Ethical Issues with Wool

[Rory17]

Hello ,
Before anyone calls me out for posting this on a vegan forum, I am posting it here because I would like to get a vegan’s point of view on this, and I probably would not buy anything with wool anyway.
I am against sheepskin (and lambskin), and I understand that the wool industry can be very rough and cruel to these animals, but what if the wool is from a farm that really takes care of and loves their sheep and does not slaughter them? Don’t sheep need to be shorn for their own well-being (to prevent fly-strike, parasites, infection, etc)?
Yes, I am a vegan (for the animals and the planet), by the way…
Thank you.

 

[PTree15]

My feeling on animal products in general is that as a vegan, the products are not mine to use, regardless of the treatment of said animals. Vegans are supposed to avoid (as much as is possible and practicable) the exploitation of animals for food, clothing and other purposes. Using wool, even from well-cared-for animals, still promotes the idea of animals as commodities for use by humans.

 

[Col]

Where the I live in the UK the wool comes from sheep that are killed to be eaten, otherwise the wool would not provide the profit required alone.
It is strange how farmers paint a romantic view of the countryside over sales like this but not over other things.
I bought some Tencel fabric it can knitted with. This is a product that was not part of an animal even if it was bred to over-grow it's winter coat.

 

[Lou]

I think first and foremost, and must never be forgotten is that wool is not necessary or essential.
In other words we don't need to exploit sheep.

Exploiting sheep, no mater how well treated is never going to be vegan.

This pretty much echoes the ethical egg discussion we just finished.

I think farmers can make an argument for sheep (and cattle, pigs, and chickens) as part of the organic farming movement. Slow Food. And although organic farming might be good for the land - it's still not good for the animals that end up killed and butchered.

 

[silva]

Much like all animals that are bred specifically for profit, sheep are bred to have massive amounts of fleece, which is why they have to be sheared regularly, or suffer.
Sheep in the wild live comfortable lives.

 

[silva]

Why Do Sheep Need Shearing? and Other FAQs - Farm Sanctuary

Isn’t sheep shearing an industry thing? Why do we do it at Farm Sanctuary? Here are the top five questions we get about the topic. It takes about three days to shear the 80+ sheep at our New York shelter.

www.farmsanctuary.org

 

[Lou]

I would like to point out for Rory that his sentiment is completely understandable.

I was brought up on rural 18th -19th century fiction and non-technological society fantasies.
There is the images of Charles slopping the pigs, Laura milking ol' Bess and then sending her out to the back 40. Caroline shooing the chickens out of the kitchen then Mary going out to collect eggs. These romantic and pastoral scenes are burned into our collective consciousness.

 

[Tom L.]

Hi, @Rory17 -

....but what if the wool is from a farm that really takes care of and loves their sheep and does not slaughter them? Don’t sheep need to be shorn for their own well-being (to prevent fly-strike, parasites, infection, etc)?

I've only partially-quoted your post (which makes good points). In theory, I can imagine animals being "used" by humans and still having good lives, as you suggest above. But over the years, I've learned how even the animals whom I thought had it pretty good... really weren't so well-off as I thought. The milk industry kills almost all male bovines at an early age, as well as the cows once they can no longer produce milk; horses bred for racing have a high rate of injuries and are generally killed (out of view of the spectators) when that happens....

Pet animals probably fare the best of all domestic animals, and even here there are abuses: e.g., a popular movie starring a charming breed of dog results in excessive breeding of similar animals, many of whom eventually wind up in shelters. So I've pretty much given up on the idea of animals being used, but not ABused, although it might be possible in theory. I wouldn't want pets or other domestic animals to become extinct- but I just don't know how to avoid the abuse which always seems to happen to them.

 

[g0rph]

I wouldn't want pets or other domestic animals to become extinct- but I just don't know how to avoid the abuse which always seems to happen to them.

It won't ever be completely avoided. Just like there are still parents who abuse their children.
But a stricter set of laws could mitigate it somewhat.
Anyone taking a dog/cat/etc in then subsequently abandoning it should be fined. I would suggest the current market price for the dog. This wouldn't include re-homing for those whose circumstances change.
Beating a companion animal should fall under the same laws as beating a child (which is illegal, rightfully so, here in Sweden).

 

[Graeme M]

As far as I know, nearly all commercial wool production involves killing the sheep for meat. Most wool sheep experience a fall in wool quality after about two years of age and I think by say eight years of age the farmer will usually cull them. Some heritage breeds may not be killed directly for meat but I still can't imagine the producer keeping them once wool quality declines enough to affect commercial viability. My farmer friend runs sheep primarily for wool, but she does sell to meat. This is what she says:

"In Australia. Not many keep the wool boys to adulthood anymore. Or not far after. In the old days they used to. Most of your older lamb are wool bred. You will also find most of the live export sheep are also wool bred males. Ewes are generally age culled between 6 and 8. Earlier if unproductive. I have never heard of any farmer that keeps them past that age. Too many old age issues. "

Because veganism rejects the property status of animals and their treatment as a commodity, commercial wool production is not vegan-friendly. A vegan would not buy commercially produced wool. So, taking my farmer friend as an example, her sheep are extremely well looked after. They enjoy lives far better than wild sheep would. But ultimately, hers is a commercial enterprise and the sheep are owned and treated as units of production. That is not vegan-friendly.

There is an argument I find difficult to counter and that is that producing wool alternatives using synthetics is bad for the environment. This is true, though the small market for wool suggests that in the scheme of things the impact is minimal. There are many possible plant-based alternatives being developed. One that shows promise in Australia is produced from a plant considered a pest. You can imagine how wool growers feel aboiut that.

Is there any such thing as 'vegan wool'?

"Vegan wool" made from cotton and weed fibres riles up Australian woolgrowers.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Lou]

I just bought some new Hiking Socks
80%Combed cotton, 17% Polyamide, 3% Spandex.
Not the Perfect Vegan Sock. But then I'm not a perfect vegan. Plus they were inexpensive