IDA TO REVEAL CRUELTY TO DOGS AND CATS ON FUR FARMS 
AT CHINESE CONSULATE
Holiday Shoppers Warned: Animals Skinned Alive in China

San Francisco— On the heels of a brand new undercover investigation of the Chinese fur industry revealing dogs and cats packed into wire cages and stacked by the thousands onto trucks, members of In Defense of Animals (IDA) will gather in front of the Consulate General of China to expose passersby to “the true price of fur” and urge them to shun any garment made with fur. As a result of its cheaper production, China has become the foremost fur supplier to the U.S.

When: Wednesday, December 21, 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Where: Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China, 1450 Laguna Street (near Geary Blvd.)

The shocking footage of Chinese dog and cat fur production documents fur farm workers throwing cages from the tops of trucks to the ground, a ten-foot drop that shatters the legs of many animals inside, then poking animals through the wire mesh with wooden poles. The dogs and cats are then killed by hanging, strangulation or electrocution, but investigators also witnessed some animals literally being skinned alive and then thrown onto a pile of other dead and dying animals. Some continue to live – their eyes blinking and their hearts visibly beating inside their exposed ribs – for up to ten minutes. 

A 2004 investigation of fur farms in China showed workers attempting to stun foxes and raccoon dogs by repeatedly slamming them against the ground or bashing their heads with clubs. Such unreliable methods left many animals fully conscious, visibly blinking and breathing for as long as ten minutes after the fur was ripped from their bodies. Fur from China ends up in stores all across America. 

More than half of the world’s fur products are imported from China, a country where there are no animal welfare regulations. “Anyone who buys fur is directly responsible for animals suffering the worst kinds of abuses for a fashion preference,” says IDA spokesperson Melissa Gonzalez. 

Many celebrated designers, such as Stella McCartney and Todd Oldham, refuse to design with fur. Most recently, several prominent retail chains including J. Crew, Victoria’s Secret and Forever 21 have pledged not to sell real fur. 

Broadcast quality video will be available on site. For more information on IDA’s anti-fur campaign, please visit: www.FurKills.org.