Spinning fur into yarn!

Greetings! I've had 4 beautiful Keeshonden over the past 10 years, and always wondered what to do with all that FUR!!! :eek: After our 2nd died, I swore I'd learn to spin their fur into yarn, so that I could make a beautiful keepsake of them. Now, every time I put on my scarf, which I made out of my dog's warm fur, I remember my wonderful dogs! :)

I thought other people might like this same service, so I've started my own business. Please check it out, and let others know who might be interested:
Fur-get Me Not

I was on another forum where a lady did that with her dog's fur. She started doing it for friends on the forum too. (For a small fee.)

It was about 2001.

Then the ASPCA got some law passed in the U.S. where it is illegal to sell anything made from dog or cat fur.

We had quite the discussion about fur spinning. It is amazing how many people thought it was disgusting. There is good and bad with the law.

I really would have liked to have had a scarf made out of King's fur though. My friends thought i was nuts for saving his fluff. (It was what he shed for the week after a bath, so it was already clean.)

I think the law that outlawed it was under USDA regulations, though i could be wrong.

About to post this when i found this on the Federal Trade Commission website " Dog and Cat Protection Act of 2000 prohibits importing, exporting, selling, trading, advertising, transporting, or distributing any products made with dog or cat fur."

http://files.hsus.org/web-files/PDF/...ection_Act.pdf

I would really like to see an exemption made for spinners.

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Originally Posted by gnicoll

Greetings! I've had 4 beautiful Keeshonden over the past 10 years, and always wondered what to do with all that FUR!!! :eek: After our 2nd died, I swore I'd learn to spin their fur into yarn, so that I could make a beautiful keepsake of them. Now, every time I put on my scarf, which I made out of my dog's warm fur, I remember my wonderful dogs! :)

I thought other people might like this same service, so I've started my own business. Please check it out, and let others know who might be interested:
Fur-get Me Not

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When you read through the Act, go to the definition section. The term "cat fur" is defined as the pelt or skin. Similar definition for dog fur.

It can be challenging to write laws and get the terms right. Under this particular law, there is no conflict with using the shed/brushed out fur / hair of a dog or a cat. The animal is still alive. The law was enacted to protect the dogs and cats which were raised and killed as farm animals for the pelts and skins. Much as minks and chincillas have been farmed to make coats.

Folks who work with sheep's wool may have a term to apply to the fur and hair taken off the living animal, NOT attached to the skin / pelt. Of course, sheep have "wool," so that may help with the distinction right there.

Hope this helps!

Not trying to argue. What you stated is initially what i thought. However it's item 6 that has me wondering. Do 1 and 5 cover that or not? Would the "in part" only refer to pelts or skin, or would it refer to the fur itself?

(Section 308 (a) ...)

(1) CAT FUR- The term `cat fur' means the pelt or skin of any animal of the species Felis catus.

(5) DOG FUR- The term `dog fur' means the pelt or skin of any animal of the species Canis familiaris.

(6) DOG OR CAT FUR PRODUCT- The term `dog or cat fur product' means any item of merchandise which consists, or is composed in whole or in part, of any dog fur, cat fur, or both.

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Originally Posted by Freedom

When you read through the Act, go to the definition section. The term "cat fur" is defined as the pelt or skin. Similar definition for dog fur.

It can be challenging to write laws and get the terms right. Under this particular law, there is no conflict with using the shed/brushed out fur / hair of a dog or a cat. The animal is still alive. The law was enacted to protect the dogs and cats which were raised and killed as farm animals for the pelts and skins. Much as minks and chincillas have been farmed to make coats.

Folks who work with sheep's wool may have a term to apply to the fur and hair taken off the living animal, NOT attached to the skin / pelt. Of course, sheep have "wool," so that may help with the distinction right there.

Hope this helps!

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Freedom is right. :) Spinning pet hair that doesn't kill or harm the pet in any way is completely legal. Any fur that is lost (ie, shed or groomed) normally is completely legal.

I'd be happy to spin your pet's fur (for a small fee ;) ). I've got a wonderful, super-fuzzy and warm scarf made from my dogs' shed fur that's keeping me wonderfully toasty in this freezing weather!

I had to say goodbye to my dog in November. I have two gallon ziplock bags of his hair. Would you mind if I sent them one at a time? That way, if the worst happened and one bag was lost, I'd still have the other one. I've been saving some hand died yarn a friend made me for years specifically for this. Going to crochet a blanket. His square will be in the middle of it.

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Originally Posted by crow_noir

Not trying to argue. What you stated is initially what i thought. However it's item 6 that has me wondering. Do 1 and 5 cover that or not? Would the "in part" only refer to pelts or skin, or would it refer to the fur itself?

(Section 308 (a) ...)

(1) CAT FUR- The term `cat fur' means the pelt or skin of any animal of the species Felis catus.

(5) DOG FUR- The term `dog fur' means the pelt or skin of any animal of the species Canis familiaris.

(6) DOG OR CAT FUR PRODUCT- The term `dog or cat fur product' means any item of merchandise which consists, or is composed in whole or in part, of any dog fur, cat fur, or both.

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"in whole or in part..." refers to whether the item is made entirely of dog fur or cat fur or whether only a certain part (e.g. the collar) is made of dog or cat fur. The definitions as to what constitutes dog or cat fur are laid out in paragraphs 1 and 5, that is not changed in paragraph 6.

Good luck with your business. I know that several members here have items spun from their dogs fur. There was a very special lady who was an important part of this forum who spun dog's fur and requested fur from white dogs for a project she was working on. I had saved a lunchbag full of Ginger's fur, and just never got around to mailing it to her. :( I threw it away after her sudden death.

I have a whole bag full of Max's hair to send to you. He's a long haired persian so I hope you can work with it.

I'll try to get that off in the mail on the weekend. I so badly want a scarf made from it. :)

That would be great!!! ...Now i just have to let it go. I'm still rather clingy to every single piece of King that i have left. Even if it's a single piece of fur. (You should have seen me the other night picking them off of stockings i haven't worn in almost a year, the other night.) I'll let you know if and when i'm ever able to let it out of my sight. *sigh* I'm a hopeless case.

Thank you!

Also, Good luck with your endeavors! I keep hoping that "furspinning" will take off in popularity. It's a renewable resource. We're keeping and feeding pets anyhow, why not use what we have available? Cotton is horrible on the environment (but it feels oh so good!) The only thing i like better than cotton is fur. Silk is nice, but i only like it on occasion.

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Originally Posted by gnicoll

Freedom is right. :) Spinning pet hair that doesn't kill or harm the pet in any way is completely legal. Any fur that is lost (ie, shed or groomed) normally is completely legal.

I'd be happy to spin your pet's fur (for a small fee ;) ). I've got a wonderful, super-fuzzy and warm scarf made from my dogs' shed fur that's keeping me wonderfully toasty in this freezing weather!

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Originally Posted by dukedogsmom

I had to say goodbye to my dog in November. I have two gallon ziplock bags of his hair. Would you mind if I sent them one at a time? That way, if the worst happened and one bag was lost, I'd still have the other one. I've been saving some hand died yarn a friend made me for years specifically for this. Going to crochet a blanket. His square will be in the middle of it.

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You bet! I know it's important to you, so I PROMISE not to lose it!!! I meticulously label everything that is shipped to me, so you don't have to worry about me losing it on you. If you're worried about the postal service, I'd highly recommend you send it with a signature required. In fact, when I return the spun yarn to you, I ship it Priority Mail with a signature required to ensure that it safely returns to you. :)

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Originally Posted by slick

I have a whole bag full of Max's hair to send to you. He's a long haired persian so I hope you can work with it.

I'll try to get that off in the mail on the weekend. I so badly want a scarf made from it. :)

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Ooooo! Long haired Persian is lovely to work with! The longer the fur is, the better it is for spinning!

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Originally Posted by crow_noir

That would be great!!! ...Now i just have to let it go. I'm still rather clingy to every single piece of King that i have left. Even if it's a single piece of fur. (You should have seen me the other night picking them off of stockings i haven't worn in almost a year, the other night.) I'll let you know if and when i'm ever able to let it out of my sight. *sigh* I'm a hopeless case.

Thank you!

Also, Good luck with your endeavors! I keep hoping that "furspinning" will take off in popularity. It's a renewable resource. We're keeping and feeding pets anyhow, why not use what we have available? Cotton is horrible on the environment (but it feels oh so good!) The only thing i like better than cotton is fur. Silk is nice, but i only like it on occasion.

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Thanks for the words of encouragement! :) Just so you know, depending on how much fur you send me, I can usually spin it within a week, and get it back to you. So, it wouldn't be out of your posession for all that long...

I'll be contacting you this weekend :)

Question for you. My dog has hair not fur. Does this make a difference to what you do? Sorry to be so picky, but I don't know enough about it. Thanks.

Hi, All! Thanks for being SO supportive!!! :) I wanted to thank you all, and let you know that I've had to change the name of the business. Apparently "Fur-get Me Not" is a trademarked name, so I've had to change the name of the business to "Fur-Ever Creations." As a result, I've also changed the website address to:

http://www.jimsrepair.net/furevercreations/index.htm

Thanks again!

Oh, and Freedom: thanks for the jibe. :) Feel free to send that hair my way! I'd love to spin it for you! :)

I've been saving the lovely plush fur from one of my dogstting clients. (Chow X Shar Pei and incredibly soft!) I think a Daisy-scarf would make her a lovely birthday present. Need a few more ounces of fur first! Thank you for posting!