For the Wild-Hearted Souls

bekikuu:

Its so beautiful, and so soft and gorgeous and adsfsgdjscfdjsecdfffffffffffffggf 8D

(p.s just to clear this up, its not genuine (real) fur ^^)

This is the second time I’ve seen a ‘faux’ fur tail that is actually real fur in the last week alone. I don’t blame the people buying these tails (most people cannot tell the difference between real and fake fur, after all) - I blame the people who sell them, claiming that they’re fake. But I’m a taxidermist - I know the difference because it’s my job.

So here’s the deal: real fur is not usually uniform in color unless it’s been dyed. You’ll find variations in coloration throughout the individual hairs (often lighter in color at the root of the hair, and darker at the tip, or vice-versa), as well as variation in color throughout the tail as a whole (some spots darker or lighter due to natural uneven grouping in the hairs). Likewise, real fur does not have a uniform length to the individual hairs; there is an underfur, which kept the animal warm while it was alive, and then there are guard hairs, which protect the underfur from the elements. Guard hairs in real fur will taper to a point at the end like a cat’s whiskers, only much finer. Fake fur has a uniform thickness to each hair. 

Faux fur feels less smooth to the touch, and it has more ‘give’ to it when you push down on it. The hairs will often appear to be wispy and is more easily manipulated if you blow on it than real fur. It will also be more or less uniform in length. 

And then there’s the simple fact that real fur is attached to this wonderful thing called skin, which, in tanned tails, simply takes the form of leather. If you can find a crease in your tail and open it up to a tan or white backing that looks like leather, you’ve got yourself a real tail. You can also try pushing a pin through the fur, as leather is harder to puncture than any woven synthetic fibers in faux fur.

Finally, there’s the burn test: You can pull a few hairs off your tail and light them with a match. Real fur smells distinctly like burnt human hair, and chars into a fine black powder. Faux fur smells like plastic-y, kind of like chemicals, and it melts rather than chars. 

So don’t be fooled into thinking your real fur is faux, kiddies. Real fur costs less to produce these days than the real stuff, and is often mislabeled intentionally as ‘faux’ to attract buyers. It’s illegal for companies to do, but they continue to do it anyway.

KNOW YOUR FAUX FROM FUR!