Is using mohair fur okay?

I think if a wig is made from wool, then there is no problem with it. It is just giving the sheep a haircut and whatnot.
If it is actually made from the skin of an animal, then I would only buy it if the fur was a by-product.
THERE ARE TWO MASSIVE EXCEPTIONS FOR THIS POINT IMO!
And they only work if the fur is produced in New Zealand, and that is Possum and Rabbit fur. Possums alone cost the country $3billion NZD per year, and destroy native flora and fauna. They are a non-native species, and are incredibly vicious too! For all of you who are thinking of cute American Opossums, the ones I am talking about are very different - these are black and browny coloured, and the size of an incredibly large, angry cat (think of the biggest tomcat you have ever seen). They are the same as Australian Possums, but have grown a lot larger due to the fact that they aren't drugged up all the time (Eucalyptus will do that to you!). Thet kill gorgeous wildlife, and will attack housecats who happen upon them. They are awful.
Rabbits do the same thing, and cost about the same per year as well. Pet ones are fine, but not wild ones.
Now, I don't advocate killing them inhumanely, but as they are not integral to the environment, and the environment will only benefit from the loss of the two species, I can understand if the meat is not eaten. (Although having had possum pie AND rabbit sushi, I can't see why it isn't!)

***Please note I didn't post this to annoy anyone or disrespect anyones view points - I just wanted to get mine out there! (And the fact that I would love a Possum fur wig for my puki, it would look adorable.) To add further on the point - figured I should - I firmly believe that there are definite pros with vegetarianism and veganism. My best friend is a very strict vegetarian, and she has taught me some of the most amazing recipies. I go to meet ups of Kakariki (the UC environmental group) which is Vegetarian and partially Vegan, and am happy to accomodate my cooking to them if they are coming over. Hers is an environmental based choice, rather than an animal rights one. I have vegetarian weeks too (being a poor student is awesome lol). So yeah, I am most definitely NOT disrespecting vegetarianism, or veganism, I just felt that I should put my two cents in.****

 

I myself am against using fur when it´s for vanity only; I wouldn´t like a coat made of those foxes that have spent their life in cage to become fur. Still, as far as I know, lambs are worldwide useful domestic animals and aren´t normally killed just for the fur. You get so much more of living animal that it would be waste to kill it just to get the fur with pelt. I believe that animal that gives milk, wool, produces little sheeps and finally is eatable for humans wouldn´t be killed for the fur until it´s time. So in my opinion it would be waste not to use the pelt & fur when the animal is dead and eaten. I see this kind of use as reasonable recycling and it´s the way things should be done, that everything useable would be used, not thrown away as waste. Also, natural productions are better for the environment than plastic & oil etc, which is the fake fur made of.

I have learned to be practical and in Finland animals are usually treated in very good way, but I´d think even in the countries where it´s not the matter of course how to treat the animals, the domestic animals that are producing food are valuable and handled better than "not useful" ones?

My dad loves to go fishing and hunting - it´s his hobby in the way that he enjoys to spend time in nature. When I was child, he always took me and my sister with him to try to see the animals, and teached us to respect nature and the animals. He doesn´t even take the gun with him all the time, but when he does, he often brings food for family from forest or lake. I have learned to think that way, an animal living freely in forest will be much better to eat than the "mass product" meat from big farms. I´m not vegetarian though and not too strickt, but always when it´s chance I´ll choose meat/eggs/etc that is produced locally in place where animals are treated well, and lived as much freely as possible.
I make fur wigs of tibetan lamb mohair which is the lambskin by-product. My dad knows it, and once asked, if I´d like to have the hare/rabbit fur for wigs or crafts, but so far I have felt unsure about the idea; rabbit feels a bit different than a sheep. Still though, as the rabbit is food and the fur is waste and will be thrown away, I wonder should I try some time. But I don´t know yet how it should be handled to become able to use in handicrafts. I think I never would be able to buy rabbit fur/pelt anywhere else as I would´t be trusting where it comes from.

 

A little bit OT, but that's not the opposite. I am a vegetarian and I rarely eat vegetables due to some kind of weird food allergy/enzyme/the-doctors-aren't-really-sure issue that makes most of them hurt my stomach (an issue that I did have before I was a vegetarian, btw); I have to be selective about what foods I eat in general because I am easily ill. And, even though you'd think my body would like to digest healthy things like vegetables, it... doesn't, and all the medical care I tried has not been able to figure out why.

People laugh at me when I have to admit this, at work during group lunches and that sort of thing... It's embarrassing, because people think this is a great topic to make fun of. Vegetarians are often fair game for mocking because sometimes people assume that we're all activist/nutcase followers who try to tell others what to eat, or that because we don't choose to live like our ancestors we're ignorant of how our ancestors lived, or that people don't have health or other related reasons, or that they're all health nuts who don't know how to enjoy themselves, or many other arguments that we've heard before. Anyway, because it seems to be socially acceptable to mock us for (what is assumed to be) our choices, I am always getting laughed at because I'm a vegetarian who doesn't eat many vegetables.

The actual truth about my diet is that there are a lot, and I do mean a surprising lot, of foods out there that don't have meat or vegetables in them, that we're just conditioned not to think about in a society that assumes that square meals have to have some bit of meat. People ask me and my fiance what we could possibly eat if we don't eat meat or fish, and the answer is "well... everything else, of course." It is quite difficult to be vegan because dairy sneaks into eeeeeverything, but it's quite easy to be vegetarian, and most things you just don't have to worry much about. Other than at a few certain kinds of restaurants (mostly American-style like Red Robin and so on), there are always LOADS of choices of food for us to eat. Complete proteins, too. Because we do eat a lot of dairy, eggs and cheese and so on, and because there's a lot of soy in various forms available to us, we've never felt deprived of a myriad of luxurious choices. So the idea that a vegetarian is "someone who basically just eats vegetables" is... kind of a misimpression of what a vegetarian actually is.

And it's a bit of an unfair one, forgetting that we're not spartan, that we eat some pretty awesome luxury foods too, and many of them the same as what you eat. If I could up and add meat and fish to my diet, I'd still have far fewer meal choices than people whose digestive systems don't revolt inexplicably against probably 2/3 of all fruits and vegetables that most people eat. I really feel like I miss out on a lot more choices from missing the fruits... Anyway, so... writing off vegetarian diets is kind of not very understanding, because we get made fun of so much about it from people who just want to say "ha ha, you're stupid for depriving yourselves when you don't strictly have to". Nobody makes fun of people who choose not to eat citrus fruits or something. I sort of wish that everyone would just spend at least one day considering what food choices they could have made IF they weren't meat-eaters, so that they'd notice how much there actually is for vegetarians to eat-- but of course nobody pays attention to this if it's not their own diet.

Back on topic-- thanks to those of you who've provided information about mohair, about pest rabbits, and other such matters. It is useful for people to know.

 

Because I'm a vegetarian-vegan (it's complicated-PM me about it), I won't use anything that's a secondary product just because I don't eat the meat and I'm allergic to real fur. To me, it's wrong despite the usage. To those who want to use leather and fur, that's okay; just make sure to ask all the right questions about where the item came from before you use it. I just choose to stay away from fur entirely.

 

Actually these are not the only fur types like this and there are other countries with similar issues such as over grazing by goats in many of the world's mountainous regions, I am Australian (sorry for sending NZ those possums) and in Aus we have to cull rabbits and Kangaroos (we don't have a possum problem, they have natural predators etc in aus unlike in NZ) Kangaroos reproduce without competition to plague proportions and this is bad for them. We have to cull them so that we can have grazing land for domestic herds of course, but also so that the kangaroos do not die of starvation as they eat everything in sight. Personally I would prefer to kill a roo, eat the meat, wear the skin, and know it was done humanely than let them starve to death int he fields.

A lot of people talk about animal rights and how no animal should be killed, but there are circumstances where there really is no better alternative. My only sticking point on this theory comes when i look at our own human overpopulation and wonder when we start human culling and who will be selected *slaps self for being weird and morbid and stuff*

 

I don't usually have my dolls wear Mohair wigs, it's usually fun fur xD
I just don't like the feeling of mohair, its just strange.
But whatever, if I like that certain wig, I'll buy it.
Just as long as it doesn't feel like Mohair >_>

 

I have used alpaca hair for my dolls before, because I like how long and straight it is. I've never had any ethnical issues with that, the alpacas from the farm I buy the hair from seem to be very healthy and happy

 

I see this way of thinking way too often in life. The objective is not to stop eating everything that is alive (because, yes, plants are alive as well), but rather to do as little harm to other living things as possible (I don't practice Jainism, but sorta along those lines, for example). Anyway, that is my objective in life. I can't exist without eating and therefore what choice do I have? So I choose to minimize the harm I do. I'm actually really happy with my life and I don't feel I'm lacking anything by being a vegetarian.

I don't have a problem with others eating meat. Sometimes new friends or folks that don't know me well ask me if it's okay for them to order meat when we go out to eat. I alwasy chuckle and tell them I have no problem at all with them eating meat in front of me. I don't pretend that I don't like the taste of meat. I love seafood, for example. I just don't eat it anymore and I feel a whole lot better now because of it. And I totally agree with a lot of you that have mentioned that it's a lot better to use every part of the animal when you're going to kill it anyway for meat. I'm really against killing animals just for the fur, however. Many of you have already said this as well.

A also absolutely love the look of some mohair wigs. I just refuse to buy one. Especially if it's with a pelt. It would just be a constant reminder of death or something (death of the animal from which it came, that is). It would creep me out and make me feel super guilty. I don't mean for that statement to creep anyone else out or make them feel guilty, I'm just talking about me here. I don't know, I'm just super sensitive when it comes to animals (actually a lot of things, but especially animals). I let emotions run me most of the time and so I would just rather avoid leather or fur and such.
I would, however, love to find a farm or something where I can get fur from a goat that wouldn't be killed. I imagine they would have farms like that, right? Where the goats are used for just milk and fur and are never killed... that would be nice, I think.
I think I kinda went on and off topic throughout my novel there, sorry! And I really hope I didn't offend anyone. I never mean to offend and always try to get along with everyone, regardless of our opinions or way of life.

 

SweetClaudia, that was very well-stated, and I hope you don't mind my riding on the tails of your post to state my own position; I feel the same as you do about it, for the same reasons. I feel better about myself when I minimise harm (eating an animal is eating them plus all the plants they've eaten, for one thing), and like you said-- fur and leather would creep me out and make me feel guilty every time I saw it, like a reminder of death. Meat on a plate makes me feel the same way.

But that's just my own personal sensitivity and has nothing to do with anybody else. I own my emotions and I am not ashamed to have made a choice about not eating meat because of them-- unfortunately, because it's such a contested subject, some people seem to want to make me feel ashamed of it sometimes. :/ I wouldn't bother anyone for their choice to eat meat, and I just hope people bother me as little as possible about my choice not to.

 

I think this is what's key. I have no problem with people choosing to buy or not buy mohair products--that is a personal matter, and frankly none of my business--but I'm bothered by people making assertions that aren't backed up by facts. There have been a lot of posters insisting that the animals used for mohair are treated humanely, or that they're not just used for their fur, or that it's just a sheep getting a haircut, but no one seems to have much evidence either way. Like everyone else, I would very much like to think that the mohair used in doll wigs is harvested in a humane manner, but since I haven't been able to find out whether this is the case (and because animal welfare is a big deal for me), I've chosen to err on the side of caution and avoid it altogether.

Any shepherds out there who could shed some light on the subject?

 

How do you feel about using a mohair wig on your doll?
I'll use it if I think it'll suit the doll. Never thought of where the wigs came from, though. For me, I kinda try not to, though, because they look a little wonkey to me. Still, I will if it seems like I need to for one of my dolls.

Does it go against what you believe?
Nope~! xD

 

I have odd views, I guess... I eat meat (and I love me some bacon), but I don't wear fur or leather. I will wear fake fur products or fake leather products, but nothing real.

I would buy a mohair wig only if it were sheered off and then sewn onto a wig cap.

 

My mom grew up on a sheep farm so I guess she would qualify. Her brother still runs the farm, and I've seen its operation. They treat the animals humanely, and care deeply for their welfare. The question is how the animals are slaughtered, however, because this is where the animal would feel pain. Most farmers would send away their animals to a packing plant for that. But believe it or not, there are agricultural scientists (like Temple Grandin, a really interesting person) who have spent their lives developing techniques to make slaughter more humane. Of course, that doesn't mean people are using the techinques. So, "How are "mohair" animals slaughtered in China?" or wherever they are sourced is what must be figured out.

I have to say that the making assertions without facts thing bothers me a lot, too! It doesn't matter to me if a company claims its products are humanely harvested, or are organic, or (with dolls) made with "environmental" resin. Or whatever assertion is the flavor of the month. Don't tell me. Show me.


As to the OP's question:

I would never wear or use the skin of an animal that was killed for its fur only, or purely for sport. I find the idea of trapping animals for their fur barbaric, and the idea of leg hold traps that cause animals to suffer for hours for the sake of an unblemished pelt is abhorent. And the fact that 19th century hunters caused the extinction of animals like passenger pigeon by killing them-- purely for sport, and by the thousands-- makes me feel ill.

Having said that...

My father in law is an avid hunter, and he has attitudes that are representative of most of the hunters I have met-- a huge, abiding respect for nature and its animals. Surprisingly he has as much respect for animals as vegans I have met, and he seems to understand how nature works a lot better. When he kills a deer he treats it with the utmost of respect. He butchers it himself, tans the hide, etc. Even if he doesn't get a deer (he bow hunts, and that means many hours sitting in a tree, watching and waiting-- and usually not coming home with anything) he is happy. For him, it is about experiencing nature.

And, importantly, when he does get a deer, he is actually helping the environment. Deer do very well in suburban and rural areas because of the abundance of foods in backyards and farms. So as wild areas are settled, the deer population often explodes. This results in less food for each deer-- enough for many to survive, but not to be healthy. When the deer population rises to more than it would in a natural setting there is an increase in diseases and even starvation. In the US, deer populations are managed carefully. If you are a hunter, each year you can apply for a tag that allows you to take only a certain number of males or females, and only of a certain size. Hunters don't go out shooting deer willy nilly. They have no respect for poachers.

The deer population has been negatively impacted by human development. Allowing hunting of some of the population corrects the problems caused by human development.

This is very similar to the scenario described above-- where rabbits and (and toads!) were introduced to Australia, where they have no natural predators but plenty of food. Without human intervention to correct the mistakes that we made by introducing them, their population will explode, and drive native species to extinction.

tldr: it can be humane in the long run, and good for the environment to use animal products

 

Personally, I have no qualms about mohair that has been shorn from the Goat. I feel queasy about the mohair attached to the pelt, despite knowing that the animal is killed for the meat and the fur is just the by-product.
I am a bit disappointed to see some posters in this thread who still don't realise that not all mohair wigs result from an animal's death A lot of the goats who produce the nicest mohair are actually pampered prize winning goats- we have bought mohair directly from the farm, and the bag of fleece even has the name of the animal who produced it on the outside. I feel quite ok with using that.

 

I'm allergic to most furs so all of mine is faux. If I wasn't allergic though I probably wouldn't buy authentic fur either. I knew farmers who didn't sheer their animals until warmer months when the animal didn't need the coat to stay warm that and the sheep were treated very well. The problem is not everyone will be humane with their animals so I just wouldn't want to take that risk. But it's a personal preference. I don't think a person who enjoys fur should be "guilted" by a person who doesn't. However, if I found out that a certain company was overly awful then I would inform my friends but only to boycott that particular company.

 

How do you feel about using a mohair wig on your doll?
Not any more diffrent then using a fake wig (synthetic wigs)

Does it go against what you believe?
No, If the animal was treatet with respect when it was alive and humanely killed then I don't mind.

 

I think it's OK to use fur if it's a side-product from food production. A lot of animals are killed for food and it would be a waste if the fur wouldn't be used. It's a different story if animals have to suffer or get killed for their fur, like seals. Same thing with ivory from elephants, I think it's fine to use the ivory from dead elephants but to kill them to obtain it is wrong.

 

First of all, sheep were bred to have hair that keeps growing and growing. The ancestors of sheep (called hair sheep-- they still exist) have normal fur that falls out after a time. But when farmers came across members of their flock that were born different, with wooly hair that kept growing, which made it easier to spin, they bred those animals. And over time they bred for finer wool, stronger wool, etc., depending on its intended purpose.

The result is that if you do NOT give your sheep a haircut, its wool begins to mat, forming clumps that are like dreadlocks. If this continues, the animal's skin can begin to be pulled into the mat and the animal gets gangrene. And dies. Or the animal's wool drags in the mud, attracting flies that attack the sheep, or the wool gets wet and the animal gets a skin infection. And so on.

Check out this link to see a poor sheep that had never been sheared, and the horrible result to its health:

http://farmjournal.blogspot.com/2008/11/why-do-we-shear-sheep.html

So modern sheep actually depend on farmers. They can't live in the wild. That is what it means to be a domesticated animal.


A farmer not cutting a sheep's wool would be abusive and cruel. And no farmer in his or her right mind is going to shear a sheep before it can deal with losing its coat. Most farmers care deeply about the animals they are raising and wouldn't jeopardize an animal's health to take the wool that will be there a month later. If you visit a farm where sheep are raised for their wool, you will see that many of them actually wear special covers to keep their wool dry and clean.

see here, for instance:

http://www.rockysheep.com/images/Sheep_Suit_Molly1.2.gif

 

Finally, someone raises this point! Sorry but do you guys think that fake hair/fur just materialises from magical fairies in a happy little bubble?! Do you think about issues of pollution and habitat loss that is causing great suffering to many species? Its not necassarily the 'ethical' choice to buy something manufactured in a factory and you can't honestly say that by doing so you are causing 'less harm' to living things D: Just because you can't make a direct link (ie pelt = death of goat) doesn't mean that the manufacture of a product you purchase hasn't caused the suffering or death of a living thing. It might make you feel warm and fuzzy to have a 'cause' but really, you're only going to end up a hypocrite...

 

Very true! Although it is also true that factory farming causes a tremendous amount of environmental pollution and habitat destruction (and we still don't know whether most doll mohair comes from factory farms or small, environmentally-conscious operations--although many people seem to assume it's the latter). In fact, one would be hard pressed to think of a consumer product that does *not* cause some sort of pollution. The best we can do is be well-informed consumers and choose products that align with our personal choices and ethics.

I'm sure this wasn't your intent, but it's insulting to imply that people who choose not to use animal products do so for a "warm and fuzzy" feeling, or to be a member of a "cause." For many of us, it is a part of our religion and/or culture, and for most it is a decision based on deeply-held beliefs.