This has been a great year for Truth About Fur - the Blog, with many new members coming on board to help share the truth about this amazing resource. Now we'd like to give back with our first Christmas Giveaway that we'll be spreading over the next three weeks. Let us help do your Christmas shopping for you!

WEEK 3: WIN A MUSKRAT HAT OR RABBIT BAG!

For anyone who hates cold ears: Gift them this beautiful unisex muskrat trapper hat (above left) from Kahnert Furs. Did you know that 40% of your body heat escapes through your head? Problem solved!

For the lady with too many leather bags: Give her a natural rabbit fur bag (above right) with leather details from Sunrise. A lady can never have too many bags.

DRAW DATE: The draw for the winners of the above two items will be on Sunday, Dec. 20.

WEEK 1: WIN A TRAPPER HAT OR A FUR COLLAR WITH GLOVES!
Update: Winners have been contacted!

For the outdoorsy guy: This classic Canadian trapper hat (above left) from Fur Hat World is lined with beaver. Cold weather doesn't stand a chance!

If she likes to be chic and warm: Check out this beautiful FinnRacoon stole dyed acid green with a pair of purple leather gloves (above right) from Victoria X. Wang. It is possible to be fashionable and warm!

DRAW DATE: The draw for the winners of the above two items was on Monday, Dec. 7. Winners will be announced shortly.

WEEK 2: WIN A KNITTED BEAVER COLLAR OR MINK BASEBALL CAP!

Update: Winners have been contacted!

For the practical lady: What's better than a beaver knit collar (above left) you can pair with any coat or jacket? This one is from Alex Furs. Wear this with a denim vest, a wool jacket, or a fur coat, because you can never have too much fur!

For the guy or girl who has everything: A mink baseball cap from A.J. Ugent Furs (above right). Keeps the snow out of your eyes on your way to work or on the pitch.

DRAW DATE: The draw for the winners of the above two items was on Monday, Dec. 14. Winners will be announced shortly.

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This is the second installment in our Hypocrite series, aimed at exposing influential figures whose anti-fur arguments are full of holes. Today we're talking about pop singer Pink, a PETA spokesperson and meat-eating "vegan" who loves wearing leather shoes.

The Hypocrite: Pink, pop singer, "vegan", and current model in PETA’s “Rather Go Naked” anti-fur campaign.

The Hypocrisy: Pink helps the animal rights organisation PETA to campaign against fur. PETA, not coincidentally, also promotes veganism. So, depending on the day of the week, Pink describes her diet as "mostly vegan".

And what does this mean? It means she "occasionally eats chicken and fish," and can even "eat entire buckets of chicken wings." She can also eat "an entire cheesecake in one sitting." She may love wheatgrass smoothies and tofurkey, but at the end of the day, she's just an omnivore like the rest of us.

On the subject of fur, Pink entreats us in her PETA poster to "Be comfortable in your own skin, and let animals keep theirs." But she has no problem with a cow losing its skin so she can wear suede boots.

What they say: PETA says, “P!nk has become known for being super-comfortable in her own skin—so comfortable that she teamed up with PETA and photographer Ruven Afanador to make her point perfectly clear: She wants animals to keep their own skin.”

SEE ALSO: HYPOCRITE PROFILE: STELLA McCARTNEY

What we say: Pink, your suede boots are lovely, but they're made from animal skin. So stop asking the rest of us to let animals "keep their own skin" while wearing it yourself.

Also, your diet of mostly veggies, but with chicken, fish and cheesecake thrown in, sounds great, but don't call yourself "mainly vegan", or even a vegetarian, just because you think it sounds cool (or because PETA told you to). You're an omnivore.

You and PETA are clearly a mismatch, so please stop endorsing them immediately.

We’ll eat our steaks, and you can wash down your chicken with a wheatgrass smoothie.

We’ll wear our fur, and you can wear your suede boots.

And we'll all refrain from telling each other what to do and how to live our lives. Fair enough?

October 2015 has come and gone, it's time for our monthly Fur In The News roundup. Let's start with trapping since the season is now well under way.

We loved this piece, "Getting permission should be your mission," for its very useful tips on maintaining a good relationship with the owners of the land on which you trap. It may not be at the forefront of trappers' minds, but it certainly is important!

"Trapping is serious business" also features some great tips and reminds us all that the reputation of the trapping industry relies a great deal on how trappers work.

As for this debate, "Does hunting promote conservation?," I'll bet you can guess which side we are on!

We were thrilled to hear about this trapping education program in Ontario for primary and secondary students, which teaches them valuable skills and gets them out into nature. And if you aren't a trapper and run into a coyote by surprise, this article tells you what to do. Best to read it now, since it might not be convenient when you actually need the information!

Not only are we in trapping season, but we are also in fur fashion season. When the weather gets cold, what else could you possibly want to wear?

For inspiration for your fur wardrobe, check out the amazing Fur Now campaign (pictured above.) If you are thinking of reviving an old fur coat to wear this season, then read these fur restoration and care tips. Toronto Life did a great piece on how a Canada Goose coat is made (proudly in Canada!), but if you are just looking for some fur fashion inspiration, then we suggest these Stoffa fur hats, or the Fendi fur sweaters pictured at the top of this page.

Speaking about shopping, when you are making your holiday gift list, be sure to consider some seal skin. We love this seal skin fine art, and here's a great boutique to stock up on shoes, gloves, hats and other items made from our furry sea friends.

No monthly round up would be complete without reviewing what our activist "friends" (enemies) have been doing.

PETA is currently discriminating against pit bulls (apparently some pets are worse than others) and we'd like to remind them that there are no bad dog breeds, only bad dog owners. In other doggie news, a group in France decided to steal a homeless man's dog, claiming he wasn't taking care of it. The video, including the dog owner crying, is here.

Nobel prize winners were announced in October and we loved the graphic above from Understanding Animal Research. Thanks to animal research, we have made great strides in science and this should never be forgotten, or prevented in the future. Speaking of animals in labs, this article about an activist taking a tour of an animal testing lab resulted in something unexpected – for them! It turned out that they were very impressed about how the animals were being cared for!

The Animal Ag Alliance has some great suggestions on how to deal with farm security threats, and if you are only fighting them on Facebook, you may want to repost the graphic above, reminding self-righteous vegans that they probably consume a lot of animal parts, one way or another.

Or you could remind your anti-fur, silk-wearing friends that silk is made by boiling worms alive. That was the topic of our first in a new blog series featuring animal hypocrites, starting with Stella McCartney who claims that killing animals for fashion is wrong, but sells shirts and dresses made from silk.

Now for a few bits and bobs:

• This library in Alaska lends out stuffed puffins, wolf furs, and walrus skulls complete with tusks.

• Want to know what the world's densest furs are? Read our latest blog post to find out.

• This graphic has exposed the truth about Santa's reindeer. They're all ... well, take a look for yourself! And we'll sneak a peek when they turn up on our roof next month!

• There can be no doubt! Canada's new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, is a huge fan of fur. Here's his 2010 family Christmas card!

And of course we can't end a monthly roundup without a cute animal, so here is a pet fox in a dog bed practising the high jump!

We encounter a lot of hypocrisy here at Truth About Fur, as it seems most anti-fur folk like bacon, wear leather, or think that synthetics don’t kill animals. (Tell that to the families of the birds that died in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill!) Today’s feature, the first in our Hypocrite series, is about one of the most hypocritical fashion designers we know: Stella McCartney.

The list of Stella McCartney’s hypocritical actions is long. Let’s not start on the fact that her company is owned by the same company that owns Gucci, best known for its leather goods. Or that she has several homes and frequently flies around the world for work. That’s not good for the environment, is it?

We also aren’t going to talk about the fact that Stella McCartney has acknowledged the popularity and beauty of fur by launching her own collection of (synthetic, tacky) fake fur pieces. She routinely uses synthetic materials that are not sustainable and are derived from petroleum by-products, whilst preaching about taking care of the environment. But that’s also not what we are talking about today.

Today we are going to focus on silk.

The hypocrite: Stella McCartney, British fashion designer, lifelong vegetarian, and occasional spokesperson for PETA.

The hypocrisy: Stella McCartney refuses to use leather or fur in her collections, and claims “the decision not to use leather or fur is not just because I don’t eat animals or that I think that millions of animals each year shouldn’t be killed for the sake of fashion. It’s because I also believe in the connection between fur and leather and the environment.”

However, Stella McCartney uses a lot of silk in her collections.

Do you know how silk is harvested? Silk worms are boiled alive in their cocoons, allowing the long fibres to be extracted. This gets less media attention than fur because larvae aren’t as cute as mink and fox.

What they say: PETA describes Stella McCartney as an “inspired and compassionate trendsetter” whose “award-winning collections are proudly free of leather, fur, and other skins.” Funny they didn’t mention that her collections include many garments made from animals that have been boiled alive.

What we say: If Stella McCartney wants to make fashion collections without leather or fur, then that is fine. But can she please spare us the preaching about how the leather and fur industries are cruel to animals and the environment, when her own web store is stocked with garments made from non-biodegradable accessories and dresses whose fabric’s production process involves boiling animals alive?

And if she doesn’t think that millions of animals should be killed “for the sake of fashion,” how does she explain all of the silk on her website? Is it because worms’ lives aren’t as valuable as minks’ or foxes’, or is it because Stella McCartney is a hypocrite? I think we all know the answer to that.

Let's start our September 2015 Fur in the News roundup with some fashion news because September sees the launch of the Fall and Winter collections and that means FUR SEASON!!

Usually, when we think about fur we think coats, scarves, jackets, or hats, but this year it is all about the fur shoe. There was uniform experiment's gorgeous sealskin loafers, the "loafur" trend, these kangaroo fur-lined shoes from Gucci and a pair of fur heels that appear to be quite difficult to walk in. If fur shoes aren't your thing, how about mink bikinis?

If you prefer more traditional fur pieces, then join us in salivating over the gorgeous furs in this new Blackglama video, and if you are super traditional, you might be interested in reading about these sealskin garments paired with caribou antler jewelry.

The last fashion story in this month's roundup is the blog post by Mark Oaten, CEO of the International Fur Federation, about Hugo Boss' hypocritical "no fur" stance.

Since we are full swing into harvest season, let's talk a bit about farming. Did you know it is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world? Here is part three in our series entitled A Year on a Mink Farm, now the mink are growing up and leaving the nest, literally. Ever wonder what happens to the rest of the mink after the fur has been taken? This video shows how 100% of the mink is used. And lastly, this blog post talks about the history of fox fur farming on Prince Edward Island, with some commentary from our Senior Researcher, Alan Herscovici.

It's a known fact around here that PETA is pretty evil (they won't even answer any questions about why they kill so many of their shelter animals) and almost all animal rights activists are kinda crazy, especially this one putting kids in cages. But we rarely talk about animal rights vs. animal welfare.

We believe that animal welfare should be a priority in the fur industry, and strongly support initiatives to develop ever better animal welfare practices. However, we do not think that animals deserve rights, like humans.

It turns out the animal rights activists feel exactly the opposite, they hate animal welfare. Their entire history, nicely featured in this article by Protect The Harvest, has been about promoting equality between humans and animals. Well, that's just something we will have to agree to disagree on. And we also don't think that chimps are "persons".

Fur and hunting made the headlines in some great articles last month, including this New York Times piece on the Eat-What-You-Kill movement, this Evening Standard piece contemplating whether fur's controversy will ever fade, and this beautifully written piece by AA Gill questioning the hypocrisy of the anti-fur movement. And lastly, here are some other great reads from last month: a piece on sewing otter pelts, how to grade and size wild fur, and a very interesting piece suggesting humans are "super-predators" and hunting practices should be adapted to better reflect what happens in the wild.

Oh wait, did I just try to end a news roundup without some cute animals? I'm sorry! Click on this for your dose of cute from last month.

P.S. It involves baby bears and a hammock.

Let's start our August Fur in the News Roundup by reviewing what the animal rights criminals groups have been up to. The strangest story came from our friends at Humane Watch, who are reporting that the HSUS are trying to ban bacon and eggs in Massachusetts. We are quite sure they won't succeed in passing this law, but they sure have succeeded in being a total nuisance!

That said, we can't always trust the government to make the right decision when it comes to animals, because California has banned bobcat trapping, despite scientific evidence that the population is growing and could benefit from being controlled. Let's hope the bobcat population doesn't grow to resemble the coyote population there - California residents are on high alert as there have been four reported coyote attacks in the past month.

Speaking of California, it seems like the West Hollywood fur ban has been somewhat reversed; you aren't allowed to display fur in the window, but you are allowed to sell fur from registered trappers. Mink coats are in, Ugg boots are out. Things could be worse!

In other activist news, these animal rights campaigners killed mink by covering them in spray paint, these ones are sending drones out to "protect" seals, and these ones were attacked by a duck-wielding woman. If you loathe these "charities" as much as we do, the best way to stop them is to cut off their funding. Make sure your friends and family make educated choices about charities, using this guide: 5 Questions to Ask Before Donating to Charity.

There have been some great articles recently about animal welfare, trophy hunting, and fashion. Highlights included this great piece about the difference between animal welfare and animal rights, and a very good article questioning why we love leather and hate seal skin. This is a well-written History of Faux Fur, and this article points out some very worrying points about caving in to activists. And a question that has been on all of our minds recently due to some high profile court cases about mink "liberations" was nicely explored here: When Does Animal Rights Activism Become Extremism?

Let's look at some of the highlights from out Instagram and Facebook feeds - including the beautiful fashion images above and the inspirational quotes below.

Let's end this month's roundup with some feelgood factor, starting with two Canadian stories about youth reconnecting with their cultural traditions, firstly in National parks of Yellowknife and then at Mukluk's Storyboot School. And what's a monthly roundup without some cute animal videos? Here is a heartwarming lion reunion, a very beautiful family of deer checking out the neighbourhood, a baby bear giving her mother the cutest of bear hugs, and a young deer making friends with a toddler.

Karl Lagerfeld celebrated 50 years with Fendi on July 8 by putting on an Haute Fourrure show, the first all-fur show in the history of the Paris Couture Shows. If further proof was needed that fur is now firmly embedded into mainstream fashion, this was it.

Fendi's Fall 2015 Haute Fourrure show was impressive in every way possible. Set in Paris's glamorous Théâtre de Champs-Élysees on the third night of couture fashion week, the show's 37 looks were a display of some of the finest skins and fur techniques in the world.

The collection featured both modern silhouettes and traditional coat shapes, adorned with fox tail trains, fur flowers, and textures that resembled feathers and prints. Some favourites over here at Truth About Fur included a pink and peach coat with fur-feathered raglan sleeves, and the dress version in white and cream underneath a beautiful and dramatic intarsia coat (both above).

Cherry Sundae Year for Fur

The Fendi show is the cherry on the sundae in a year that saw fur almost everywhere. In fact, 70% of the North American and European designer shows this season included fur. (For a full list and collection review, visit the blog Fur Insider.) Designers have clearly been seduced by this most luxurious of materials and by the innovative techniques that allow them to be creative with fur like never before.

Equally important, designers like to be reassured that the fur they use comes from animals that were treated humanely. As next-generation designer Jason Wu said in this recent New York Times article, designers can now source furs with the assurance that animal welfare standards have been respected.

Celebrities, high-profile models and bloggers are also embracing fur. In fact, four of the five top models who first launched PETA’s “I would rather go naked …” campaign have all appeared in fur since then.

The trend is so strong that even activist groups are now obliged to admit that, despite all their efforts, fur is stronger than ever. As Ecorazzi commented in this recent post, “Well, this sucks. From the looks of the recent Paris runways, fur is definitely not going anywhere anytime soon."

Sales Figures Soaring

Consumers are clearly feeling reassured too, because sales are soaring.

Figures developed by Price Waterhouse Cooper for the International Fur Federation show that the global fur trade is now valued at more than $40 billion worldwide – roughly the same as the global Wi-Fi industry. Global fur retail sales are estimated at $35.8 billion, and total employment in the fur sector numbers over one million. This is not negligible for an industry that is made up of mostly family-run farms, independent trappers and skilled artisans.

The industry is especially relevant for North America, where it accounts for more than $1.3 billion in sales annually and provides income for more than 100,000 people across the continent.

The fur industry is clearly doing a better job of informing customers that they are making an ethical fashion choice. The message that the modern fur trade is a responsible and sustainable industry is being promoted by a number of groups including IFF (Origin Assured), the new FurEurope … and in North America with our own Truth About Fur campaign!

There are many arguments in support of fur, but Lagerfeld has said it most succinctly, so it is appropriate to let this great designer have the last word: “In a meat-eating world, wearing leather for shoes and clothes and even handbags, the discussion of fur is childish!”

All images from Style.com, see the entire show here.

June was a busy month for mink, one of our favourite farmed animals and so much cuter than cows, right? So let's start our Fur in the News roundup with a mink farm attack in Ontario, Canada, where animal extremists (who later claimed responsibility) released 1,600 mink from their pens. Normally farmers manage to retrieve a lot of their animals following such attacks, but this time there was another danger: the mink were new mothers, and the lives of their tiny kits were put at great risk due to the cold temperature and their need to feed constantly.

For a change, it was our turn to show disturbing photos of animal suffering, because many of the mink did not run off to start a wonderful new life in the wild. Read our piece: Mink Liberation : 5 Facts the ALF Doesn’t Want You to Know.

Does all this talk about mink farming put you in the mood to learn more? Then check out our new series entitled A Year on A Mink Farm (see above). Part 1 is about breeding and Part 2 is about whelping and weaning.

Dumb and Dumber

June wasn't a good month for the animal rights extremists (insert fist pump here) because they did some stupid things and the media took note.

First of all, the British weren't too impressed when PETA demanded that Britain's oldest pub, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, change its name.

French former actress and long-time animal activist Brigitte Bardot looked incredibly foolish when she wrote an anti-fur letter to Karl Lagerfeld's cat, Choupette. (For the record, I think Choupette is pro fur, like her Dad.)

And PETA's most recent campaign, against crocodile farming, seems really stupid as hardly anyone can afford a $37,000 bag, anyway.

The law has been cracking down on the extremists, with a few of them set to do jail time for releasing mink, chaining oneself to an excavator, or embezzling funds from donors. We also loved this article, from VICE: The 'Extremist' Factor: Why British Animal Rights Campaigners Aren't Taken Seriously.

Now Back to Business

A few interesting articles on the business of fur came out in June, including this series of articles for and against fur on the Business of Fashion, this piece about using the fur trade model to fix Canada's aboriginal woes, and an interesting CNN piece on fur's new markets.

Bits and Bobs

• Rapper A$AP Rocky is starting his own collection of fur coats.
• The mayor of Des Moines is also a furrier.
• Great advice on how to protect your farm from undercover video situations.
• Canada is checking out the market for seal penis.
• A very good question: Why don’t veal and lamb evoke the same outrage as baby seals?
• Putting baby to sleep on animal fur may lower asthma risk. (Hell, we should ALL sleep on fur, right?!)

Best Motion Picture Nominations ...

It was a great month for videos over here at Truth About Fur. Our most popular Facebook posts were this hilarious polar bear dreading to go to work on a Monday (image above), and this Norwegian hunter who has adopted two absolutely adorable fawns.

We loved this VICE feature on YouTube's most famous Canadian trapper, and if you are looking for some new series to watch over the summer, look no further than the Katmai National Park live bear cam - documenting naps, fishing, and general furry cuteness all summer. This is reality television at its best.

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Let's start this month's Fur in the News roundup by reminding everyone about our new project, the Fur Family Album. The story of fur starts long before a fancy coat is seen on a catwalk or photographed on a celebrity. It starts with the trapline or the farm, then the auction, the processing, the design, the making, and the store. Help us to tell the real story of the fur industry by sending us photographs of your experience of fur. Please read our full introduction to this project and then familiarize yourself with our submission requirements.

Around the World in Fur

Now, we are going to take a little trip around the world and look at the fur news stories that made headlines in different countries. Let's start in Seoul, Korea (above), where some pedestrians got a shock when an animal rights activist ripped hair from their heads, in a pathetic attempt to protest angora. I can't see how violence towards passersby is going to further animal activists' cause, but then again, I don't understand much of anything they do.

Let's move to Europe, to Germany specifically, where another activist planted needles into meat in a supermarket as a protest against the meat industry. The words "mad cow" come to mind!

Moving over to England, where a soap opera actress led a protest in front of Harvey Nichols to express anger at the store's decision to start selling fur again. Apparently her cause isn't that popular as she was the only person who turned up to the protest. Activists all over England were busy doing crazy things, including threatening to burn a TV presenter's children because of a BBC investigation into badger culls. Interesting that they want to save the badgers but burn children.

But maybe the craziest activist of the month award goes to English singer Morrissey who used Ireland's gay marriage referendum as a platform to remind people that meat and fur farming is bad, and meat eaters are no better than paedophiles. No words to describe his comments ... no words ... Finally for England, Canadian Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq played in London last month and that prompted some press about her music, her distaste for PETA and her support of sealing.

Back over the Channel in continental Europe, we had a demonstration of seal hunters at the EU parliament, who are trying to convince them to reverse the ban. The Guardian also wrote a good piece on this subject.

North American Fur News

Meawhile across the pond, a Los Angeles Times journalist wrote a fantastic op-ed about the hypocrisy of meat-eating fur haters. This is a subject that seems to be gaining traction and it is great that people are finally starting to recognize this issue. But unfortunately not all Americans are being reasonable, as quite a few of them seem to want animals to have the same rights as humans. Does this mean we can't legally kill a mosquito? People standing up to the activists include hunter and angler Peter Ryan, who does not take kindly to being threatened on Facebook, and this HSUS whistleblower.

Let's end in Canada with a lovely seal dinner and some nice sealskin clothes for your closet, shall we? But beware of crazy shoplifting seals, like this one, who stormed a grocery store in search of fish and took off when he realized that the goods he planned to steal were fruit. That's what I do when I find out that the dinner host is serving vegan!

Let's start the April Fur In The News roundup by talking about one of the most important annual fur hunts: it's SEAL time!

We try and keep this monthly blog post upbeat, but sometimes things need to get serious, so let's start with the sad news: this article paints a very sad picture of how native Greenlanders' livelihood and way of life is being seriously affected by the EU seal ban.

Our least favourite rock star continued his uninformed tirade against the seal hunt. I read last week that Paul McCartney is one of the richest musicians in the world, so maybe he'd like to donate some his hundreds of millions to finding alternative work for all the seal hunters he protests against. Or even better, maybe he could just shut up and mind his own business.

SEE ALSO: EU SEALING POLICY IS HYPOCRITICAL, ANTI-DEMOCRATIC

Our other big April event was Earth Day - and we were sure to remind everyone about how fur is a green, renewable resource that is much less harmful to the planet than most of the alternatives.

More Animal Rights Nonsense

Let's move on to the thorns in our side ... those pesky animal rights activists. But the good news is, they are getting lots of bad press!

PETA's lamb shearing campaign (below) caused outrage, Meanwhile this article is exposing how PETA targets children in its advertising campaigns (this really is sickening). Then PETA stooped to new lows by teaming up with former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson and controversial Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio (known for his total disregard of human rights when treating his prisoners) to promote vegetarian diets for prisoners. This video highlights just how hypocritical this campaign is.

Here are a few more articles questioning the AR movement that are worth reading: "Let the Fur Fly: A call against animal rights extremists," from the Wesleyan Argus; "Why do people value pets over humans?" from Bustle; and
"Exactly what is endangered?" from The Compass.

There have been a lot of news articles talking about how important it is to look at both sides of the story - especially when it comes to issues involving animal rights. This article about a zoo in Vancouver was a prime example of how people can be incredibly misinformed about why zoos exist and how they get their animals. This piece, entitled "Don’t believe everything you see: the truth about undercover videos", explains how activists get their videos and how normal farming practices can be misinterpreted as cruelty. Hopefully we'll be seeing fewer and fewer such videos as legislators move to shut them down; Senate Bill 433, or the Property Protection Act, currently working its way through the North Carolina state legislature, is just one example.

Fur Farming Scores Points

While we are on the subject of farms, we consider it a great victory that the Canadian government is funding mink farm research. Here's a nice profile on a farmer in Ontario, and this article talks about the security threats involved with having a fur farm, threats that don't seem to be slowing down business. (Farmers: 1, Activists: 0.)

Over at the Truth About Fur headquarters, we've been giggling over the animal rights activists attacked by clowns, wondering why an anti-hunting campaign (above) is being fronted by a model in a fur coat cavorting with a live bear, and writing about how we shouldn't make assumptions about political views when it comes to who is pro- and who is anti-fur.

Save the Best for Last

If you find yourself with a bit of extra fur lying around, you may want to consider some new, innovative uses for fur. How about a seal skin g-string? Or check out this crow who steals panda fur to line his nest.

Our most popular videos this month were this one of a vet trying to save a buck who is drowning from the weight of a dead buck whose antlers are locked with his (this is super suspenseful!), and this one of a bear trying to eat a fake deer.

Our favourite trapping photo is of these guys and their amazing beaver catch (above) from Full Response Scents, and the one that touched us most was this one from Minka Minkovitch (below), whose caption reads "Warmth and survival is more important than western propaganda." We wholeheartedly agree.

Let's end this month's roundup with a warning for anyone traveling to New York City or Sweden: watch out for coyotes in apartment buildings and beavers attacking bus passengers.

It’s April, so let’s start our Fur in the News roundup for March with Canada Goose, maker of some of the world's finest winter jackets. Unfortunately Canada Goose is now making headlines for the wrong reason.

“A complaint filed with the Competition Bureau alleges Canada Goose makes 'false and misleading' claims in the marketing of its popular winter jackets. Animal Justice - an animal rights group that filed the complaint on behalf of six individuals - disputes the company's claims that its jackets use coyote fur that is ethical and that coyotes are killed humanely," reported The Record from Toronto. It seems like the complaint doesn’t have a coyote leg to stand on, but we are watching this closely nonetheless.

And since I’m on the topic of wild Canadian fur, my favourite article this month was from Al-Jazeera, who did this well researched article entitled Canada’s Wild Fur Trade Returns. It has lots of pretty pictures, too (like the one above)! Let’s hope people start to appreciate the wild furs from up North, so the business booms and the people there can afford the $65 chickens in their grocery stores.

If you are planning on doing some shopping soon, we suggest these fur headphones from Dolce & Gabbana, a steal at $8,000 ;-) You could also check out the goods from Elama, a Montreal-based fur brand that has been making waves, order a custom-made piece from Diane Giroux (she wrote a blog post for us this month), or step into Harpers in Bridgeport, Connecticut, which has just celebrated 75 years in fur retailing.

Recruiting on Campus

Meanwhile, we learnt a few worrying things about what’s happening on university campuses.

First, this article from Protect The Harvest tells how activists are campaigning on campuses to try and recruit. Then we heard about this (absolutely ridiculous) course on feminist animal rights at George Mason University.

We’ve also found out that Parsons School of Design in New York has at least one instructor who could do with a refresher course on the meaning of primary research. An adjunct professor wrote a scathing article about the fur industry and its farming, but appears never to have actually visited a farm.

Lastly, I’m typing this from a desk in Finland, where I am guest lecturing at Centria University in Pietersaari, one of very few universities in Europe that offer a technical fur design course. I’ll be reporting back to you about details of its students' work, this amazing course and the incredible campus.

Brrrrrrr...aless!

We can’t do a monthly fur roundup without making fun of the activists, so here’s a video of two girls protesting for PETA, half naked on an ice rink. Too bad they don’t know how to skate or that ice skates are made from leather. Wouldn't it be nice for once if PETA tried to get the public's attention without naked women or falsified farm videos?

Our most popular blog post this month was entitled After 50 Years, Fur Trade Turns Tables on Activists which documents the history of the battle with activists, and how the fur industry is gaining on them. It seems like The Telegraph, The Guardian, Vice and The Daily Beast agree. Go fur go!

And PETA suffered a major defeat when a bill to reduce the kill rates in its "shelters" passed in the Virginia House of Representatives. Let’s hope other states follow suit.

Meanwhile across the pond, a few annoying Brits are ruffling feathers, or shall I say, ruffling pelts. Joanna Lumley and ex-model Twiggy are campaigning to convince London department store Harvey Nichols not to reverse its fur ban. Given the popularity of the Origin Assured label and the fact that fur is a fashionable and profitable product to be selling, I doubt that's going to happen.

And the most annoying Brit of the month award (actually, second most annoying Brit since PETA president Ingrid Newkirk owns the title) goes to Stella McCartney, who not only showed a tacky collection of fake fur coats on her Fall 2015 runway, but is also trying to convince the Queen's Guard to replace their bear skin caps with fake fur.

At the Movies

March was a great month for video content. We loved Fur Insider’s roundup of fur fashion street style from New York Fashion Week.

Then there was the hilarious “Why I Hate PETA” cat video (below) featuring a tune that is still stuck in my head!

And we aren’t surprised that this video from Katmai Natural Park & Reserve of a wolf and bear fishing has had almost two million views. It’s an example of nature at its finest.

Great Greenland has made an amazing video about their seal hunt, and here’s another one about the seal hunt in the Magdalen Islands.

Lastly, let’s look at the most popular images of the month. The awesome guy above got over 250 likes on our Facebook page! I’m not sure if it was because you all thought he was cute or if you want to make him into a scarf.

And this photo of a farmer saving a calf born in the snow by bringing him into the hot tub warmed our hearts (and the calf’s heart, too, I'm sure). It's a good reminder that livestock farmers aren’t the monsters activists portray them as, but rather are some of the hardest working, most compassionate people in the world - not to mention the fact they put food on our table!

Parting Shot

P.S.: If you've read this article to the end, you probably somewhat enjoyed it or at least thought it was interesting, so please sign up here to Truth About Fur - The Blog, so future articles are delivered straight to your inbox!

February 2015 has come and gone, and it's time for our Fur In The News roundup of the month's best stories. It's a furry time of year in the fashion world right now. For starters, we are still in the depths of winter and furs are all over the streets.

On the high fashion front, February is the start of fashion month, when the top catwalk designers show their Fall 2015 collections. Who ever said fur is dead was very wrong. (Well, technically the animals are dead, but fur is VERY alive on our catwalks.) Spotted all over New York, London, Milan, and soon, Paris, fur continues to be a staple in the designer collections.

We've got a soft spot for Fendi, who are famous for their furs and showed a collection of fur-trimmed down coats that look like Canada geese on drugs. (You'll also need some drugs to get over the shock of the price tags.) Check out their show on Style.com.

And while we are talking about designers, Pamela Paquin's brand Petit Mort has been getting a lot of press. She makes fur accessories out of road kill, and we love this feature on her finding her "materials." Of course, the animal rights terrorists activists are still kicking up a fuss, so let's talk about them for a moment.

Are They Terrorists? Hell Yes!

Many of us are following the case of Kevin Johnson and Tyler Lang, two animal rights activists who have served prison terms for releasing mink and foxes from fur farms in the US. They are facing federal charges (under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act) that may result in a further 10 years in prison.

People are debating whether they deserve to be branded as terrorists. We think you all know our feelings on the subject: you terrorize people and their farms, you are a terrorist. Read some articles on the story here and here.

And since we are on the (fun) topic of animal rights activists being charged with felonies, we also suggest reading this article in the New York Times about a woman who stole two ducks from a farm which produces foie gras.

We do loathe giving the activists so many column inches, but we'll end it with this fantastic video aired during the Superbowl. Made by the good people at the Center for Consumer Freedom and PeTA Kills Animals, it was inspired by the horrific kill rates at PeTA's "shelters." Warning: this is a bit of a tear-jerker.

"Fur: An Issue of Life and Death"

February saw the end of a fantastic exhibition on the fur industry, its issues, and its history. Entitled "Fur: An Issue of Life and Death", this show at the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen was a fascinating trip into the history of the use of fur, from ancient to modern times.

Featuring a massive collection of high-fashion items, the show certainly demonstrated the innovative designs that can be made from fur. There was a "guess your fur" activity (which demonstrated how fake fur can be good quality, as it was hard to identify which one was not real). Also highlighted were the fur and skin costumes dating from 1850 to 1950 from Greenland, Canada, Alaska, Siberia and the Sami areas of Scandinavia. The seal stomach raincoats were very interesting to see.

And while we are on the topic of seals, the seal hunt continues to make headlines, starting with some negative comments Canadian hockey commentator Don Cherry made about eating seal meat (he should just phoque off).

Seal poutine also made the news, and let's give a round of applause to Conservative MP Greg Kerr who passed bill C-555, which will double the size of the legal buffer that prevents observers from coming near the seal hunt.

Positive Ending

Let's end on an assortment of positive notes.

- We loved that Kid Rock wore an otter coat in order to spite his activist ex-girlfriend Pamela Anderson;

- This is a great little film about one of the US's largest mink farms (pictured below);

- And here is some interesting fur history: an article about 1920's beaver farming.

That's it for now. Spring is only three weeks away so enjoy these last days of winter with your minks, foxes, coyotes, lynx, beavers, and chinchillas, just as long as they aren't fake!