Email addresses: minister.creed@oir.ie and animalwelfare@agriculture.gove.ie
or go in person to this event tomorrow 16th outside Vasa Fur Farm in Vicarstown, Co Laois
Dear Minister Creed, Vasa Ltd and other fur licensing and 'responsible' bodies,
I noticed, when I looked for contact details on line for the Vasa Ltd that both Una and Micheal Heffernan are registered as having no directorships with companies house and no assetts, when on the previous page they are registered as the directors of Vasa Ltd! And, Vasa Ltd has 8 million net assetts, therefore that much after debts would be paid. I wonder if you could expose where they are hiding that money as they are obviously not paying tax. I also noticed all the other company secretaries and directors had resigned and their profits are down 7.7% . I imagine this means that fur is not wanted so much, consumers and staff, both, don't want to be party to the industry.
I gather that Vasa, one of three remaining fur farms, keep and kill between 50
thousand and 70 thousand mink each year. In addition, you do not ensure they
are dead before they are skinned. The animals are not afforded any one of the five
freedoms that they should legally have. Farms have animals
permanently cramped into cold and dark wire cages, when their natural habitat
would be a territory of a mile of riverbank. Their enclosure size is based more
upon the length of a worker’s arm than the needs of the animal.
Do not use the argument
that fur farms are offering a solution to an over population of mink and they are
destructive in the wild. This is a false science as no inbalance in nature
requires human interference. Furthermore, although in Canada, they claim that
one third of animals in the fur industry are trapped in the wild, I know for
definite that it is 0% in Ireland. Every single animal is bred on purpose purely to be exploited here. Even
the foxes that are hunted and other animals trapped are left in shreds and
wasted.
Please
insist that fur farms look at their
killing mechanism. There have been reports that they gas the mink in
large
numbers and that many of them are not dead or even unconscious when
skinned. How would you like that yourself? It is my understanding that
they have this minimalist approach to make
sure the pelt is not damaged in the slaughter and no value lost.
It affects people
emotionally as well as physically and financially to be involved in the fur
industry. There must be considerable denial amongst your staff to continue the
practice and condoning of the practice.
Hundreds of tons of
phosphorous are released from fur farms and polluting nearby water sources.
Somebody might argue that it is no worse than leather. I would agree but that
is an argument against leather rather than for fur farming. Article on Environmental Harms Both are only natural
fabrics while they are on the animal they belong to. And the argument that they
are just by-products and animals were dead already doesn’t wash either. The
industries are each massively profitable in their own right and the animals are
deliberately exploited.
I’m sorry to always be
writing about rights and wrongs but you should be bothered that it’s happening
not that I picked you up on it. I am asking you to stop. Think of another business
plan. Retire. Open a santuary. Atone for your greedy, cruel and ignorant past
in some way and do your best for the animals. They are your responsibility not
your property.
I would be interested to know if
anybody in Ireland buys fur or if the majority is exported. The human
mind is good in suppressing uncomfortable thoughts but I don’t think the people
of Ireland want such misuse and suffering for animals.
Fur
farms, please stop! Animal Welfare
aspect of DAFM, please stop them! Agricultural department, please stop
licensing them. People, please avoid anything made of fur,
even a trim.
Best regards, Frances Micklem, Kilkenny
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