This is a Lawsuit that should blow up in HSUS face. Since it is obvious that the film they allude to is not a true characterization of the fur industry this could lead to major embarrassment for HSUS. The film spoken of, is most likely a ARA inspired & created snuff film. In the course of the trial I suspect that truth will be revealed. No sane skinner of animals would undertake skinning a live animal but it surely makes sense for the ARA to create the impression & the film.

Humane Society of the United States
PRESS RELEASE
HSUS Files New Fur False Advertising Complaint with the Federal Trade
Commission
April 24, 2008
http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publicatio...int_042408.html

More Than 20 Companies Now Facing Potential Civil and Criminal Penalties

WASHINGTON — The Humane Society of the United States filed a legal
petition with the Federal Trade Commission today seeking criminal and
civil penalties against more than a dozen nationally known retailers
and fashion designers for the false advertising and mislabeling of
raccoon dog and other fur garments. The HSUS filed a similar action
against 12 retailers and designers last year, including five companies
that are also named in the latest petition.

"The epidemic of false advertising in the fur industry only seems to
be getting worse," said Kristin Leppert, director of the fur-free
campaign for The HSUS. "How many raccoon dogs will be skinned alive
and sold as faux fur before this unconscionable behavior comes to a
halt?"

More than 20 companies have now been named in the FTC proceeding,
including nine that were added in the latest filing: Bloomingdale's,
Inc.; Caché, Inc.; Dr. Jays, Inc.; ELuxury.com, Inc.; Pasha & Jo;
Ramosport; Saks Incorporated; Sears, Roebuck and Co.; and Yoox S.p.A.

Over the last three winters, The HSUS has identified dozens of falsely
advertised or falsely labeled garments — 70 percent of which contained
fur from the raccoon dog, an Asian member of the dog family, that has
been documented to be skinned alive in China. Among the false names
used for raccoon dog fur are: Faux fur, Ecological fur, Polyester,
Coyote, Rabbit, Canis Latranis, Raccoon and Finni Raccon.

In the U.S. Congress, Reps. Jim Moran (D-Va.) and Mike Ferguson
(R-N.J.) have introduced the Dog and Cat Fur Prohibition Enforcement
Act—H.R. 891—that would require labeling of all fur garments
regardless of value, and would ban the sale of raccoon dog fur. The
bill has 163 co-sponsors in the House, and The HSUS calls on Congress
to act swiftly to pass this much-needed reform.

Click here to view today's petition. Click here to view last year's
petition. Visit humanesociety.org/furfree for more information.

Facts:

-The raccoon dog has been documented being skinned alive for the fur trade.
-The Federal Trade Commission is tasked with enforcing the Fur
Products Labeling Act and protecting consumers from deception.
It is illegal to import, export, sell or advertise any domestic dog
fur in the United States.
-Under current law, fur must be identified with a label, but only if
the value of the fur exceeds $150. Once fur is identified on a label
or advertisement, regardless of value, the species must be accurately
disclosed.
-"Asiatic raccoon," although not the accepted common name in use by
the scientific community, is the name required under federal law in
advertising and labeling of fur garments made from the raccoon dog.
Raccoon dogs are not raccoons (Procyon lotor) — they merely have
facial markings that resemble raccoons.
-Raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) are a member of the dog
family. Indigenous to Asia, including eastern Siberia and Japan, these
small, fox-sized furry animals seem to enjoy social contact.

Timeline:

-Dec. 20, 2007 – The HSUS published results finding that many leading
retailers—including Bloomingdale's, Neiman Marcus, Lord & Taylor,
Dillard's, Saks Fifth Avenue and Yoox.com—were selling certain jackets
with the brand names Burberry, Andrew Marc, Marc New York, Preston &
York, Aqua, Ramosport and Adam+Eve that were falsely advertised or
mislabeled as faux fur or "ecological fur" when in fact they are
trimmed with real animal fur.
-Aug. 15, 2007 – Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer signs
legislation requiring all clothing that includes fur or faux fur sold
in New York State be correctly labeled as being "faux fur" or "real
fur." The law went into effect Nov. 13, 2007.
-March 13, 2007 – The HSUS petitions the Federal Trade Commission
seeking penalties against 14 retailers and designers for violation of
the federal Fur Products Labeling Act. Due to subsequent remedial
measures that Foot Locker, Inc. and Michael Kors USA, Inc.
implemented, The HSUS later withdrew those two companies from its
petition. The petition is still pending before the FTC.
-Feb. 7, 2007 – Reps. Moran and Ferguson introduce the Dog and Cat Fur
Prohibition Enforcement Act in the U.S. House of Representatives.
-Dec. 2006 – Tests commissioned by HSUS investigators find raccoon dog
fur on jackets being advertised as "faux" and/or labeled as other
species, such as raccoon or coyote.
-30-

HSUS talks the talk ... won't walk the walk

While criticizing China's feral domestic dog and cat control programs, HSUS contributes no funding to establish humane shelters in China.

It contributes almost nothing to shelters in the US either, despite its $125 million budget.

Each year in the US, a country of 250 million people, our shelters put down some 8 million domestic and feral dogs and cats. HSUS guesstimates that China, with about 2.5 billion people (or ten times the US), puts down 2 million dogs and cats annually (although other estimates put the number at about 200,000).(1)

The Chinese and other Asians include utilization in their programs for controlling feral and wild dogs and cats. They do not burn such products, as Western cultures do, seeing such an approach as wasteful in poor areas.

In the US, we burn such products and can't understand how others can utilize them. In Asia, they utilize such products and wonder why the US is so wasteful.

But wherever you are, one thing is constant: HSUS offers no help or funding to address the issue of humane control of feral dogs and cats.

Many of its donors gave money for just that purpose, which is why HSUS today sits on assets of over $200 million.

If HSUS, a public charity, won't voluntarily spend funds on hands-on animal care at humane shelters, then legislation should be introduced to force it to. Until that happens, it should stop criticizing others.

Remember this scientific name: Nyctereutes Procyonoides
It means Finnraccoon or Asian Raccoon, animals that are unrelated to the family dog

A two-pronged fur labeling flap blew up over the just ended holiday season, half of it justified, part of it not. It reached all the way from Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s to Burlington Coat Factory, involved some top designer’s names and provided a field day for animal activists, who all too often don’t like the facts to get in the way.

The justifiable part is that some garments on sale over the holidays were advertised as being trimmed with faux fur, while the labels inside correctly identified the elements as real fur. In some cases the trim was correctly identified as Finnraccoon or Asian Raccoon, with the latter often having the suffix “dog,” even though the animal is not a dog.

“Last week we released information that major U.S. retailers were advertising real fur as faux in Internet, circular and store advertising,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS) in a news release dated December 21. “Today we have discovered another major problem: the real fur was mislabeled and the fur comes from a canine species known as ‘raccoon dog.’ All major retailers should pull any raccoon or coyote fur from China until all parties understand the scope of the improper and illegal labeling.”

Incorrectly identifying trim as either fur or faux fur is a violation of the labeling laws. Identifying the species Finnraccoon or Raccoon Dog as the same species as household pets is incorrect.

“The scientific name of Finnraccoon is Nyctereutes Procyonoides,” said Pirrko Rantanen-Kervinen, managing director of Finnish Fur Sales (FFS). “It is a member of the canidae family, but it is not a dog. It is the only species in its genus, Nyctereutes.”

Ms. Rantinen-Kervinen’s statement went on to explain that Finnraccoons and Asian Raccoon Dogs are the same animal. Indigenous to East Asia, they spread to western Russia in the 1930’s and 40’s, and on to contiguous Finland, where they flourished in the lush pine forests.

“In Russia and Japan it has been farmed for a long time,” her statement said, “and in Finland farming was started in the 1940’s. In 2006, Finnish farms produced circa 120,000 Finnraccoon pelts … raised under strict national laws and regulations governing fur production and animal welfare.

“Finnraccoon is sold under the SAGA quality label. Independent monitoring through the Origin Assured-Initiative assures consumers that the SAGA skins are produced with care and respect on European farms.”

The situation hit public consciousness in the New York metropolitan area December 30 with a story in The Daily News headlined “Fur flies as jacket flap dogs Diddy.” It went on to state “Diddy’s in the dog house with animal lovers everywhere after ‘faux’ fur collars on his Sean John coats turned out to come from a real animal called the raccoon dog.”

The story originated with HSUS, which told the paper it had bought garments at a leading retailer and conducted mass spectrometry tests, though no laboratory was credited. The Daily News quoted Combs as saying he had no idea about the situation, since the mislabeled garments are produced by a licensee, but he added that they would be removed from store shelves, and the licensee has been asked not to use the same material in the future.

One Internet blog picked up the story and shoved aside trivia about Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton to proclaim “Fur real, dog: Puff Daddy coats using dog fur?”

It went on to ask “So is Puff daddy, who claims to be the designer behind Sean Jean (sic), the Cruella DeVille of the new century?” DeVille is the demented designer of the Walt Disney film “101 Dalmatians,” who sought to round up that many spotted dogs to make herself a unique coat.

The HSUS subsequently issued releases implicating Baby Phat, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors, A.N.A., Max Mara and Andrew Marc as manufacturers either mislabeling or using “dog” fur for trim. It also said it had found the offending garments in Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and JCPenney, in addition to Burlington Coat Factory, the nationwide discount chain it had tackled on related charges nine years ago.

Burlington admitted it had sold jackets labeled as using faux fur when the trim was actually real. It agreed to remove the garments from sale and refund the purchase price to any customers who asked

The irony!! HSUS saying someone else should be ashamed for fooling people! LOLOLOLOLOL

Thanks for your great post!

These people are friggin idiots.

Skinning an animal alive is about as smart and safe as trying to change a table saw blade while it is running.

For start Faux fur is fake there is nothing real about it, there is no real fur in Faux fur garments. these people need to look up the facts before they start talking badly about other people and their ways of life.