Why Did PETA Protesters Take Fur to the Danish Embassy?
Today, PETA supporters took a “biohazard” bin full of the fur of dead minks to the Danish Embassy in central London. The protesters, who wore hazmat suits and gas masks, called for an immediate ban on fur production in Denmark – which is the world’s largest fur producer, with 1,500 farms holding 16 million animals.
The demonstration follows reports that a new vaccine-resistant, mutated coronavirus strain has emerged from Danish mink farms and spread to humans. In response, the Danish government announced a plan to kill every mink on the country’s fur farms in an effort to control the spread of the new strain and prevent another pandemic.
The protesters used mink fur donated to PETA by members of the public.
Will the Next Pandemic Come From a Fur Farm?
Fur farms packed with sick, stressed, suffering animals are revolting places. And because minks are particularly susceptible to respiratory illnesses, mink farms around the world have become dangerous breeding grounds for diseases and been identified as COVID-19 hotspots.
PETA AsiaA wet market
A mink fur farm
The viruses that cause SARS and COVID-19 first infected humans who came into close contact with captive wildlife at live-animal markets. Similarly, fur farms also pose a serious public health risk. Animals are confined next to each other in wire cages, and disease spreads easily through the exchange of urine, excrement, pus, and blood.
Jo-Anne McArthur / #MakeFurHistory
Minks on Fur Farms: Born to Be Killed
Investigations into Danish mink farms found wounded animals living in horrific conditions. For instance, some had untreated bite wounds, while others’ legs had been bitten off during fights. Some minks were living next to the rotting corpses of their cagemates.
Unable to engage in natural behaviour, the sensitive animals often go mad from the confinement. As a result, some mutilate themselves, chewing on their own legs or tails.
At the end of their short lives, minks are killed in gruesome ways. Workers poison, gas, or drown them or even skin them alive.
Minks and Humans Need Your Help
Nobody needs fur coats, pom-poms, or other frivolous fashion items, but we do need an effective vaccine for COVID-19. PETA is asking the Danish prime minister to save the lives of humans and other animals by shutting fur farms down. Please join us! Sign our action alert now:
