Vegans of Instagram

Aside from the honey question, I get asked a lot why I don’t wear wool. Wool is a big no no for vegans, and for a very good reason. It’s a common misconception that the wool industry is cruelty free, as sheep shed themselves. Sure, there are some natural sheep that do, but as the majority of wool comes from domesticated sheep that have been bred specifically for their wool.

The most commonly raised sheep is the Merino. Merinos have been specifically bred to have wrinkly skin to produce more wool. Their coats are so thick that some die of heat exhaustion during hot months. Unlike wild sheep, Merinos cannot shed their fleece. Their wool will grow longer and longer while flies lay eggs in the moist folds of their skin. The hatched maggots can eat the sheep alive. To prevent this from happening, ranchers will perform an operation called mulesing. Without anesthesia large strips of flesh are cut of the backs of lambs and around their tails.

Like most animal product based industries, once they’re no longer mom and pop on an organic, free range farm, things start to get’s ugly. Every industry that depends on animal products would like you to believe that everything is just peaches and cream, but that’s all a load of bollocks.

Wool production is an industry, and when there is a demand for it, wool farmers aren’t going to sit around and wait for their sheep to shed in the springtime. Because shearing too late would mean a loss of wool, most sheep are sheared while it is still too cold. An estimated one million sheep die every year of exposure after premature shearing. Gross, right?

Now, for some of you this may be preaching to the choir, but I’ve got enough questions that I needed to do a post. So please spread the word and shop wool free! #vegansofig

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