Kristo Muurimaa/Oikeutta Elaimille

Help put an end to mink farming

Each year, over one million mink are killed on fur factory farms in the U.S. Mink raised for fur spend their entire lives trapped in tiny wire cages before being killed and skinned for fashion. There’s simply no way to humanely produce fur, and there are few regulations preventing extreme cruelty of these animals – humane slaughter laws do not apply to fur farmed animals in the U.S. Most leading fashion brands and numerous communities across the country are already fur-free.

Mink farms are also a threat to public health. The link between mink and COVID-19 is well known and stopping mink fur farming will prevent the spread of disease from mink to humans and other wildlife while also lowering the risk of creating new variants. Fur farms house mink in crowded environments that create an ideal setting for pathogens to circulate among and across species. The absence of legal requirements for veterinary care only compounds the problem.

If these farms continue with business as usual, we foster the conditions that could lead to the next pandemic. In addition, taxpayer dollars are being funneled toward an industry that was already in decline, with most Americans opposing the sale of fur because of its inherent animal cruelty. Faced with these realities, there is a solution that would be to the benefit of all: compensate owners of mink farms for the value of their farms while also eliminating a cruel industry and a severe public health threat.

TAKE ACTION
Please make a brief, polite phone call to your U.S. Representative and urge them to support the Mink VIRUS Act H.R. 3783.

After making your phone call (please do not skip that crucial step!), use the form to automatically send a follow-up message. We encourage you to add your own thoughts or comments in the editable portion so your legislators know how important this issue is to you.

This action alert is for U.S. residents. International advocates, please visit Humane Society International.

Your Message

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Dear Legislator,

As a constituent, I ask that you support the Mink VIRUS Act, H.R. 3783, to end factory farming mink for fur. Mink are highly susceptible to COVID-19, infecting tens of thousands of mink in the U.S. and millions more internationally. Even more alarmingly, they are capable of passing a mutated form of the virus back to humans.

Escapees from these farms can also transmit the virus to wild populations, potentially fostering reservoirs of the virus off the farms. In December 2020, a wild mink captured near a mink farm in Utah tested positive for a variant of COVID-19 indistinguishable from the virus found in nearby infected farmed mink—demonstrating the broader dangers posed.

Mink farming is inherently cruel, with wild animals confined in tiny cages and denied the opportunity to express any natural behaviors. Minks are killed by inhumane means such as electrocution and gassing, without any federal or state law to protect them even in their final moments of life.  

A growing number of companies are adopting fur-free policies, including JC Penney, Macy’s, Nordstrom and Walmart. Financial compensation for mink farmers can help them transition to a new business at a time when demand for their products is dropping. According to the website Trapping Today, only 37% of the mink pelts up for auction in 2021 actually sold. 

Please do all that you can to pass this legislation that puts an end to mink factory farming in the U.S.

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