We’re Calling On the EU to Ban Dog Leather
We’ve just written to the European Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malmström, calling for action against the horrific dog-leather industry.
Anyone who’s seen the harrowing footage from PETA Asia’s investigation into the Chinese dog-leather trade isn’t likely to forget it. The video shows dogs crying out and writhing in agony after being hit over the head with a heavy wooden bat, and dogs struggling to breathe after their throats have been cut. Workers then rip the skin from the dogs’ bodies so it can be turned into leather to be sold around the world.
One abattoir employee told the investigator that the facility bludgeons and skins 100 to 200 dogs a day. When the video was shot, there were about 300 live dogs in the compound slated for slaughter.
The leather gloves and other accessories made from these dogs’ skins are often exported internationally and may be mislabelled as leather from sheep.
If they knew what they were really buying, the majority of consumers in Europe would want nothing to do with it.
Selling fur from cats and dogs is already banned in the EU under Regulation (EC) No 1523/2007. Extending this ban to include leather made from the same animals would be a logical step – and it’s also the ethical thing to do.
We’re hoping the European Commission will act swiftly after receiving our letter. But remember – there are currently no laws against selling dog leather in the EU, and if you buy leather items, you have no way of knowing whose skin you’re really purchasing.
All leather is the product of cruelty. If you’re appalled by the horrific images from PETA Asia’s investigation, please join our campaign and stop wearing all animal skins.
