Canada is celebrating its 150th anniversary of Confederation this year, and with it comes a lot of stories about Canadian fur history. If you want to learn about how the country was founded on the fur trade, then check out our piece entitled The Country that Fur Built: Canada’s Fur Trade History (pictured above). Life on the Line is an excellent interactive piece about whether trapping is outdated or a part of living heritage. (We all know it's the latter.) Other articles about Canadian fur history include this story about a man who ran a Hudson's Bay store in the remote North and a profile on a fur trader from the 1800's. Some people are going beyond the typical Canada Day celebrations, like this guy, who is paddling from Banff to Montreal to reconnect with his Metis ancestry.

While we are all celebrating this industry's heritage and Canadian fur history, there are some who are still trying to stop us, and everyone who uses animals as clothing or food. Yes, the animal rights activists are at it as usual, and now they are protesting fashion designer presentations, holding vigils for chickens, marching for an end to slaughterhouses (never gonna happen), vandalising statues, and disrupting army medic training. (Honestly, who doesn't want our armed forces to have the best possible medics on the ground? Jerks, that's who.)

Thankfully the media are not fooled by their actions. This piece explores how PETA uses deception (pictured above) and fake animal abuse videos to further its cause, and this article exposes how to tell if you are being manipulated by animal activists. This op-ed explains how the forces that shut down Ringling Bros. want to end a lot more than animal abuse, and this one looks at how the very farming developments that vegans oppose are what allowed them to be here today. A very worrying piece about how the SPCA spends more on lawyers than animals is sadly a common theme with animal rights or protection groups – many of them spend very little of their donations on the causes they are supposed to be fighting. But it isn't all bad news – Domino's Pizza has taken a stand against the activists by saying it will never cave to extremists and it trusts farmers to know what is best.

The thought of pizza makes us hungry, but how about pasta instead? One of our favourite Canadian chefs, Eric Pateman, has been cooking up a delicious seal Bolognese, and the Globe and Mail did a Q&A with Dion Dakins, who talks about whether seals are too cute to eat. Sealing is about more than sealers, of course, which is why we wrote about the other people involved in this trade. Since we are on the topic of wild meat, there's good news in Oregon where it has now been made legal to harvest roadkill.

Let's end with a few tips for summer

Need some new sandals? These fur ones by Zizi Donohoe (pictured above) were made for 7-Eleven.

Want to keep your pets safe? Keep them away from beavers.

Better watch out for bobcats, too, since their populations are rebounding after a decades-long hunting ban.

Need a coffee date this afternoon? If you are in San Francisco you might be able to have coffee with a rat. (Seriously.)

Want to keep the kids busy with a science experiment this summer? Try and replicate our fur burial experiment. It will teach them about biodegradation and the benefits of real fur!

Need a caddie for your golf game this summer? This furry guy has got you covered.

Fur retail had a great month in March! Let's start with the Canada Goose IPO, which soared 27% on the Toronto Stock Exchange on its first day. We guess the crazy protesters outside their stores aren't scaring off investors and customers. And there are other stores celebrating, too! Sch'dy Furs is celebrating 50 years in business, and Hinsdale Furriers has made it to 65 years. And hats off to Gently Loved Furs who have made it to their 10-year anniversary and the Anchorage furriers who are adapting their businesses to the changing times.

Speaking of changing times, the Fall 2017 fashion trends are leaning towards fur, very colourful fur to be exact. We were thrilled to hear that We Are Fur counted fur on 67% of the Fall 2017 catwalk shows. What's it like to wear fur-lined shoes every day? This guy tried it out and enjoyed it thoroughly. If you are looking for some new fur, then check out one of Lysa Lash's trunk shows; this Canadian designer is well known for her personalized service in fur retail.

But not everyone is rushing out to buy furs, some people are standing outside fur stores protesting. But the fur protesters outside Canada Goose stores are the least of our worries. These activists stormed a church demanding animals be treated like Christians, while this crazy woman crashed her car into a truck carrying chickens because she is vegan. PETA says that being vegan makes you less aggressive but we are pretty sure there isn't an ounce of truth to this. And next time an activist tells you to switch to fake fur, remember to tell them the bad news: many fake furs aren't even vegan (above).

Sadly we are coming up to the key "season" for animal rights activists: the commercial seal hunt starts soon and this is the activists' main opportunity to raise money by using photos of baby seals (that aren't even hunted). If you want some facts (real facts) about the seal hunt, the Seals and Sealing website is a good start. The film Angry Inuk continues to have an impact on how people view the seal hunt, but we still need to work hard on spreading the good word about this traditional, sustainable hunt.

While we are on the subject of tradition and wild furs, these articles highlight the traditional aspects of trapping in Kansas and Vermont, and this Canadian trapper is passing on the know-how of his trade. We firmly believe that wild fur is the most eco-friendly clothing choice and trapping is an activity that must continue.

Let's end our roundup with some news stories we found extremely useful or interesting:

This article encourages farmers to be ambassadors for their trade;

Eagles are now the weapon of choice against drones (pictured above);

This is how to protect yourself against a mountain lion;

Canada Goose isn't just a clothing brand, it is a dangerous predator!

Eating seal meat is not something many of us have tried. It's not a regular feature on restaurant menus, nor is it abundant in grocery stores. Vancouver restaurant Edible Canada made headlines in January when it announced that its menu for the restaurant festival Dine Out Vancouver was going to feature seal meat.

The two dishes, a pasta dish featuring pappardelle with seal mince and a starter of seal loin served rare, caught the attention of media and culinary enthusiasts, but where there are seals, there are activists. Not only did protesters turn up outside the restaurant, they also went on a cyber attack, downgrading the restaurant’s reviews on Facebook by posting hundreds of one-star reviews (since reversed, to an extent, thanks to our loyal followers; see below).

We had a chat with Edible Canada's executive chef, Eric Pateman, described as “one of the leading ambassadors of Canadian cuisine”, about eating seal meat, protesters, and Canadian cuisine.

Truth About Fur: You knew there was going to be some backlash, so why did you decide to go ahead and put seal on the menu?

Eric Pateman: It was the right thing to do. Part of what we do as a business is define Canadian food culture and seal has such an important historical as well as present-day context to it. By not doing it, we would have been doing a disservice to part of what we do as a business, which is educating and informing people on what it is that makes Canada so unique.

TAF: Did you have any plans in place to deal with the activists, or did you just deal with it as it happened?

EP: We definitely had had some conversations about what some of the potential backlashes could be, but we never anticipated the impact on social media that we saw. We expected some protesters, etc. ... The online impact was far more significant than we expected, but the in-person protests were less than we anticipated.

TAF: Well it is January, people don’t want to go outside, and it is much easier to criticize people anonymously from your computer.

EP: And most of the online attacks were international.

TAF: You posted on Facebook that the response to the seal meat was quite good. Can you talk about the feedback from customers?

EP: We had no idea how this was going to go, we thought it would be a great educational piece for the consumer. Obviously our customer base really likes the innovative and the obscure, and to try things that are truly reflective of our culture. When I looked at our numbers over the weekend, after the first three days [of the Dine Out Vancouver event] the seal dishes were the number one selling dish, by two to one over the next most popular dish, and the next was lamb heart. So we definitely attract a clientele who is interested in trying different proteins and dishes from across Canada.

[Editor’s note: lamb heart comes from a very cute, baby animal, but strangely there were no protests about that.]

We never anticipated that the pasta and the seal loin would do as well as they did. We didn’t make the call to add the seal loin to the menu until three days before Dine Out Vancouver. People were saying, “We really want to come in and try it, and we really want to taste it in its own right.” And almost every single table in the restaurant was ordering it. At the end of the day, the general perception has been incredibly positive. Ninety-five percent of the people who have tried it said “it wasn’t at all what I was expecting” to “it was better than what I was expecting.”

TAF: I expected it to be more liver-y. I didn't expect it to taste like steak.

EP: The big thing with seal is if you don’t cook it right, it does taste like liver and it does taste bad. It is very temperamental. I will be interested, when I am traveling across the Arctic circle to Newfoundland and going to the Festival of the Seal in the Magdalen Islands in March, to try other people’s interpretations of it. From what I have been reading online, the much more historical preparations are to cook it to death, and it comes across as a much more intense flavour, versus what we have done with the loin itself, keeping it rare. It mutes a lot of the flavours that come out with excessive cooking.

TAF: Do you think this is something you want to feature regularly?

EP: We are getting asked every single day whether we will keep it on our menu, and based on the response so far, absolutely. How we will keep it on the menu is yet to be determined. We are having guests ask for the loin in a larger portion - more than two ounces, more of a steak style. We might keep the pasta. We will sit down and evaluate that with the culinary team after Dine Out Vancouver and see what we want to do. Once the hunt is done and there is fresh seal meat, I can see us running a seal festival or an event around that.

TAF: I’ve frequently tried to find seal meat in restaurants across Canada and I have struggled to find it on menus. Have you had any feedback from other chefs, and do you think this might encourage them to put it on their menus?

EP: Absolutely. In the last week I have probably been contacted by five or six chefs, ranging from White Horse to Yellowknife to Calgary, and a few in Vancouver, all looking to get in contact with our providers. I can definitely see this starting to kick off. Someone had to be the one to jump in first, but I think we will start seeing other people adding it to the menus. We even had a fishmonger approach us if he could start carrying seal at his seafood store.

TAF: Throughout the dramas with the protesters, have you noticed how animal rights groups use the seal hunt as a money maker? Seals are abundant so there is no question about sustainability, and baby seals haven't been harvested since the '80s. What do you think of campaigners still using images of cute baby seals to raise funds?

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

EP: In all honesty, I don't know enough about that side of the industry. This was totally new to me, in terms of understanding a lot of the political ramifications and ties around it. Part of the reason I’m going to this seal festival, part of the reason I want to go out on the seal hunt this year, is to get a deeper understanding for myself personally. I had a couple of really good discussions both with the Humane Society and even PETA when they were protesting outside our restaurant the other day, we had a good chat and getting their take on things.

My job is to promote what Canada is, and I think one of the things that makes Canada so unique and special is that we are free to have a voice around things that are important to us, free speech, the ability to protest. I am not opposed to people doing what they are doing, though the cyber attacks were a little off mark, but I didn't have any issues with PETA showing up in front of our restaurant doing what they did. They have the right to do that. I hope to be far more educated by the summer with the hunt itself, really understanding it and all of the ramifications around it.

The Dine Out Vancouver event ends February 5th but keep en eye out for future seal meat specials at Edible Canada. And thank you to all the Truth About Fur followers who helped us get its rating back up on Facebook. Notorious seal-hunt opponent Paul Watson issued a call to his supporters to post poor (“1-star”) reviews, and 550 did just that, dropping Edible Canada’s average rating from 4.5 to 2.1 overnight. Truth About Fur and other responsible-use groups responded and within a week 5-star ratings caught up and pulled ahead. On the day of publishing this post, Edible Canada's average rating stands at 3.3. Check it out and post your review.

The easiest way for animal activists to further their agenda is to lie, and when it comes to the fur trade, that means portraying us as a cruel industry that mistreats animals. We don't like giving animal activists credit, but there's no denying how successful they've been at spreading their lies. They appear so frequently in traditional media, blogs and comment sections, that members of the general public can hardly be blamed for believing that at least some of this horrible stuff must be true.

Well, it isn’t, and we are here to set the record straight about the Five Biggest Lies Animal Activists Tell About Fur.

Activist Lie #1: Animals on fur farms are skinned alive. Take a moment to consider this and you'll realize it makes no sense. Not only is skinning an animal alive illegal and utterly immoral, it would also be dangerous for the operator, would increase the risk of damaging the pelt, and would presumably take longer than skinning an animal that was euthanized. (Is it easier to cut your dog’s nails while he is excited or when he’s been sleeping?) Farming is a business, and businesses need to be profitable – so why would anyone adopt a practice that is dangerous for their staff, damages the product, and takes much longer than doing it properly? The simple answer is that they wouldn’t, which is why animals are never skinned alive for the fur trade.

In fact the horrible activist video that started this vicious myth has now been exposed as a complete fraud – the cruel acts it shows were staged for the camera!

SEE ALSO: 5 REASONS WHY IT'S RIDICULOUS TO CLAIM ANIMALS ARE SKINNED ALIVE

Activist Lie #2: Most furs come from China where animal welfare laws don't exist. Therefore, most animals used in the fur trade are mistreated. The clever part of this lie is that, if true, it would render irrelevant the high standards of animal welfare on North American and European fur farms. If most fur comes from China, who cares how well farmers care for their mink in Wisconsin or Denmark?

There are two problems with this argument. First, it doesn’t matter where a farm is (it could be on the moon!), if farmed animals do not receive excellent nutrition and care, they will not produce high-quality fur. In fact, China does have animal welfare laws and is in the process of introducing Western standards to fur farming, but even without them Chinese fur farmers have a strong economic incentive to keep their animals healthy.

Second, and more to the point, while it is true that many fur garments are now cut and sewn in China where labour costs are lower, the fur pelts used to make most garments sold in the West originally came from European or North American farms. In fact, more than 90% of European and North American farmed mink and fox – and North American wild furs too – are sent to China to be transformed into apparel and accessories.

Activist Lie #3: Animals chew off their paws to escape steel-jawed leg-hold traps. This lie refers to very old trapping methods that are no longer permitted or used. Decades ago, some animals (especially muskrats) would sometimes have bones broken in old-fashioned leg-hold traps, allowing them to pull free. This does not happen with the new padded and off-set foot-hold traps. In fact, these new live-holding traps cause so little damage, they are used by biologists to catch and release (unharmed) wolves, lynx, otters and other animals for radio collaring or relocation. Meanwhile, the great majority of fur-bearers (including muskrats) caught for their fur are now taken in highly effective quick-killing traps, eliminating the possibility of a trapped animal being left alive.

Activist Lie #4: Fur farms are "not subject to federal regulation". This is a sneaky deception by animal activists that suggests that fur farming is "unregulated" and therefore without standards to protect the well-being of the animals. What is intentionally not explained is that federal regulations generally concern only food safety issues related to livestock produced for human consumption. Fur farms, however – like all farms – are indeed regulated by municipal and state or provincial laws. Furthermore, farmers who mistreat or do not provide proper care for their animals can be prosecuted under federal (and state/provincial) animal-cruelty laws.

SEE ALSO: CALLING PETA: U.S. FUR FARMING IS STRICTLY REGULATED

Activist Lie #5: They kill "baby seals" in Canada. If we had a dime for every time we've heard this lie, we could buy a dozen beautiful seal-skin coats! In fact, the hunting of nursing harp seal pups has been banned in Canada since 1987. For the last 30 years, harp seals can only be hunted after they have moulted their first fluffy “whitecoat” fur. By the time the hunt legally opens, the seal pups have been weaned and are on their own, preparing to migrate to their Arctic summer feeding grounds. (Their mothers have left, to breed again, before also heading north for the summer.) But these easily verifiable facts do not stop animal activists from continuing to illustrate their fund-raising campaigns with photos of fluffy “whitecoats”. Why let facts spoil a great story that has raked so many millions into their coffers from well-meaning supporters?

What you can do. The next time you hear someone spreading these 5 Biggest Lies Animal Activists Tell About Fur, set them straight! We all know that if people hear lies often enough, they start to believe them. Well it works both ways. People need to hear the truth more often to believe it ... so let's be sure that they do!

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It's time for our April Fur in the News roundup, so here's our summary of the media's coverage of trapping, sealing, fur fashion and stupid activists ...

Let's start with trapping, and this fantastic guest blog post by "modern trapper" Jeff Traynor (pictured), who talks about his love for this age-old skill and its traditions. Outdoor Canada recognized the importance of trapping and why hunters need to support Canada's oldest profession. "There was some income involved, there certainly was a pursuit involved, and it's an accumulative hobby,” veteran trapper Victor Blanchette is quoted as saying. It rings true, of course; Blanchette has been trapping for 50 years and knows what he's talking about.

Need to know when to sell your furs? This handy article from Grandview Outdoors gives some tips for trappers who need to decide whether to sell or store their skins. And if you ever get a cougar stuck in a trap, here is one way to release him (pictured.) But kids, it is best not to try this at home, or outside.

Of course trapping isn't without its controversy; like most animal-related activities, there is always someone complaining. The latest uproar is about a beaver derby in Saskatchewan, which sees beavers getting trapped and their skins getting used. But activists want the derby stopped so that the beaver carcasses get left to rot in fields instead. Speaking of beavers, some residents of this community don't want the local beavers to be trapped, even though residents' homes are at risk of being flooded. They claim it is unfair for the beavers to be killed because they are only doing what "is natural to them." It would be natural to a coyote to eat your cat, or a cougar to eat your toddler. Should we let them get away with that, too?

Activists just don't get it, do they? Case in point: this story about an ostrich who was released from a circus, and who died after being hit by a car ten minutes later. Another "liberation" gone desperately wrong. What is wrong with these people? A lot, we think, especially after reading this article about an "escalation workshop" for activists. The content in there was so messed up that we decided to include it in our new column, Things Animal Rights Activists Say (pictured). Read it to hear activists showing zero compassion for humans, including sick people and suicide victims, because animals are more important, right?

And to round out the month, activists put their misguided zeal into practice on the night of April 29, "liberating" mink from a farm in Ontario. A sizeable reward has been offered for the capture of the perpetrators. Let's hope someone can claim it!

On the bright side, it was nice to hear that a store in Vancouver, Canada, who has been dealing with militant anti-fur protesters in front of its store for three years, has announced that this year has been its best ever season for Canada Goose parka sales. It warms our heart when we hear that activists' actions fail.

On the fashion front, we question the real motives behind Giorgio Armani's fur ban (and guess what, we don't think it has anything to do about caring for animals). This article talks about the resurgence of real and faux fur in fashion, while this one talks about the differences.

April was sealing month, which means fundraising time for the animal rights charities who get donations by fooling people into thinking white coats get clubbed on the ice. (They don't, and that hasn't happened since the '80s.) Our favourite sealing spokesperson, Tanya Tagaq, had this to say about the matter. These incredible photos show a side to the hunt that we don't see portrayed in the media enough. And here is an innovative way to use seal skin - we can't wait to stock up on Aurora Heat next winter. And there is no shortage of sealing memes around, including one showing the incredible size of the seal populations, another making fun of protestors (pictured), and this one highlighting yet another celebrity fur hypocrite.

Let's finish off with a couple more things...

• Wearing fur is a great way to celebrate Earth Day.
• This might be the greatest pencil sharpener in the world (pictured).
• Our Facebook friends called us out on a really serious mistake on International Beaver Day ...
• And our animal of the month is this mink - who is just doin' what he's gotta do to survive!

Here's our roundup of Fur In The News from March 2016, and since April marks the start of the sealing season, of course it's in the news! Although the activists are urging Justin Trudeau to phase out the seal hunt, that's not going to happen. And that's good news for everything, including this restaurant owner who has taken to feeding a frequent seal visitor, since they are so overcrowded in the seas and they are running out of fish. Meanwhile, if you're wondering where to get your next pair of seal stilettos or seal skin bra, look no further!

Speaking of the seas, here is a highly depressing article about how whales are starving because their stomachs are full of plastic, and another piece about the impact fleece is having on marine wildlife. What is the solution? We suggest buying fur, leather, and other long-lasting biodegradable materials because as this article explains, "vegan leather" (synthetic leather to most people) isn't as ethical as its fans think.

If you are looking to buy some fur, Montreal is a great place to start, as furriers there continue to practice this traditional Canadian trade (above). And if you need some inspiration on what to buy, check out the top 6 fur coats of 2015, or the incredible garments in the Remix 2016 competition.

We can't write a roundup without talking about the animal rights warriors and, fortunately for us, it was almost all bad news for them last month. Let's start with the fact that Canada's Competition Bureau dropped the false advertising claim against Canada Goose, and the Supreme Court of Canada has given the green light to revoke the Humane Society of Canada's tax-free charitable status. (Insert fist pump here!) The mink "liberators" (read: people who set mink free to starve to death or get run over by cars) have been sentenced, one with jail time and the other house arrest and a significant fine.

In celebrity activist news, we've exposed Ricky Gervais as a fur hypocrite (above), and Pete Doherty (well known heroin addict musician) has joined the ranks of PETA by demanding a fashion brand stop using fur. Interesting that he is doing this while wearing leather shoes. And even the activists are in-fighting; this animal rights website is criticising how PETA raises its funds!

Our trapping story last month was a blog post about Neal Jotham and his work to promote humane trapping. We also released two new Q&A videos, this one about the role of trapping in keeping a balance in nature and an interview with a trap researcher.

Let's end this month's roundup with some nice looking pictures. This beautiful photo gallery in the National Post features several photos of trappers in the remote North, and what's not to love about these lovely photos (above) of a herd of wild horses discovered in Canada? And last but not least, a very touching video of a wild otter giving birth.

It's time to look back at last month's media, so here is our Fur in the News roundup for January 2016! Let's start with some cinema. The Revenant has been one of the most talked-about Hollywood films in the fur and trapping communities. Here's a Vanity Fair piece about the costumes for the film, the secret concoction they used in lieu of bear grease, and the grizzly pelt Leonardo DiCaprio's character Hugh Glass wore throughout the film.

St. Louis Public Radio has found quite a few connections between the city and the fur trade of the film's era. And what's not to love about Leonardo DiCaprio's acceptance speech when he won Best Actor at the Golden Globes?

Fashion News

Since we are on the subject of costumes, quite a few publications identified fur as being one of the trends on the recent menswear fashion shows. While we wouldn't exactly consider ourselves fans of Kim Kardashian, we love that she dresses herself and her daughter in beautiful fur coats.

If you don't have $10,000 for a new jacket, then why not try making one yourself? This is a brand that sells fur accessories, but what is stopping you making some of your own? Or how about a cushion? StyleCaster has some great ideas on how to decorate your home with fur.

While fur may be in fashion, not all the shops have been thrilled with sales. The warm weather in North America has had a negative impact on fur sales at retail. But it is not all bad! This French fur retailer (pictured above) has been doing very well with its fur-lined parkas, and we love the story of this Canadian furrier repurposing old fur coats into blankets. I can't think of a better way to stay warm in bed!

Animal Rights Antics

Vancouver fur retailers got some great news when this animal rights activist was banned by police from entering, or even walking by, any of the fur stores he has been harassing for the past few years.

Speaking of crazy animal rights activists, a group of them in Shanghai forced some "animal abusers" to eat cat poop, only to find out later that they had targeted the wrong people. Now they are up sh*t creek, pending sentencing after they pleaded guilty for being total idiots.

But that's not all the activists have been up to! A heinous activist, whose name I don't even care to mention, made some horrible comments about two hunters, including country singer Craig Strickland, who went missing when their boat capsized during a duck hunt.

PETA launched a new video (pictured above) showing a violent scene where a woman gets brutally beaten up to push its anti-wool agenda. It is truly sickening. But on the bright side, PETA has had some problems with its recent mink farm allegations. It released a video depicting "animal abuse" at a farm in Wisconsin, so investigators were sent in. Its expert fur farm investigator found no violations and instead asked PETA to provide its unedited video content and make the witness available for questioning. If PETA really cared about the welfare of animals, it would provide this, but knowing PETA, it probably won't.

Wild Fur Updates

In trapping news, Illinois has allowed its first season of otter trapping since the species' return. Meanwhile trappers in Canada are having trouble accessing their trap lines due to mild weather. We love this amazing video of a group of trappers releasing a wolf caught in a trap.

And since we are talking about wild fur, seal skin is doing well at the auctions in Copenhagen, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was seen trying on a seal skin vest (see below).

Ever had to call a trapper to deal with a nuisance animal problem? Check out our blog post about wildlife control experts vs. trappers.

And here's something to bookmark: 5 Reasons Why It’s Ridiculous to Claim Animals are Skinned Alive. We wrote this piece so that everyone has a resource they can refer to when they are trying to explain to people that animals are NEVER skinned alive. We all know it never happens in our industry, but the activists have done such a good job of making everyone think it does. It is time to fight back.

And that's it for January! Let's end it with this beautiful deer dancing. Or is it an elk? Or are elk a type of deer? It doesn't matter today. We just love how cute this guy is.

We are full on into trapping season, so let’s make that the first topic of our November Fur In The News roundup. Are you out of practice? We love Outdoor Hub’s Introduction to Trapping, and these tips for the upcoming trapping season.

If you are struggling to find animals, maybe head on down to Chicago, which seems to have a bit of a beaver problem.

This is a great article about Making a Living on the Trapline (pictured above), and we love that this trapper has been given an award for his entrepreneurial skills.

Need a bit of trapping history? Read this article about the most famous fur trappers in Arizona.

If the activists are bugging you about traps, show them this video about the true “dangers” of using foothold traps. And if they are bugging you about hunting, show them this amazing infographic about venison donations to food banks. Much tastier than that vegan stuff! Speaking of vegans, here is a vegan story with a very happy ending. This one started eating meat!

While we are on the subject of activism, Greenpeace has backtracked and is now supportive of the seal hunt. Too bad its campaigning in the 1980s has already done so much damage!

Let’s not forget that activists frequently conceal their agenda, which is not about welfare but instead eliminating animal use altogether. This article does a good job reminding us of the distinction.

It has been a busy month over here at Truth About Fur! Our Hypocrite Profile on Pink (pictured above) got a lot of attention, as did Ross Hinter’s piece on whether we should be trapping wolves.

This memoir of 30 years battling animal rights is a story close to our heart, written as it is by our senior researcher Alan Herscovici.

And our latest blog post is about our Christmas competition giveaway. We are giving away six beautiful fur goodies over the next three weeks, and it is really easy to join.

Some other interesting articles that caught our eye ... Apparently babies who sleep on fur are less likely to get asthma and allergies.

There were a lot of bizarre fashion laws in history, some involving fur. For example, 14th-century English yeomen and their families could wear no fur other than lamb, rabbit, fox or cat. Even weasel was too good for them!

If you are looking for 21 ways to wear colourful fur, look no further. Or if you are content in your warm, snuggly parka, then this Canada Goose video (pictured above) might inspire you.

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.

The team over here at Truth About Fur had big plans to spend July loafing around at lakes, beaches, and parks, and enjoying summer. We figured the media would be quiet about fur since it is summer and people are focusing more on bikinis (and not only the ones made of fur). We couldn't have been more wrong, as July was a very busy month for fur, so let's start our Fur In The News July roundup with a subject close to my heart: fashion.

Fashion Loves Fur

Fendi hosted an haute couture fur fashion show, named Haute Fourrure, which was the first of its kind in the world of fur and high fashion. Featuring a collection of sublime coats, jackets, and other garments, the show not only confirmed Fendi's status as the top designer fashion house for fur, but also the fashion industry's undying love for pelts (pardon the pun). We covered the show on our blog, you can check out some photos of the details here or read about the one million dollar coat. (I'm waiting for it to go on sale.) Karl Lagerfeld, creative director at Fendi, did a great interview about fur and the show for WWD, the New York Times did an interesting piece about fur called Fur Is Back in Fashion and Debate, and Fortune wrote about fur's comeback, although we don't think it ever went out of style.

In other furry fashion news, we love these sealskin shoes, roadkill fashion is getting more column inches, this Canadian brand is doing some great things with recycled fur, and we love the designs of these Greenland fashion brands. On a sour note, Hugo Boss has decided to stop selling fur, but they've only been exposed as hypocrites because they are still selling leather. Let's not forget, fur IS a great fashion choice, and here are 5 reasons why.

Seals and the Deal

Since we are on the subject of seal fur fashion, we may as well mention the Rod Stewart debacle where he was photographed wearing a seal skin jacket in Canada at a fur retailer, then denied knowing it was seal. Sorry Rod, we don't believe you, but we are sorry that you feel the need to bow down to the pressure of the activists and that you apologized for wearing this beautiful, natural, sustainable material. Jim Winter, a contributor here at Truth About Fur, wrote an excellent piece about the hypocrisy of the anti-sealing movement and the EU ban.

And while you are reading Jim's blog post, you may as well click through to Terry's, too. Terry Vourantonis wrote a great piece entitled My Life in the Fur Trade, documenting his career in this wonderful industry.

Celebrities Behaving Badly

Rod Stewart wasn't the only celebrity acting silly last month. We were shocked to hear hip hop mogul Russell Simmons comparing horse-drawn carriages to concentration camps. Humane Watch have started a campaign to demand people stop comparing the use of animals to slavery and the Holocaust. And here's a piece about the four celebrities who "would rather go naked" back in the 90s, who are all now wearing fur.

What else have the activists been up to? Well, a few of them are facing prison time for releasing mink, and the folk at the RSPCA in the UK are being told to clean up their act and get rid of the extremist activists on their board.

At the Movies

Let's end this news roundup with some of our favourite videos of the month: this great video by A Trapper's Wife, this adorable baby polar bear, and our favourite website/TV channel right now: the bear cam in Alaska where you watch beautiful brown bears in action 24 hours a day (pictured above). Cancel your cable subscription, this is the only channel you'll ever need.

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.