EU Feathers and shells in deco?

jou_s1998

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Hi there

Since looking for some deco for my home, I have noticed that a lot of stuff is decorated with feathers or shells.

Are they defensible for vegans?

In my opinion it's like wearing fur or leather, so not vegan-friendly.

What's your opinion on this? Does this kind of products support animal cruelty?
 
I think you're right - it's like wearing fur or leather, so it's something I avoid.

In one way it's even less defensible, because it's only for decorative purposes, whereas shoes is something everyone needs and sometimes leather shoes are the only alternative for some people due to price or availability in the right size, shape or level of robustness.
 
I think the big thing is where the shells and feathers came from. If the feathers and shells came from an animal that was finished with using them than they are not exploitive. the thing about veganism is not the animal product itself but the exploitation of the animal. There is nothing exploitive about walking down the beach and finding feathers and shells.
 
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I think the big thing is where the shells and feathers came from. If the feathers and shells came from an animal that was finished with using them than they are not exploitive. the thing about veganism is not the animal product itself but the exploitation of the animal. There is nothing exploitive about walking down the beach and finding feathers and shells.

Agreed. Same with second hand objects.

The topic that's always debated is when and if your use of the second-hand or found item serves to promote it.

For example, say I find a leather jacket in the trash, clean it up, and wear it. Does wearing it encourage other people to buy leather, which might be new? What if it's faux leather but it looks real? How do you draw the line between private use and promotion? If just one person sees me wearing it, am I promoting it? How responsible am I for that potential effect?

Home decor is like clothing. People might see it in your house, like it, and buy something similar but not cruelty-free. Obviously, that depends on the people. But how can you predict who will do what? If you tried to, would you be judging too much? Making the wrong kinds of assumptions?

Vegans/vegetarians have different views on all of this. Obviously, your personal need for the item matters too.

Usually, people decide where they stand on these issues and then get ready to talk about it with other vegans. It does come up, but, in my experience, most people are tolerant of others' differing viewpoints as long as there is a rationale for it.
 
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Oh! and you buy antlers for your dogie. but the elk are done using it and they don't raise elk for antlers. They just fall off and someone goes around finding them.

I think most feathers and shells come from people finding them. And birds and shellfish are not raised for their feathers and shells. (As opposed to animals raised for their hides and fur). Even if some artists went to a turkey farm or an oyster farm and bought the feathers and shells they needed for the artwork, I would still think that it would be Veganish. But I think in that case you might have an interesting discussion.
 
I would decorate my flat in feathers, shells and anything natural as long as I found them and they didn't involve killing anything. The only problem is, M is a bit OCD about germs in this context. I can wash shells ok but when I tried to wash a feather it ruined it.:(
 
Oh. when i was thinking about shells I was imagining the small ones that you find on the beach that artists use to make pretty things. Like lamps shades.

but there is also the big shells. Like conchs. that are just things to put on a bookshelf or mantle. some of those might have been washed up on a beach but some of those might have been collected (while they were still alive). Same with coral and some other shells.
 
Oh! and you buy antlers for your dogie. but the elk are done using it and they don't raise elk for antlers. They just fall off and someone goes around finding them.

I think most feathers and shells come from people finding them. And birds and shellfish are not raised for their feathers and shells. (As opposed to animals raised for their hides and fur). Even if some artists went to a turkey farm or an oyster farm and bought the feathers and shells they needed for the artwork, I would still think that it would be Veganish. But I think in that case you might have an interesting discussion.

The doggie isn't part of the equation. He's not vegan. He's like a roommate. He has his own personality and taste and I provide for him accordingly, using good judgment.

Apparently, the shell trade is not harmless:


And I believe that most decorative feathers come from the poultry industry. They're a byproduct just like those cow skin rugs.
 
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I have a couple of feathers that I found in my back yard, I wouldn't buy them from any where, nor shells. Though I have been known to collect 1 or 2 when walking the beach.
 
I think the big thing is where the shells and feathers came from. If the feathers and shells came from an animal that was finished with using them than they are not exploitive. the thing about veganism is not the animal product itself but the exploitation of the animal. There is nothing exploitive about walking down the beach and finding feathers and shells.

I don't think the shells and feathers are just collected on the beach, because most of those those decorations like dream catchers or also clothes with shells are mass production. I'm not sure about it but I think, shells are bred to get killed for decoration, also the big shells and starfish you can buy in several souvenir shops.

The doggie isn't part of the equation. He's not vegan. He's like a roommate. He has his own personality and taste and I provide for him accordingly, using good judgment.

Apparently, the shell trade is not harmless:


And I believe that most decorative feathers come from the poultry industry. They're a byproduct just like those cow skin rugs.

Also I'm not sure about the feathers. I think most of them aren't just a byproduct from the poultry industry, that would be too laborious for the poultry industry. I think it's more like the feathers for down jackets and stuff, which is actually very cruel.
 
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