By Skye Milburn
Hundreds of animals were removed from a fur and urine farm in Ashtabula county, Ohio. The animals found included coyotes, foxes, wolf-dog hybrids, and even skunks. They were found in horrific conditions, and many of them were missing limbs.
The Humane Society of the United States claimed that Ashtabula county commissioners asked them for assistance after the owner of the farm died in December and described the death as “escalating an already-dire animal welfare crisis on the property.” The Humane Society stated the farm was used to raise and kill animals for their fur and urine and to sell them as exotic pets.
When the farm was investigated, animals were found in filthy wire cages, with no protection from the cold environment. Many of the animals were missing limbs, tails, ears, and other body parts. Veterinarians also determined that many of the animals lost toes due to them getting stuck in the floors of the wire caging, and limbs were lost due to steel-jaw traps that were found all around the farm.
“Our team is exposed to immense cruelty in the criminal cases we regularly respond to like dogfighting and severe neglect, yet this stands out both in terms of suffering and because of these fur farming practices,” said one of the doctors. There were also a lot of animals found already deceased and covered in snow while the rest were starving and dehydrated.
All the animals have been officially removed from the farm as of last Saturday, and, according to the Humane Society, some of the animals had to be put down because they were critically injured.
A non-profit organization from south-west Ohio, West Wildlife Rehabilitation, confirmed that they had taken in some of the injured animals. “We are still processing everything we saw and experienced. The profound suffering of the animals was almost too much to bear,” they said. Even though all the animals were traumatized and timid, none of the rescued animals were reported to be aggressive in any way.
Wildlife trading such as this operation haven’t really come into light, but this incident let us see what’s really going on in these fur farms and other animal captivity sites. The world of fur and urine farming hasn’t been a huge topic, but this tragedy will put it in the spotlight.
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