Are Sheepskins Ethical? – Dartmoor Sheepskins (2024)

FAQs

Is sheepskin ethically sourced? ›

The harvesting of the sheepskin is always done after the sheep is deceased so the animal feels no pain and no suffering. Some producers of sheepskin can be unethical and harvest the sheep skin with the intent to only sell the skin. The sheep in these conditions live unhappy lives and are not treated with any respect.

Unlike other types of fur, such as fox or mink, sheepskin is a by-product of the meat industry and does not require the animals to be killed solely for their fur. This makes sheepskin a sustainable and ethical choice for those who want to enjoy the warmth and comfort of fur without contributing to the harm of animals.

New Zealand Sheepskin

The sheep of New Zealand are larger, and their wool grows in a more uniform fashion. This ensures that sheepskin rugs from New Zealand tend to be larger in size, and of a more uniform shape. The wool of a New Zealand sheep is much denser and softer, but it's shorter.

“Shearling” refers to the sheep: A shearling is a yearling sheep who has been shorn just once, and a shearling garment is made from a sheep or lamb shorn shortly before slaughter. It can take dozens of individual sheep skins to make just one shearling garment.

But the coat in question was made of shearling, considered by PETA to be less cruel than fur.

Ethical merino wool does exist—but you'll have to do your research to ensure that you only buy from mulesing-free brands that treat animal well-being as a priority. Check for labels like the Soil Association Organic, ZQ Merino Standard, and Responsible Wool Standard (RWS).

Sheepskins are made using the entire hide of the sheep. The wool remains attached to the skin (called a 'pelt'), goes through a tanning process and is sewn together with other pelts to form a rug.

What is the difference between medical sheepskin and regular sheepskin? "Medical sheepskin is specially selected to have a denser, thicker wool pile that distributes pressure more evenly, stops friction and shearing, absorbs moisture and maintains perfect body temperature.

Since it is a fabric made from animal fibers, wool production comes with different ethical issues. One of the most striking ones is that sheep often endure painful and inhumane practices, such as mulesing, tail docking and castration, generally done without pain relief when the lambs are only a few weeks old.

A sheepskin is a sheep's skin (funny that) and has come from an animal that has been slaughtered, usually for meat. No sheep are slaughtered specifically for their skin. Sheepskins are a by-product of the meat industry and have no real value until they are tanned.

How can you tell if sheepskin is real? ›

To do this, gently pull the wool away from the backing. If your sheepskin is real, the wool won't come away easily and the underside will be smooth, resembling leather or suede. If your sheepskin is fake, you won't need to try very hard to pull away the pile, and the exposed backing will probably have a woven texture.

All leather and skins in our range are sourced from the food industry where they are by-products. Since IKEA doesn't accept any form of cruelty to animals, we have traceability systems to verify that our requirements on animal welfare are being met.

Sheepskin rugs from some countries can come from unreliable sources, where animal welfare and environmental considerations are neglected. Unethical practices in these regions can contribute to the mistreatment of animals and have detrimental effects on the environment.

Shearing requires sheep to be handled multiple times – during mustering, yarding, and penning – all of which is stressful to them. They're deprived of food and water before being shorn, in part so they'll feel weak and put up minimal resistance.

Like leather, which is the treated hide of a cow, sheepskin is the treated hide of a sheep. UGG^® sources sheepskin from sheep that were raised for food. UGG^® does not raise sheep and only purchases sheepskin from suppliers that comply with our strict animal welfare policy.

But shearing is not an altruistic act. It's a business born out of genetic manipulation that puts the welfare of animals second to the money that can be made off their backs. Sheep only need to be shorn because of selective breeding by humans that causes them to carry an overburden of wool.

Farms in the US are certified by Fur Commission USA while, in Canada, farmers follow codes of practice developed by the National Farm Animal Care Council. So the North American fur trade also satisfies our second ethical criterion: no unnecessary pain or cruelty is inflicted on fur animals in North America.

Sheep are often beaten and mutilated by workers stealing their wool and their skin for shearling. Goats are similarly abused for cashmere and mohair. All this is done in the name of fashion. No matter the type of material or where it comes from, if the process involves an animal, it involves horrific cruelty.