Selling vintage fur coat

chesky369

I could see this in something like the V & A clothes exhibition - but I don't know if they buy or expect things to be donated.

smithensis

linlin wrote: »

Where can I sell a vintage real-fur coat? The fur is from a now protected species - snow leopard - and I'd prefer not to sell on ebay.

Since it is vintage I believe selling it is not illegal in the US. I, too, have a snow leopard coat from the 1960's from my mother and have thought about the matter. I will let you know if I find any reliable information about selling it in the US.

Omnivore

smithensis wrote: »

Since it is vintage I believe selling it is not illegal in the US. I, too, have a snow leopard coat from the 1960's from my mother and have thought about the matter. I will let you know if I find any reliable information about selling it in the US.

You are not allowed to sell furs from endangered animals on eBay purely because of eBay policy; this does not have much to do with actual law.

It is illegal to sell MODERN fur across state lines- that is, if you shoot a leopard and bring it to Texas legally (this can be done), you cannot sell any part of that leopard anywhere but Texas.
However, if your grandpa shot a leopard (or tiger, or cheetah, or polar bear) in the 1930s and brought it back to Texas, you can sell that leopard across state lines.

I own several pieces of vintage leopard (pre-1972) that I bought across state lines; they are perfectly legal. Also, it is worth noting that some animals that were previously endangered are not endangered anymore: I have several pieces of vintage ocelot, and while these would be legal by right of being pre-ban anyway I feel inclined to remind people that ocelots are now considered "Least Concern" (raccoons, house cats, and field mice are all considered 'Least Concern' for comparison.)

Edit: The problem with selling fur from endangered animals, even when it's perfectly legal, is that the audience of potential buyers is rather small and hard to come by because most people freak out and say "Leopard! You killed an endangered animal?!?!?!" whenever it is mentioned. Also, many online selling sites like eBay have policies against the sale of endangered animal products mostly because of PETA pressure, plus the fact that sometimes sellers from places with loose laws concerning conservation will sell illegal-to-import animals.
For instance, a month ago a seller in Southeast Asia had listed a preserved Slow Loris- these are extremely endangered, and they are illegal to import into practically every developed nation- plus, the seller said he didn't have the permit for it. The listing was soon removed by eBay.

Savvy_Sue

I don't know if there are any auction houses who could help out here, if you can 'prove' that the coat is pre-ban?

I suggest this because on Bargain Hunt the other day someone picked up a pair ivory opera glasses, and the adviser said that there would be no problem selling them at auction because they clearly pre-dated the ban on the ivory trade.

spidystrider

If you can use it for good by donating it to a worthy cause, then that's the way I'd go. I personally could not sell it to make myself a profit. I think I'd bury it instead.
That is just my opinion though.

spidystrider

Omnivore wrote: »

You are not allowed to sell furs from endangered animals on eBay purely because of eBay policy; this does not have much to do with actual law.

It is illegal to sell MODERN fur across state lines- that is, if you shoot a leopard and bring it to Texas legally (this can be done), you cannot sell any part of that leopard anywhere but Texas.
However, if your grandpa shot a leopard (or tiger, or cheetah, or polar bear) in the 1930s and brought it back to Texas, you can sell that leopard across state lines.

I own several pieces of vintage leopard (pre-1972) that I bought across state lines; they are perfectly legal. Also, it is worth noting that some animals that were previously endangered are not endangered anymore: I have several pieces of vintage ocelot, and while these would be legal by right of being pre-ban anyway I feel inclined to remind people that ocelots are now considered "Least Concern" (raccoons, house cats, and field mice are all considered 'Least Concern' for comparison.)

Edit: The problem with selling fur from endangered animals, even when it's perfectly legal, is that the audience of potential buyers is rather small and hard to come by because most people freak out and say "Leopard! You killed an endangered animal?!?!?!" whenever it is mentioned. Also, many online selling sites like eBay have policies against the sale of endangered animal products mostly because of PETA pressure, plus the fact that sometimes sellers from places with loose laws concerning conservation will sell illegal-to-import animals.
For instance, a month ago a seller in Southeast Asia had listed a preserved Slow Loris- these are extremely endangered, and they are illegal to import into practically every developed nation- plus, the seller said he didn't have the permit for it. The listing was soon removed by eBay.

People who buy fur make me sick. What kind of person can enjoy owning fur when they know that it was once part of a living, breathing animal.
As for Ocelots being of 'least concern', who makes these statements: other sick individuals, that's who :mad: Animals do fell pain and fear and it's down to you and others like you that they do!

Omnivore

spidystrider wrote: »

People who buy fur make me sick. What kind of person can enjoy owning fur when they know that it was once part of a living, breathing animal.
As for Ocelots being of 'least concern', who makes these statements: other sick individuals, that's who :mad: Animals do fell pain and fear and it's down to you and others like you that they do!

People who buy fur appreciate the circle of life. I was raised on 'The Lion King', I know how it goes, haha.
Anyway- yes, killing an animal just for its fur is wrong wrong wrong. It is also wrong, however, not to use what is already dead- did you know coyotes are commonly bounty hunted? (Edit: I see that you don't live in North America, so I should explain: Coyotes are like smaller wolves, and they are very common here. In my area, behind my house there are woods, and back there we found a coyote den once that was full of cat collars. So coyotes are frequently put under pest control.) The rancher pays a hunter to dispatch coyotes on his land and the hunter does so. Would it be better to leave the carcass on the fence to rot? Heavens, no! If the fur can be harvested and used, why would you choose to do otherwise?
What about Bald Eagles that die of natural causes? Are they left to rot? No! Their feathers are respectfully collected and cataloged, and they are distributed to tribespeople for use in their sacred religious practices.

As for the "Least Concern" question- the people who make those statements are the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. In other words, the same people who work hard to protect rare species and their habitats and who list animals as "Endangered" or not are the people who decide if a species numbers are high and stable enough for them to be removed from the list in order for more needy species to be put on it.

Also, the next time you think about how "disgusting" it is ti use fur, think about this: If every fur-bearing animal that died under circumstances in which the fur could be saved and used again WAS used for fur, how much lower would the need to tear down acres of forest for cotton plantations be? How many fewer production plants for fake, plastic, environmentally-damaging fabrics would there be?

On a final note, I sincerely hope no one who has fur would end up burning it destroying it. What a waste; what an incredible, selfish waste. If you don't want it, give it to me. At least I can stay warm in the winter or make a lovely bed for some orphaned foxes with it.

spidystrider

Omnivore wrote: »

People who buy fur appreciate the circle of life. I was raised on 'The Lion King', I know how it goes, haha.
Anyway- yes, killing an animal just for its fur is wrong wrong wrong. It is also wrong, however, not to use what is already dead- did you know coyotes are commonly bounty hunted? (Edit: I see that you don't live in North America, so I should explain: Coyotes are like smaller wolves, and they are very common here. In my area, behind my house there are woods, and back there we found a coyote den once that was full of cat collars. So coyotes are frequently put under pest control.) The rancher pays a hunter to dispatch coyotes on his land and the hunter does so. Would it be better to leave the carcass on the fence to rot? Heavens, no! If the fur can be harvested and used, why would you choose to do otherwise?
What about Bald Eagles that die of natural causes? Are they left to rot? No! Their feathers are respectfully collected and cataloged, and they are distributed to tribespeople for use in their sacred religious practices.

As for the "Least Concern" question- the people who make those statements are the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. In other words, the same people who work hard to protect rare species and their habitats and who list animals as "Endangered" or not are the people who decide if a species numbers are high and stable enough for them to be removed from the list in order for more needy species to be put on it.

Also, the next time you think about how "disgusting" it is ti use fur, think about this: If every fur-bearing animal that died under circumstances in which the fur could be saved and used again WAS used for fur, how much lower would the need to tear down acres of forest for cotton plantations be? How many fewer production plants for fake, plastic, environmentally-damaging fabrics would there be?

On a final note, I sincerely hope no one who has fur would end up burning it destroying it. What a waste; what an incredible, selfish waste. If you don't want it, give it to me. At least I can stay warm in the winter or make a lovely bed for some orphaned foxes with it.

You've made quite a few points and it's a bit late to answer them all sorry.

By buying and wearing fur, you are sending out a message that fur is acceptable. No-one seeing you in fur is going to know that the animal it belonged to died 30 years ago. Sadly, many people are sheep (sorry to insult sheep), they follow trends and when they see others wearing fur, they will happily buy it too without giving any thought for the animal that died to make it.

I also don't remember any mention of animals dying of natural causes and find it highly unlikely that many fur coats out there have came from animals that did die from natural causes. What did the Ocelots, who's fur you now own die from? Was that natural causes, what about the leopards? Did they die at a ripe old age.

If no-one bought fur, then there would be no need for fur farms. These animals wouldn't be spending their life in a cage and have their short life ended in electrocution.

And I don't and never have owned any fur.

Omnivore

spidystrider wrote: »

You've made quite a few points and it's a bit late to answer them all sorry.

By buying and wearing fur, you are sending out a message that fur is acceptable. No-one seeing you in fur is going to know that the animal it belonged to died 30 years ago. Sadly, many people are sheep (sorry to insult sheep), they follow trends and when they see others wearing fur, they will happily buy it too without giving any thought for the animal that died to make it.

I also don't remember any mention of animals dying of natural causes and find it highly unlikely that many fur coats out there have came from animals that did die from natural causes. What did the Ocelots, who's fur you now own die from? Was that natural causes, what about the leopards? Did they die at a ripe old age.

If no-one bought fur, then there would be no need for fur farms. These animals wouldn't be spending their life in a cage and have their short life ended in electrocution.

And I don't and never have owned any fur.

Ah- it's ok, haha, I kind of say more than I should sometimes (you should hear me talk about pokemon...)

Ahem. Anyway, I can't help the fact that some people are sheep- in today's social climate regarding fur, however, I've found that mostly I get way more people aksing me "Is that real?" and giving me a chance to explain to them how they, too, can obtain and re-use natural resources. People who wear fur to be stylish and don't care where it comes from are not going to care about little old me, and people who don't already wear fur are not going to throw away everything telling them fur's wrong just to imitate my admittedly underdeveloped fashion sense.

When I wear organic, fair-trade cotton T-shirts, I'm sending the message that it's OK to wear fair-trade, organic cotton T-shirts. What message does everyone else receive, though? Cotton shirts are awesome! They won't care if they get theirs from the most horribly environmentally (or humanity) abusing source unless somehow the subject comes up. *shrug*

I do get your point, but I find it no more valid than concerns about people imitating me weeding my garden by cutting down the trees in their yard.

On the subject of fur farms, that's a can of worms I'd like to keep at least half-shut: suffice to say, they occupy a vital niche in our economy and most of the "horror stories" many people point to when they tell me fur farms are wrong come from Chinese fur farms, where their practices are incredibly lax. Fur farms in countries like USA and the UK have very strict regulations and the whole "they shove electric poles up their butt!" propaganda ignores the fact that the preferred method of, ahem, dispatchment is by placing them in a see-through box full of a tasteless, odorless gas that pretty much puts them to sleep. As in, "If I could choose the least painful method to die, it would be that."

Don't get me wrong, though, in my fantasy utopia world there would be no fur farms.
Also, agriculture would be sustainable and funky-chemical-free and wild animals would frolic to and fro without conflict with the farmers and people would stop reproducing at a sickening rate.

Biggles

spidystrider wrote: »

People who buy fur make me sick. What kind of person can enjoy owning fur when they know that it was once part of a living, breathing animal.

The kind of person who eats meat? Or wears leather shoes?

Fur's the only one that's really picked on because it's such an easy 'PC' target.