EU ban on dog and cat fur comes into force

A total ban on the trade in dog and cat fur comes into force across Europe on Thursday - just as fur fashion is staging a revival.

Humane Society International first exposed the trade nearly a decade ago, revealing evidence of a thriving cat and dog fur market in many European countries including France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark.

Scottish Conservative MEP Struan Stevenson took up the issue in the European Parliament, receiving high-profile backing from music superstar Paul McCartney, his former wife Heather Mills and rock star Rick Wakeman.

Mills collected more than 250,000 signatures in an on-line petition on her web page demanding an EU ban.

In 2004 Dennis Erdman, the director of television show 'Sex And The City', persuaded Hollywood celebrities to write to the European Commission supporting a ban.

Formal European Commission proposals for the ban were endorsed by EU governments at the end of 2006.

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.

"Millions of cats and dogs in China and Asia have now been saved from gruesome, unnecessary deaths simply to meet demand in the EU," said Mr Stevenson.

The EU-wide ban follows similar legislation in America and Australia. But China continues trading cat and dog fur, with a thriving market in Russia.

"My hope is that a Europe-wide ban together with the refusal of America and Australia to market such wares, can bring an absolute end to the killing of these animals for their skin," Mr Stevenson went on.

"China must now follow suit if it genuinely wants to belong to the global family of civilised nations.

"I urge the Chinese authorities to ban this trade and in particular to close down the export of cat and dog skins to Russia."

Cat and dog fur is not even a sought-after commodity - much is fraudulently labelled as fake fur to win customers for coats made from Alsatian puppies, and rugs made from golden retrievers.

The fur also turns up as fur trim in coat hoods, and as linings in gloves and boots. Some is even used in the making of toy cats and dogs for children.

"Aside from the cruelty these animals face, consumers have been duped into buying goods made from animal skins carrying bogus labels and later found to be cat and dog fur," Mr Stevenson said.

"Most of the skins are destined for fashion goods or novelty items in Europe which cannot possibly justify the cruel rearing, cramped living conditions or the barbaric killing of over two million animals each year.

"I'm delighted that this is finally the end, as far as Europe is concerned, of what is a barbaric trade."