I prefer to use cruelty free feathers for my hats and fascinators, its not always possible but wherever possible I steer clients towards them, this means the feathers have come from a bird that’s being treated well and that the feather has fallen naturally from the bird, its not been plucked and is not a by-product of the meat industry or hunts. Basically someone is picking them up after a bird has dropped one!
Why?
All birds molt their old feathers every year and then grow new ones. No harm need be done to the bird. What troubles me is that the vast majority of feathers on the market are imported from countries where birds are kept crammed in cages, in awful conditions and in the case of hens, they’re beaks have been cut off to prevent one another pecking each other from frustration.
As mentioned previously they are often a by-product of the meat industry and I like to give people an option not to support the trade. Instead I source many of my feathers from charitable organisations that devote their time and energy caring for these beautiful intelligent creatures and are able to earn additional income to look after rescue birds and wild water foul that people watch in their natural habitat.
