Here's our roundup of Fur In The News from March 2016, and since April marks the start of the sealing season, of course it's in the news! Although the activists are urging Justin Trudeau to phase out the seal hunt, that's not going to happen. And that's good news for everything, including this restaurant owner who has taken to feeding a frequent seal visitor, since they are so overcrowded in the seas and they are running out of fish. Meanwhile, if you're wondering where to get your next pair of seal stilettos or seal skin bra, look no further!

Speaking of the seas, here is a highly depressing article about how whales are starving because their stomachs are full of plastic, and another piece about the impact fleece is having on marine wildlife. What is the solution? We suggest buying fur, leather, and other long-lasting biodegradable materials because as this article explains, "vegan leather" (synthetic leather to most people) isn't as ethical as its fans think.

If you are looking to buy some fur, Montreal is a great place to start, as furriers there continue to practice this traditional Canadian trade (above). And if you need some inspiration on what to buy, check out the top 6 fur coats of 2015, or the incredible garments in the Remix 2016 competition.

We can't write a roundup without talking about the animal rights warriors and, fortunately for us, it was almost all bad news for them last month. Let's start with the fact that Canada's Competition Bureau dropped the false advertising claim against Canada Goose, and the Supreme Court of Canada has given the green light to revoke the Humane Society of Canada's tax-free charitable status. (Insert fist pump here!) The mink "liberators" (read: people who set mink free to starve to death or get run over by cars) have been sentenced, one with jail time and the other house arrest and a significant fine.

In celebrity activist news, we've exposed Ricky Gervais as a fur hypocrite (above), and Pete Doherty (well known heroin addict musician) has joined the ranks of PETA by demanding a fashion brand stop using fur. Interesting that he is doing this while wearing leather shoes. And even the activists are in-fighting; this animal rights website is criticising how PETA raises its funds!

Our trapping story last month was a blog post about Neal Jotham and his work to promote humane trapping. We also released two new Q&A videos, this one about the role of trapping in keeping a balance in nature and an interview with a trap researcher.

Let's end this month's roundup with some nice looking pictures. This beautiful photo gallery in the National Post features several photos of trappers in the remote North, and what's not to love about these lovely photos (above) of a herd of wild horses discovered in Canada? And last but not least, a very touching video of a wild otter giving birth.

It's time for our monthly Fur in the News Roundup. Here is what the media were saying about fur in February!

Let's start with fur trade history, Hollywood style. Leonardo DiCaprio won the Oscar for Best Actor on Sunday and we love that he is standing up for protecting the Earth and our lands (otherwise known as our hunting and trapping grounds). If you are interested in the history behind The Revenant, we highly recommend this article, "The true story behind 'The Revenant' is even crazier than the movie".

It is great to highlight the history of trapping, and we also love this article from The Sportsmen's Alliance about why all sportsmen need to defend trapping. Let's give the trappers the support they need right now! Because as we know, the market hasn't been great for everyone this year. Unfortunately some of the wrong animals have been getting caught in traps, but we have a great solution for this: keep your dogs on a leash and don't let them roam free on other people's private property!

Let's move on from getting caught in traps to getting caught: the two American animal rights activists who went on a cross-country anti-fur rampage have pleaded guilty and will be going to prison and paying nearly $400,000 in restitution to victims. This might be the best news of the year, and we are only in March!

And the media has been very savvy lately about the tricks of the animal rights movement. This article talks about how groups make you want to cry and then they take your money, and the following story actually did make me cry a little. It is the very sad story of a horse at his end of life, and why we should reconsider the ethics of animal rescue.

We have a new hypocrite profile: Sairey Stemp (pictured above) is the editor of the British version of Cosmopolitan magazine and wrote a long article about why she dislikes fur, meanwhile promoting leather and sheepskin in her magazine. And while we are on the topic of hypocrisy, this writer says that it is silly to be anti-Canada Goose but still eat meat. By the way, here are 5 reasons why PETA won’t make me ditch my Canada Goose.

The activists have been up to their usual shenanigans. There's one in Scotland threatening a hairdresser because she put a fox skin in her store window, and there's a group of vegans in Ontario trying to argue that they are a "creed" and that "ethical veganism" is a protected human right.

But they aren't all nuts! One of our contributors used to be on their side and now tells his story about how he turned from activist to adult. And a last blow to the activists, Greenpeace has released a study detailing the hazardous chemicals used in outdoor clothing. Even a better reason to wear fur!

And finally, on the fashion front, fur has been been everywhere! From the rise of the #realfur selfie, to the menswear catwalks of Milan and Paris, it is making its mark. Even those crazy fur shoes that everyone thought would never catch on ... yup, those guys are super popular, too.

That's it for February! Let's end with a furry friend. February 27th was International Polar Bear Day!

It's time to look back at last month's media, so here is our Fur in the News roundup for January 2016! Let's start with some cinema. The Revenant has been one of the most talked-about Hollywood films in the fur and trapping communities. Here's a Vanity Fair piece about the costumes for the film, the secret concoction they used in lieu of bear grease, and the grizzly pelt Leonardo DiCaprio's character Hugh Glass wore throughout the film.

St. Louis Public Radio has found quite a few connections between the city and the fur trade of the film's era. And what's not to love about Leonardo DiCaprio's acceptance speech when he won Best Actor at the Golden Globes?

Fashion News

Since we are on the subject of costumes, quite a few publications identified fur as being one of the trends on the recent menswear fashion shows. While we wouldn't exactly consider ourselves fans of Kim Kardashian, we love that she dresses herself and her daughter in beautiful fur coats.

If you don't have $10,000 for a new jacket, then why not try making one yourself? This is a brand that sells fur accessories, but what is stopping you making some of your own? Or how about a cushion? StyleCaster has some great ideas on how to decorate your home with fur.

While fur may be in fashion, not all the shops have been thrilled with sales. The warm weather in North America has had a negative impact on fur sales at retail. But it is not all bad! This French fur retailer (pictured above) has been doing very well with its fur-lined parkas, and we love the story of this Canadian furrier repurposing old fur coats into blankets. I can't think of a better way to stay warm in bed!

Animal Rights Antics

Vancouver fur retailers got some great news when this animal rights activist was banned by police from entering, or even walking by, any of the fur stores he has been harassing for the past few years.

Speaking of crazy animal rights activists, a group of them in Shanghai forced some "animal abusers" to eat cat poop, only to find out later that they had targeted the wrong people. Now they are up sh*t creek, pending sentencing after they pleaded guilty for being total idiots.

But that's not all the activists have been up to! A heinous activist, whose name I don't even care to mention, made some horrible comments about two hunters, including country singer Craig Strickland, who went missing when their boat capsized during a duck hunt.

PETA launched a new video (pictured above) showing a violent scene where a woman gets brutally beaten up to push its anti-wool agenda. It is truly sickening. But on the bright side, PETA has had some problems with its recent mink farm allegations. It released a video depicting "animal abuse" at a farm in Wisconsin, so investigators were sent in. Its expert fur farm investigator found no violations and instead asked PETA to provide its unedited video content and make the witness available for questioning. If PETA really cared about the welfare of animals, it would provide this, but knowing PETA, it probably won't.

Wild Fur Updates

In trapping news, Illinois has allowed its first season of otter trapping since the species' return. Meanwhile trappers in Canada are having trouble accessing their trap lines due to mild weather. We love this amazing video of a group of trappers releasing a wolf caught in a trap.

And since we are talking about wild fur, seal skin is doing well at the auctions in Copenhagen, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was seen trying on a seal skin vest (see below).

Ever had to call a trapper to deal with a nuisance animal problem? Check out our blog post about wildlife control experts vs. trappers.

And here's something to bookmark: 5 Reasons Why It’s Ridiculous to Claim Animals are Skinned Alive. We wrote this piece so that everyone has a resource they can refer to when they are trying to explain to people that animals are NEVER skinned alive. We all know it never happens in our industry, but the activists have done such a good job of making everyone think it does. It is time to fight back.

And that's it for January! Let's end it with this beautiful deer dancing. Or is it an elk? Or are elk a type of deer? It doesn't matter today. We just love how cute this guy is.

Hello 2016! Here's our roundup of the fur in the news from the month of December. While many of us were busy shopping and eating turkey, there were still a lot of news stories featuring the subjects that are dear to our hearts: trapping, farming, fur fashion, and cute animals. Let's start with farming!

This article, entitled You call it sustainability; I call it farming and ranching, explores how a "nation’s understanding of farming and ranching is shaped by polarized headlines, stereotypes and lack of information." We agree!

And speaking of not understanding, it always comes as a surprise to us when farmers have to explain that "smells" are part of life near farms. This Canadian mink farmer is proud of what he is doing, despite the smell (see photo above.)

An important story from the other side of the pond is this one from Denmark, where mink farmers are dealing with a scary outbreak of Aleutian Disease.

Cold weather brings lots of fur-clad celebrities, and we love the way singer Miranda Lambert showed off the fur coat her grandmother gave her (photographed above), despite upset from some of her activist fans.

Hockey player PK Subban looked amazing in the fur coat made for him by the sisters behind Montreal-based brand Eläma.

Boy band member Brian McFadden also looked great in a fox fur collar by Charlotte Simone, but he probably should have thought twice about posing for an anti-fur campaign for PETA. Hypocrite!!

Speaking of PETA, this family is suing them because they kidnapped and euthanized their dog. Let's send them positive vibes and hope they win their lawsuit! And PETA's Christmas fur campaign was offensive in more ways than one, it seems like PETA promotes violence against women (see the film still above) and that is not acceptable!

Huffington Post hired yet another poorly informed "writer" who penned a piece about Canada Goose. He eats meat and claims that it is ok for his friends to hunt, but somehow it is not ok for trappers to live off the land. Hmmm ... Sounds as ridiculous as it is. Although we can never count on activists to be very sane or smart, here's a story about one who is threatening to kill people who consume or use animal products.

Sounds like the Chinese are to thank for boosting the hunting and trapping industry. Here is a very interesting piece about how Chinese are the main buyers of polar bear fur, but the trade is no threat to the animal population.

And the seal industry is also benefitting from the Chinese consumers, as they are big fans of this beautiful, natural fur. Us fur people are all big fans of seal fur and we support the hunt, but not everyone does, so here's 10 facts to share with anti-hunters, just to remind them what it is all about!

Let's end the roundup with a list of some of the other fur in the news articles and graphics we loved this month:

• Santa wears fur - but that's no surprise, he is from the North Pole!
• Mali Mo, a Kuwaiti luxury brand, is making some very nice fur!
• Skunk fur: beautiful but not popular. One of our writers explores why: Skunk Fur, Why Have We Forsaken You?
• This awesome Canadian grocery store sells seal pelts.
• Don't worry if the lake is frozen, this guy has found a new way to use his boat.
• Bad news for vegans: plants can feel when they are being eaten!
• And of course we like to end our round ups with a cute animal: here is a lovely arctic fox on the hunt!

We are full on into trapping season, so let’s make that the first topic of our November Fur In The News roundup. Are you out of practice? We love Outdoor Hub’s Introduction to Trapping, and these tips for the upcoming trapping season.

If you are struggling to find animals, maybe head on down to Chicago, which seems to have a bit of a beaver problem.

This is a great article about Making a Living on the Trapline (pictured above), and we love that this trapper has been given an award for his entrepreneurial skills.

Need a bit of trapping history? Read this article about the most famous fur trappers in Arizona.

If the activists are bugging you about traps, show them this video about the true “dangers” of using foothold traps. And if they are bugging you about hunting, show them this amazing infographic about venison donations to food banks. Much tastier than that vegan stuff! Speaking of vegans, here is a vegan story with a very happy ending. This one started eating meat!

While we are on the subject of activism, Greenpeace has backtracked and is now supportive of the seal hunt. Too bad its campaigning in the 1980s has already done so much damage!

Let’s not forget that activists frequently conceal their agenda, which is not about welfare but instead eliminating animal use altogether. This article does a good job reminding us of the distinction.

It has been a busy month over here at Truth About Fur! Our Hypocrite Profile on Pink (pictured above) got a lot of attention, as did Ross Hinter’s piece on whether we should be trapping wolves.

This memoir of 30 years battling animal rights is a story close to our heart, written as it is by our senior researcher Alan Herscovici.

And our latest blog post is about our Christmas competition giveaway. We are giving away six beautiful fur goodies over the next three weeks, and it is really easy to join.

Some other interesting articles that caught our eye ... Apparently babies who sleep on fur are less likely to get asthma and allergies.

There were a lot of bizarre fashion laws in history, some involving fur. For example, 14th-century English yeomen and their families could wear no fur other than lamb, rabbit, fox or cat. Even weasel was too good for them!

If you are looking for 21 ways to wear colourful fur, look no further. Or if you are content in your warm, snuggly parka, then this Canada Goose video (pictured above) might inspire you.

October 2015 has come and gone, it's time for our monthly Fur In The News roundup. Let's start with trapping since the season is now well under way.

We loved this piece, "Getting permission should be your mission," for its very useful tips on maintaining a good relationship with the owners of the land on which you trap. It may not be at the forefront of trappers' minds, but it certainly is important!

"Trapping is serious business" also features some great tips and reminds us all that the reputation of the trapping industry relies a great deal on how trappers work.

As for this debate, "Does hunting promote conservation?," I'll bet you can guess which side we are on!

We were thrilled to hear about this trapping education program in Ontario for primary and secondary students, which teaches them valuable skills and gets them out into nature. And if you aren't a trapper and run into a coyote by surprise, this article tells you what to do. Best to read it now, since it might not be convenient when you actually need the information!

Not only are we in trapping season, but we are also in fur fashion season. When the weather gets cold, what else could you possibly want to wear?

For inspiration for your fur wardrobe, check out the amazing Fur Now campaign (pictured above.) If you are thinking of reviving an old fur coat to wear this season, then read these fur restoration and care tips. Toronto Life did a great piece on how a Canada Goose coat is made (proudly in Canada!), but if you are just looking for some fur fashion inspiration, then we suggest these Stoffa fur hats, or the Fendi fur sweaters pictured at the top of this page.

Speaking about shopping, when you are making your holiday gift list, be sure to consider some seal skin. We love this seal skin fine art, and here's a great boutique to stock up on shoes, gloves, hats and other items made from our furry sea friends.

No monthly round up would be complete without reviewing what our activist "friends" (enemies) have been doing.

PETA is currently discriminating against pit bulls (apparently some pets are worse than others) and we'd like to remind them that there are no bad dog breeds, only bad dog owners. In other doggie news, a group in France decided to steal a homeless man's dog, claiming he wasn't taking care of it. The video, including the dog owner crying, is here.

Nobel prize winners were announced in October and we loved the graphic above from Understanding Animal Research. Thanks to animal research, we have made great strides in science and this should never be forgotten, or prevented in the future. Speaking of animals in labs, this article about an activist taking a tour of an animal testing lab resulted in something unexpected – for them! It turned out that they were very impressed about how the animals were being cared for!

The Animal Ag Alliance has some great suggestions on how to deal with farm security threats, and if you are only fighting them on Facebook, you may want to repost the graphic above, reminding self-righteous vegans that they probably consume a lot of animal parts, one way or another.

Or you could remind your anti-fur, silk-wearing friends that silk is made by boiling worms alive. That was the topic of our first in a new blog series featuring animal hypocrites, starting with Stella McCartney who claims that killing animals for fashion is wrong, but sells shirts and dresses made from silk.

Now for a few bits and bobs:

• This library in Alaska lends out stuffed puffins, wolf furs, and walrus skulls complete with tusks.

• Want to know what the world's densest furs are? Read our latest blog post to find out.

• This graphic has exposed the truth about Santa's reindeer. They're all ... well, take a look for yourself! And we'll sneak a peek when they turn up on our roof next month!

• There can be no doubt! Canada's new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, is a huge fan of fur. Here's his 2010 family Christmas card!

And of course we can't end a monthly roundup without a cute animal, so here is a pet fox in a dog bed practising the high jump!

Let's start our September 2015 Fur in the News roundup with some fashion news because September sees the launch of the Fall and Winter collections and that means FUR SEASON!!

Usually, when we think about fur we think coats, scarves, jackets, or hats, but this year it is all about the fur shoe. There was uniform experiment's gorgeous sealskin loafers, the "loafur" trend, these kangaroo fur-lined shoes from Gucci and a pair of fur heels that appear to be quite difficult to walk in. If fur shoes aren't your thing, how about mink bikinis?

If you prefer more traditional fur pieces, then join us in salivating over the gorgeous furs in this new Blackglama video, and if you are super traditional, you might be interested in reading about these sealskin garments paired with caribou antler jewelry.

The last fashion story in this month's roundup is the blog post by Mark Oaten, CEO of the International Fur Federation, about Hugo Boss' hypocritical "no fur" stance.

Since we are full swing into harvest season, let's talk a bit about farming. Did you know it is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world? Here is part three in our series entitled A Year on a Mink Farm, now the mink are growing up and leaving the nest, literally. Ever wonder what happens to the rest of the mink after the fur has been taken? This video shows how 100% of the mink is used. And lastly, this blog post talks about the history of fox fur farming on Prince Edward Island, with some commentary from our Senior Researcher, Alan Herscovici.

It's a known fact around here that PETA is pretty evil (they won't even answer any questions about why they kill so many of their shelter animals) and almost all animal rights activists are kinda crazy, especially this one putting kids in cages. But we rarely talk about animal rights vs. animal welfare.

We believe that animal welfare should be a priority in the fur industry, and strongly support initiatives to develop ever better animal welfare practices. However, we do not think that animals deserve rights, like humans.

It turns out the animal rights activists feel exactly the opposite, they hate animal welfare. Their entire history, nicely featured in this article by Protect The Harvest, has been about promoting equality between humans and animals. Well, that's just something we will have to agree to disagree on. And we also don't think that chimps are "persons".

Fur and hunting made the headlines in some great articles last month, including this New York Times piece on the Eat-What-You-Kill movement, this Evening Standard piece contemplating whether fur's controversy will ever fade, and this beautifully written piece by AA Gill questioning the hypocrisy of the anti-fur movement. And lastly, here are some other great reads from last month: a piece on sewing otter pelts, how to grade and size wild fur, and a very interesting piece suggesting humans are "super-predators" and hunting practices should be adapted to better reflect what happens in the wild.

Oh wait, did I just try to end a news roundup without some cute animals? I'm sorry! Click on this for your dose of cute from last month.

P.S. It involves baby bears and a hammock.

Let's start our August Fur in the News Roundup by reviewing what the animal rights criminals groups have been up to. The strangest story came from our friends at Humane Watch, who are reporting that the HSUS are trying to ban bacon and eggs in Massachusetts. We are quite sure they won't succeed in passing this law, but they sure have succeeded in being a total nuisance!

That said, we can't always trust the government to make the right decision when it comes to animals, because California has banned bobcat trapping, despite scientific evidence that the population is growing and could benefit from being controlled. Let's hope the bobcat population doesn't grow to resemble the coyote population there - California residents are on high alert as there have been four reported coyote attacks in the past month.

Speaking of California, it seems like the West Hollywood fur ban has been somewhat reversed; you aren't allowed to display fur in the window, but you are allowed to sell fur from registered trappers. Mink coats are in, Ugg boots are out. Things could be worse!

In other activist news, these animal rights campaigners killed mink by covering them in spray paint, these ones are sending drones out to "protect" seals, and these ones were attacked by a duck-wielding woman. If you loathe these "charities" as much as we do, the best way to stop them is to cut off their funding. Make sure your friends and family make educated choices about charities, using this guide: 5 Questions to Ask Before Donating to Charity.

There have been some great articles recently about animal welfare, trophy hunting, and fashion. Highlights included this great piece about the difference between animal welfare and animal rights, and a very good article questioning why we love leather and hate seal skin. This is a well-written History of Faux Fur, and this article points out some very worrying points about caving in to activists. And a question that has been on all of our minds recently due to some high profile court cases about mink "liberations" was nicely explored here: When Does Animal Rights Activism Become Extremism?

Let's look at some of the highlights from out Instagram and Facebook feeds - including the beautiful fashion images above and the inspirational quotes below.

Let's end this month's roundup with some feelgood factor, starting with two Canadian stories about youth reconnecting with their cultural traditions, firstly in National parks of Yellowknife and then at Mukluk's Storyboot School. And what's a monthly roundup without some cute animal videos? Here is a heartwarming lion reunion, a very beautiful family of deer checking out the neighbourhood, a baby bear giving her mother the cutest of bear hugs, and a young deer making friends with a toddler.

The team over here at Truth About Fur had big plans to spend July loafing around at lakes, beaches, and parks, and enjoying summer. We figured the media would be quiet about fur since it is summer and people are focusing more on bikinis (and not only the ones made of fur). We couldn't have been more wrong, as July was a very busy month for fur, so let's start our Fur In The News July roundup with a subject close to my heart: fashion.

Fashion Loves Fur

Fendi hosted an haute couture fur fashion show, named Haute Fourrure, which was the first of its kind in the world of fur and high fashion. Featuring a collection of sublime coats, jackets, and other garments, the show not only confirmed Fendi's status as the top designer fashion house for fur, but also the fashion industry's undying love for pelts (pardon the pun). We covered the show on our blog, you can check out some photos of the details here or read about the one million dollar coat. (I'm waiting for it to go on sale.) Karl Lagerfeld, creative director at Fendi, did a great interview about fur and the show for WWD, the New York Times did an interesting piece about fur called Fur Is Back in Fashion and Debate, and Fortune wrote about fur's comeback, although we don't think it ever went out of style.

In other furry fashion news, we love these sealskin shoes, roadkill fashion is getting more column inches, this Canadian brand is doing some great things with recycled fur, and we love the designs of these Greenland fashion brands. On a sour note, Hugo Boss has decided to stop selling fur, but they've only been exposed as hypocrites because they are still selling leather. Let's not forget, fur IS a great fashion choice, and here are 5 reasons why.

Seals and the Deal

Since we are on the subject of seal fur fashion, we may as well mention the Rod Stewart debacle where he was photographed wearing a seal skin jacket in Canada at a fur retailer, then denied knowing it was seal. Sorry Rod, we don't believe you, but we are sorry that you feel the need to bow down to the pressure of the activists and that you apologized for wearing this beautiful, natural, sustainable material. Jim Winter, a contributor here at Truth About Fur, wrote an excellent piece about the hypocrisy of the anti-sealing movement and the EU ban.

And while you are reading Jim's blog post, you may as well click through to Terry's, too. Terry Vourantonis wrote a great piece entitled My Life in the Fur Trade, documenting his career in this wonderful industry.

Celebrities Behaving Badly

Rod Stewart wasn't the only celebrity acting silly last month. We were shocked to hear hip hop mogul Russell Simmons comparing horse-drawn carriages to concentration camps. Humane Watch have started a campaign to demand people stop comparing the use of animals to slavery and the Holocaust. And here's a piece about the four celebrities who "would rather go naked" back in the 90s, who are all now wearing fur.

What else have the activists been up to? Well, a few of them are facing prison time for releasing mink, and the folk at the RSPCA in the UK are being told to clean up their act and get rid of the extremist activists on their board.

At the Movies

Let's end this news roundup with some of our favourite videos of the month: this great video by A Trapper's Wife, this adorable baby polar bear, and our favourite website/TV channel right now: the bear cam in Alaska where you watch beautiful brown bears in action 24 hours a day (pictured above). Cancel your cable subscription, this is the only channel you'll ever need.

June was a busy month for mink, one of our favourite farmed animals and so much cuter than cows, right? So let's start our Fur in the News roundup with a mink farm attack in Ontario, Canada, where animal extremists (who later claimed responsibility) released 1,600 mink from their pens. Normally farmers manage to retrieve a lot of their animals following such attacks, but this time there was another danger: the mink were new mothers, and the lives of their tiny kits were put at great risk due to the cold temperature and their need to feed constantly.

For a change, it was our turn to show disturbing photos of animal suffering, because many of the mink did not run off to start a wonderful new life in the wild. Read our piece: Mink Liberation : 5 Facts the ALF Doesn’t Want You to Know.

Does all this talk about mink farming put you in the mood to learn more? Then check out our new series entitled A Year on A Mink Farm (see above). Part 1 is about breeding and Part 2 is about whelping and weaning.

Dumb and Dumber

June wasn't a good month for the animal rights extremists (insert fist pump here) because they did some stupid things and the media took note.

First of all, the British weren't too impressed when PETA demanded that Britain's oldest pub, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, change its name.

French former actress and long-time animal activist Brigitte Bardot looked incredibly foolish when she wrote an anti-fur letter to Karl Lagerfeld's cat, Choupette. (For the record, I think Choupette is pro fur, like her Dad.)

And PETA's most recent campaign, against crocodile farming, seems really stupid as hardly anyone can afford a $37,000 bag, anyway.

The law has been cracking down on the extremists, with a few of them set to do jail time for releasing mink, chaining oneself to an excavator, or embezzling funds from donors. We also loved this article, from VICE: The 'Extremist' Factor: Why British Animal Rights Campaigners Aren't Taken Seriously.

Now Back to Business

A few interesting articles on the business of fur came out in June, including this series of articles for and against fur on the Business of Fashion, this piece about using the fur trade model to fix Canada's aboriginal woes, and an interesting CNN piece on fur's new markets.

Bits and Bobs

• Rapper A$AP Rocky is starting his own collection of fur coats.
• The mayor of Des Moines is also a furrier.
• Great advice on how to protect your farm from undercover video situations.
• Canada is checking out the market for seal penis.
• A very good question: Why don’t veal and lamb evoke the same outrage as baby seals?
• Putting baby to sleep on animal fur may lower asthma risk. (Hell, we should ALL sleep on fur, right?!)

Best Motion Picture Nominations ...

It was a great month for videos over here at Truth About Fur. Our most popular Facebook posts were this hilarious polar bear dreading to go to work on a Monday (image above), and this Norwegian hunter who has adopted two absolutely adorable fawns.

We loved this VICE feature on YouTube's most famous Canadian trapper, and if you are looking for some new series to watch over the summer, look no further than the Katmai National Park live bear cam - documenting naps, fishing, and general furry cuteness all summer. This is reality television at its best.

If you haven't already subscribed to get our blog into your inbox, enter your email address here.

Let's start this month's Fur in the News roundup by reminding everyone about our new project, the Fur Family Album. The story of fur starts long before a fancy coat is seen on a catwalk or photographed on a celebrity. It starts with the trapline or the farm, then the auction, the processing, the design, the making, and the store. Help us to tell the real story of the fur industry by sending us photographs of your experience of fur. Please read our full introduction to this project and then familiarize yourself with our submission requirements.

Around the World in Fur

Now, we are going to take a little trip around the world and look at the fur news stories that made headlines in different countries. Let's start in Seoul, Korea (above), where some pedestrians got a shock when an animal rights activist ripped hair from their heads, in a pathetic attempt to protest angora. I can't see how violence towards passersby is going to further animal activists' cause, but then again, I don't understand much of anything they do.

Let's move to Europe, to Germany specifically, where another activist planted needles into meat in a supermarket as a protest against the meat industry. The words "mad cow" come to mind!

Moving over to England, where a soap opera actress led a protest in front of Harvey Nichols to express anger at the store's decision to start selling fur again. Apparently her cause isn't that popular as she was the only person who turned up to the protest. Activists all over England were busy doing crazy things, including threatening to burn a TV presenter's children because of a BBC investigation into badger culls. Interesting that they want to save the badgers but burn children.

But maybe the craziest activist of the month award goes to English singer Morrissey who used Ireland's gay marriage referendum as a platform to remind people that meat and fur farming is bad, and meat eaters are no better than paedophiles. No words to describe his comments ... no words ... Finally for England, Canadian Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq played in London last month and that prompted some press about her music, her distaste for PETA and her support of sealing.

Back over the Channel in continental Europe, we had a demonstration of seal hunters at the EU parliament, who are trying to convince them to reverse the ban. The Guardian also wrote a good piece on this subject.

North American Fur News

Meawhile across the pond, a Los Angeles Times journalist wrote a fantastic op-ed about the hypocrisy of meat-eating fur haters. This is a subject that seems to be gaining traction and it is great that people are finally starting to recognize this issue. But unfortunately not all Americans are being reasonable, as quite a few of them seem to want animals to have the same rights as humans. Does this mean we can't legally kill a mosquito? People standing up to the activists include hunter and angler Peter Ryan, who does not take kindly to being threatened on Facebook, and this HSUS whistleblower.

Let's end in Canada with a lovely seal dinner and some nice sealskin clothes for your closet, shall we? But beware of crazy shoplifting seals, like this one, who stormed a grocery store in search of fish and took off when he realized that the goods he planned to steal were fruit. That's what I do when I find out that the dinner host is serving vegan!

Let's start the April Fur In The News roundup by talking about one of the most important annual fur hunts: it's SEAL time!

We try and keep this monthly blog post upbeat, but sometimes things need to get serious, so let's start with the sad news: this article paints a very sad picture of how native Greenlanders' livelihood and way of life is being seriously affected by the EU seal ban.

Our least favourite rock star continued his uninformed tirade against the seal hunt. I read last week that Paul McCartney is one of the richest musicians in the world, so maybe he'd like to donate some his hundreds of millions to finding alternative work for all the seal hunters he protests against. Or even better, maybe he could just shut up and mind his own business.

SEE ALSO: EU SEALING POLICY IS HYPOCRITICAL, ANTI-DEMOCRATIC

Our other big April event was Earth Day - and we were sure to remind everyone about how fur is a green, renewable resource that is much less harmful to the planet than most of the alternatives.

More Animal Rights Nonsense

Let's move on to the thorns in our side ... those pesky animal rights activists. But the good news is, they are getting lots of bad press!

PETA's lamb shearing campaign (below) caused outrage, Meanwhile this article is exposing how PETA targets children in its advertising campaigns (this really is sickening). Then PETA stooped to new lows by teaming up with former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson and controversial Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio (known for his total disregard of human rights when treating his prisoners) to promote vegetarian diets for prisoners. This video highlights just how hypocritical this campaign is.

Here are a few more articles questioning the AR movement that are worth reading: "Let the Fur Fly: A call against animal rights extremists," from the Wesleyan Argus; "Why do people value pets over humans?" from Bustle; and
"Exactly what is endangered?" from The Compass.

There have been a lot of news articles talking about how important it is to look at both sides of the story - especially when it comes to issues involving animal rights. This article about a zoo in Vancouver was a prime example of how people can be incredibly misinformed about why zoos exist and how they get their animals. This piece, entitled "Don’t believe everything you see: the truth about undercover videos", explains how activists get their videos and how normal farming practices can be misinterpreted as cruelty. Hopefully we'll be seeing fewer and fewer such videos as legislators move to shut them down; Senate Bill 433, or the Property Protection Act, currently working its way through the North Carolina state legislature, is just one example.

Fur Farming Scores Points

While we are on the subject of farms, we consider it a great victory that the Canadian government is funding mink farm research. Here's a nice profile on a farmer in Ontario, and this article talks about the security threats involved with having a fur farm, threats that don't seem to be slowing down business. (Farmers: 1, Activists: 0.)

Over at the Truth About Fur headquarters, we've been giggling over the animal rights activists attacked by clowns, wondering why an anti-hunting campaign (above) is being fronted by a model in a fur coat cavorting with a live bear, and writing about how we shouldn't make assumptions about political views when it comes to who is pro- and who is anti-fur.

Save the Best for Last

If you find yourself with a bit of extra fur lying around, you may want to consider some new, innovative uses for fur. How about a seal skin g-string? Or check out this crow who steals panda fur to line his nest.

Our most popular videos this month were this one of a vet trying to save a buck who is drowning from the weight of a dead buck whose antlers are locked with his (this is super suspenseful!), and this one of a bear trying to eat a fake deer.

Our favourite trapping photo is of these guys and their amazing beaver catch (above) from Full Response Scents, and the one that touched us most was this one from Minka Minkovitch (below), whose caption reads "Warmth and survival is more important than western propaganda." We wholeheartedly agree.

Let's end this month's roundup with a warning for anyone traveling to New York City or Sweden: watch out for coyotes in apartment buildings and beavers attacking bus passengers.