Breaking Animal News

Raccoon Dog

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Every morning I scan through the National Newspapers for interesting animal related articles to share with you, earlier today I was stunned to read the following article entitled How dogs are dying for your fake UGG boots.  I must warn you that the article is disturbing reading and left me reeling and extremely angry.  However, I am very glad this has been reported.  It is important to note as well that the article is mainly expressing the disappointment and the journalist not being able to get a REAL pair of UGG boots with only a passing mention to the plight of animals (yes, this made me angry as well) but within the article is some useful information that we can utilize. 

In summary:

In China raccoon dogs, who are related to the domestic dog, are kept in horrific conditions and then skinned alive on a fur farm so that their fur can be used on products like fake UGG boots.  As there is currently no ban on this fur being sold there is a risk that consumers may be fooled into buying imitation UGG boots produced with the fur of the abused raccoon dogs.

UGG boots are made from sheepskin (which I am vehemently against) and UGG Australia claim that their sheepskin is produced in a humane way.  Fraudulent websites are selling cut price UGG boots labelled as 100% sheepskin when in actual fact they are trimmed with real animal fur.

What can we do?

Don’t buy UGG boots or imitation UGG boots

Read the article and share it with your friends

If you do come across a website selling fake UGG boots report them to the Metropolitan Polices e-crime unit

Two sites mentioned in the article are clearanceuggsoutlet.co.uk and uggbootsukonline.co.uk so another idea would be to visit these sites and attempt to contact the owners with your views on what they are doing – try to keep it polite and informative.

It may be worth leaving a comment at the bottom of the article like I have mentioning that it is a pity that obtaining a real pair of UGG boots seems to be the only issue causing concern.  In order to leave a comment you need to register first.

If I hear of anything else we can do you will be the first to hear about it.

Thank you.

Lunchtime Links

Happy December!

As it has been a snowy few days I have been staying indoors surfing the net and I've come across some interesting links I think worth sharing with you. 

Have a Compassionate Christmas with Animal Aid

RSPCA still need people to participate in their Great Big Rabbit Survey

Help IFAW out with their survey

And finally some things to make you feel warm and fuzzy...

Cats who LIKE water!(Well, it does have something to do with food...)

Ever heard of an agoraphobic hare?

Newborn baby Cheetah, awwww.

Sad Animal News

A disturbing article in todays Daily Mail, are some of our dog breeds on the verge of extinction?

Fluffy Friday #7

It's an ice cream van for dogs!

[more here]

Fluffy Friday #5

After a horrific accident nine months ago, beautiful Oscar (who looks just like Dusty) lost both his back paws after a run in with a combine harvester. Two year old Osacr is the first cat in the world to have the operation to attach new feet. Groundbreaking Veterinary Surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick operated on Oscar using cutting edge technology.

As both his back paws were severed it was unlikely Oscar would be able to have a good quality of life with just two front paws so Noel devised a way of attatching the prosthetic paws to Oscar's ankles. The operation was three hours long and used cutting edge implants which were developed by the University College London.

The implants enable Oscar to do all the things that cats love... walk, climb and run but unfortunately they are not suitable for outdoor life so he will be staying indoors for now.

See Oscar on the first episode of a new BBC show called The Bionic Vet.

Whale poo helps combat Global Warming!

According to an article on the BBC News website, sperm whale faeces help oceans absorb CO2.

The article in short...

Researchers from Australia have calculated that Southern Ocean sperm whales release approximately 50 tonnes of iron each year in their fecal matter. The iron stimulates the growth of phytoplankton (tiny plants and the basis of the marine food web) which absorbs CO2 during photosynthesis. This process results in the absorption of around 400,000 tonnes of carbon which is over twice as much carbon as whales release when breathing.

The process also provides more food for the whales as the growth of phytoplankton is limited by the amount of nutrients available which includes iron.

Read the whole article here.

Animals in the News.

Clever dolphin uses iPad to communicate.



"Worlds Ugliest Dog" has died. (I think she was adorable)



How do animals cross the road?