Bakers Footwear Marketing “Rabbit Fur” Boots

Garments labeled “Made in China” don’t tell 
whether the fur is really from rabbits or if it’s from cats and dogs

Besides supporting the horrendous cruelty that brands the fur-for-fashion industry, consumers are now learning that the seller does not necessarily have to provide a label or accurate information about the source(s) of the fur if the garment sells for under $150.00. 

Bakers Footwear Group, a national chain with over 200 stores, carries boots made out of “rabbit fur.” CEO Peter A. Edison claims that the company wants to let customers choose and must sell fur in order to be competitive. It is now, more than ever, extremely important for Bakers – and the world - to know that animals, including dogs and cats are being skinned alive for their fur.

Recent investigations have documented that millions of cats and dogs are brutally slaughtered in China for fur trim on coats, hats, boots and other apparel. Many of these items are sold, often mislabeled, in major U.S. department stores. Cat fur has been labeled and sold as rabbit, maopee, goyangi, katzenfelle, natuerliches mittel, chat de Chine, and gatto cinesi. Dog fur has been labeled and sold as gae-wolf, goupee, Asian wolf, China wolf, Mongolia dog fur, Sobaki, Pommern wolf, dogue de Chine, and loup d'Asie. 

On March 8, 2006, U.S. Reps. Michael Ferguson (R-NJ) and Jim Moran (D-VA) introduced legislation to replace the Fur Products Labeling Act of 1951 - which exempts garments with a “relatively small quantity or value” of fur from requiring labels disclosing the name of the species, the manufacturer, the country of origin and other pertinent information for consumers – with The Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006, HR 4904, which would require all garments trimmed with real animal fur to be clearly labeled, regardless of their value. 

The fur industry has changed a great deal since the fur labeling law first passed in the Truman years. The demand for fur-trimmed garments has grown, and the industry predicts the use of fur pelts for trim will soon surpass the use of pelts for full-length apparel. Additionally, today's fur manufacturing techniques make the unlabeled fur trim especially problematic for consumers. For instance, colorful dyes and unique shearing embellishments make the fur nearly indistinguishable from faux fur, dog and cat fur, or any other kind of fur.

With the current law exempting apparel if the fur material is valued at $150 or less, it means a garment could have lots of fur from lots of animals, and still there would be no requirement of a label. Based on approximate pelt prices after processing, an individual garment using the fur from 30 rabbits ($5 each) could be sold without a label. The same goes for 25 ermines ($6 each), five raccoons ($28 each), three badgers, beavers, fishers, or minks ($50 each), three Arctic, grey, or red foxes ($50 each), one bear or timber wolf ($150), and so on.

“Consumers who are considering buying a new jacket or gloves have a right to know whether those garments contain fur and exactly what animal was used,” Rep. Ferguson said. “Even consumers who thought they were buying faux fur can be confused by misleading or outright false labels. Without clear labeling on fur-trimmed garments, consumers are wary that dog and cat fur is still slipping into this country.” 

Please write to Mr. Edison and tell him that you won’t shop at Bakers Footwear until it stops selling all fur items and implements a permanent fur-free policy:

Peter A. Edison, Chair and CEO
Bakers Footwear Group Inc. 
2815 Scott Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63103
Tel: 314-621-0699
Toll free: 1-877-746-3932 
Fax: 314-641-0390