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PETA U.K. is pleased to have received long-awaited confirmation from Buckingham Palace that Queen Camilla won’t obtain animal fur for her wardrobe. In doing so, she follows in the footsteps of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who announced in 2019 that no new items in her closets would contain fur.
This is thought to be the first time Camilla has taken an official stance against the fur industry, in which humans cage other animals for life or catch them in steel-jaw traps, kill them using cruel methods such as electrocution, and skin them.
Consider the following compelling facts about animals who suffer and die for fur:
- Minks are skilled climbers and swimmers who purr when they’re happy.
- Foxes are intelligent nocturnal animals who rely on their bushy tails to spread scent in order to communicate.
- Beavers are extremely gentle and family-oriented. They partner for life and remain lifelong friends with their offspring.
- Rabbits are extremely agile and can hop faster than cats, humans, or white-tailed deer can run.
Every animal is someone. It’s speciesist to believe that humans have the “right” to kill other sentient beings for fashion.
A True Queen Protects Animals
Around the world, conscientious people are toasting Camilla with a glass of the finest claret, her wine of choice, for being a true queen by standing with the 95% of British people who refuse to wear animal fur. It’s right and proper for the monarchy to reflect contemporary values by recognizing that fur has no place in modern society.
The King’s Guard Still Wears Bear Fur
Camilla’s move shows that the Ministry of Defence’s use of real bear fur for royal guards’ caps is preposterous and out of touch.
For two decades, PETA U.K. has campaigned to compel the British government to end the use of bearskin for the King’s Guard’s caps.
A PETA investigation revealed how bears are baited with food, shot, disemboweled, and dismembered by hunters in Canada so that their fur can be sold—possibly to be used for the purely ornamental headgear worn by the guards.
Watch the video above to see hunters shoot unsuspecting bears with crossbows. Many of the animals are shot several times, and some escape and die slowly from blood loss, infection, starvation, or dehydration.
In nature, black bear cubs spend nearly two years by their mother’s side, learning foraging skills from her, playing with their siblings, and exploring. During spring hunts, mother bears with nursing cubs may be shot, which leads to the eradication of entire families, as the cubs are orphaned and left to die.
Royal Guards Must Go Fur-Free
Instead of buying caps obtained from the shameful slaughter of black bears, the U.K. should set a compassionate example by switching to high-tech, luxurious faux fur. Please urge the U.S. ambassador to the U.K., Jane Hartley, to use her influence to help replace bearskin with faux fur for the King’s Guard’s caps:
