could serve a purpose rather than this waste.
Lastly, a deer, can kill when it hits a car. The driver loses control or the deer comes through the window. Let common sense prevail.

I agree that hunting of populous (i.e. not endangered) species should be relatively unrestricted. However, a large part of the problem is the mass destruction of forests and other habitats for wildlife, not to mention that we are killing off deer’s natural predators (wolves, for example).

 

[benidict]

Hello. Acme Meat Packing Company?