Seems like trapping season can't get here fast enough and the forum will discuss anything. So what is the difference between Fur vs. Hair or is there one? Dose the game we harvest (lol) have hair or fur?

Why would I be excited about trapping? Half my "harvest" from last year will be up for sale this year. No sense pouring more gas on a fire.

I've never seen anything in the scientific literature that defines hair versus fur. In my way of thinking, however, if an animal has more underfur than guard hair, it should be referred to as a "fur". For example, take northern moose. They do indeed have underfur, but a preponderance of guard hair, thus should be referred to as hair. Same with people (most, anyhow). On the other hand, a beaver has significantly more underfur than guard hairs, and pelts should be referred to as fur (or fur-bearers). I suspect even this personal definition is subject to debate, however. Take, for instance, a domestic cat. Does he cough up fur-balls or hair-balls?

Jack

Would seem to me indivual hairs make up fur.

And tha heck with domestic cats.

Hair continually grows, like my portugese waterdog and the hair on your head. If left unchecked, my dogs hair will continually grow till she is incapacitated. Fur, like on a critter only gets to a certain length, and it falls out and regrows, hence we dont see super shaggy coyotes and squirrels.

A for composition, I believe hair is all uniform and lacks an underfur, fur well... generally has underfur with exceptions.

That is my understanding of it.

That all depends. Did the cat swallow hair or fur?

Jack, don't 'hairs' and 'underfur' originate from the same follicle ? Could there be a structural difference due to more or less keratin ?

White17. Yes. Guard hairs and underfur are generally from the same follicle. In fact, unlike human hair where one to four hairs grow from the same follicle, furbearers are different. A mink, for example, can have up to 50 hairs grow from a single follicle, thus the density of the fur/hair is quite a bit different. Too, the shape of the opening of the follicle tends to determine the "curliness" of the hair. How a coarse, straight guard hair and fine, curly underfur come from the same follicle is something of a mystery, but yes, probably has to do with the amount of keratin extruded.

Jack

Fascinating subject !

Hair/fur has always been of keen interest for me, as it has been a lifelong challenge to capture its varied textures in art for decades. A school I will never graduate from .

Thank you for your education , Jack, and Sir Ken

Thanks Jack !!

https://www.diffen.com/difference/Fur_vs_Hair

https://trudog.com/difference-dog-fur-dog-hair/

While it is all made of the same thing, the difference is how it grows. While there is also a correlation between the number of hairs per follicle, hair generally has fewer per follicle, the growth period is the main identifying factor to determine hair from fur.

One article says that in animals like pigs we generally call what they have "hair", but that is because it isnt an exact science. In every article you find the length of the growth period is really the only thing they all have the same. Technically speaking if you had two hairs, one from a god with "hair" that continually grows, and another form an animal with "fur", you couldnt tell much of a difference. They both are made of the same thing.

I wonder how NAFA grades hair?

Graders grade both underfur as well as guard hair coverage and finish.Some years the marten collection at the auction house wont have as nice a guard hair finish as other years.

The skins have both in guard hairs and under fur.

My first red fox was stolen from me by a local fur dealer, because he called it a sammy, which is a fox without hair and only under fur. That was a life long lesson in fur dealers ruining a young child's dream in being lied to and cheated.

If you were a kid, how do you know the fur buyer was wrong ?