Would you wear reptile skin?

I guess I have always wondered what people would do. There are people that keep chickens and other farm animals and eat those. There are people that keep rabbits and wear rabbit fur and eat rabbits.

Would you wear python skin shoes? Have a python skin handbag? crocodile skin wallet? etc

Just always wondered

i voted no.

i do eat meat, i have owned and worn leather. i do not personally own any animal fur products.

I suppose my opinion is,a lot of the reasons people wear snake skin and crock skin is for fashion, rather an for a need to stay warm (such as with skins and furs). Its just not my sense of fashion at all. And i'd say 99% of the people that know me know NEVER to gift me with such a thing.

I dont mind other people wearing them (my dad has a few pairs of snake skin boots) but its not for me.

if its an animal thats meat is eaten and skin made into something im all for it. i dont agree with it when the animal is killed only for its skin.

Cinderbird - Thats great. That you don't like it yourself but don't wish those to hell who do. Its refreshing to hear such a well balanced reply lol

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Originally Posted by 771subliminal

if its an animal thats meat is eaten and skin made into something im all for it. i dont agree with it when the animal is killed only for its skin.

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How about if it was killed for its skin, but then the meat was used for food? Or to feed animals or something like that? (usually the case anyways)

I really have no objection to it, me wearing or not wearing it is not going to stop animal torturing or what have you. I would seek a comapny that is open about it's practices, and read reviews and stuff ..

The main reaons I have not it I have not seen anything made from snake skin that I liked the look of. You show me a great application, and I will consider it.

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Originally Posted by DarkSean

Cinderbird - Thats great. That you don't like it yourself but don't wish those to hell who do. Its refreshing to hear such a well balanced reply lol




How about if it was killed for its skin, but then the meat was used for food? Or to feed animals or something like that? (usually the case anyways)

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yeah i have no issue with it. i agree with (NON TROPHY) hunting. if someone wants to take a nice buck for its antlers and meat i'm fine with that. but leaving a carcass to rot with just the top of the head taken is such a waste. sure it feeds scavengers and insects, but theyll find food almost anywhere.

i enjoy fishing as well (but i wont leave a hook imbeded in anyones mouth, or leave excess line laying around)

I completely understand that around other parts of the world python skin and meat are eaten and traded often and its part of the lives of a lot of people.

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Originally Posted by DarkSean

Cinderbird - How about if it was killed for its skin, but then the meat was used for food? Or to feed animals or something like that? (usually the case anyways)

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if the animal is not going to waste then im fine with it. if the first intent for the kill is skin then food is secondary or the other way around the out come is still the same. the meat is eaten and the skin is worn. people food cat food or dog food its all being ate, i dont see the how its different to make cat and dog food out of chicken or beef than it is to make their food out of a reptile. some of them even have allergies when it comes to chicken and beef so a reptile diet would be best for them.

In this world...there is too many people who do too many different things for everyone to like everything.

I personally could care less if I wore leather, snake skin, fur, or anything else.

Sure I really REALLY feel bad for what happens to those animals...trust me, I truly do....but if my favorite Gucci pants happen to be made of snake skin....Im gonna flaunt those things like no ones business!!!

I voted no.
Im not a girl or a cowboy, nor am I cool enough to rock any snake skin pants ;).

I would eat one though if someone cooked it up for me though.

When my burm goes (on her own) I am having her skin tanned. And you never know if your boots or belt skin came from an animal that died naturally or was kill just for the skin.

I normally wopuldnt object but you never know how the animal died and I think that's normally a big deciding factor.

Depends if it was illegally hunted, endangered, or the meat was wasted.

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Originally Posted by blackcrystal22

Depends if it was illegally hunted, endangered, or the meat was wasted.

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I don't think many people would be pro hunting anything endangered. Well apart from cod lol

As for the watse, the large majority of meat/fur/skin makers and farmers will sell the meat to maxamise profit. They also sometimes do swaps with other farmers for products. So the fur farmer will swap the meat with another famer in exchange for whatever they have. This means waste is minimal and profit is larger as its one less thing to buy.

It's not for me as a fashion statement. But I have no problem if the animal is farmed. I've got too many leather belts, and shoes to tell someone else they can't wear this or that.

Again, farmed animals would be okay.
Jim Smith

No because wearing animal skin and fur is just trashy really it's not a good look.

I have no problem with it, although, I prefer fur: it's a great deal warmer, I'd think.

Oooh someone else likes fur. I love fur. Coats are so bloody expensive though lol

It's not for me, but I'm not opposed to wearing animal skins. I love wearing leather jackets and boots and such. It just seems to me that reptile skin doesn't wear all that well. If you scuff it or scratch it it's pretty much ruined, whereas a little bit of distress on cow hide doesn't ruin the look and can even add something. I can be kind of hard on my clothes so I like something that's a bit tougher.

Well, I do have a snake skin wallet.

Do I feel guilty about it? Not really.

Does that make me evil and heartless? Doubtful.

I like the way snake skin looks and when I am out to lunch with business clients, coworkers, etc... it is always a good conversational piece.

:salute:

I always wanted to tan one of the hides when they died. BUT after 20 years and several nice animals that have died. I never could do it.

I voted no because it's not for me fashion-wise. I feel bad for the animals that have to suffer, but me alone isn't going to change people's ways so I don't let it bother me. I do however have a leather sofa and chair in my living room... Sure is comfy.

The only thing I am against is hunting an othersie healthy animal just for their fur/skin/horns/etc.

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Originally Posted by DarkSean

Oooh someone else likes fur. I love fur. Coats are so bloody expensive though lol

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I know :| I want to get good at tanning hides so I can make a goat skin coat. Then I can be nice and warm in winter lol

I have no problems with farmed skins. I would wear leather from anything sustainably raised and harvested, if it was decent. (Style is another matter--many things made of reptile skin seem pretty garish).

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Originally Posted by Raptor

I know :| I want to get good at tanning hides so I can make a goat skin coat. Then I can be nice and warm in winter lol

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That would be cool. I have seen a long goat hair jacket and it looked like monkey fur. Its nice.


The annoying thing is, fur farming has been banned by law here which I think is silly. I get that people don't like it, but thats no reason to ban something for everyone completely. I would have rather they pushed for better and tighter restrictions on fur farms than a ban. It just means I have to buy the pelts I want from you guys in the US.

I am perfectly happy with faux snake skin purses...nothing wrong with that..Plus it gives jobs.

Burm skin is used ALOT and I see my baby when I look at it... I don’t get mad when I see people wherein it..but I do feel some heartache.

a few years ago we were doing a show with our big burm girl and this lady was so scared of her and asking so many questions and such she had python shoes and purse and so she told me she was a snake lover too.... I just didn’t see it eye to eye... but didn’t hold it against her...just didn’t see it the same way.

I know a friend has actually got 'road kill' snakes and cleaned the vertebrate to make necklaces and other jewelry items and I think it’s cool.

So to me- it’s each to their own.

I voted no... It’s just not for me.
:snake::snake::snake::snake::snake::snake::snake:

I wouldn't wear it. Every time I've seen something with fake snake skin (never seen an item made out of real snake skin) the "skin" doesn't match most of my wardrobe.

Maybe, just maybe if there was a snake skin purse that didn't look terrible like most I've seen, I would consider buying it. I've always thought about what they do with the burms they find in the everglades. If they're just going to go to waste... Maybe sell the skin and make profit to help their cause. It's probly not that simple, but I've always wondered.

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Originally Posted by Elise.m

I wouldn't wear it. Every time I've seen something with fake snake skin (never seen an item made out of real snake skin) the "skin" doesn't match most of my wardrobe.

Maybe, just maybe if there was a snake skin purse that didn't look terrible like most I've seen, I would consider buying it. I've always thought about what they do with the burms they find in the everglades. If they're just going to go to waste... Maybe sell the skin and make profit to help their cause. It's probly not that simple, but I've always wondered.

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Thats a point. Natural snake pattern wouldn't really go with much I would think. I know they dye them but it kindof takes away from the point of it for me. Its like when I see someone wearing 2 differnet kinds of fur, like a blue fox coat (grey colour) then a red fox hat, its like ahhh lol

I don't like the fact that animals are killed and only used for one thing. I can sorta understand if the animal was killed, eaten, and used for its fur. People can be so wasteful a lot of times and just kill for one purpose.

As for snake skin... I think I'm too afraid to eat snakes to begin with. Snakes are highly respected in my culture (even though I'm not really religious at all). Maybe it's because I love snakes waay too much to bring myself to do that....

I agree with what a few others have said here. I would not wear snake skin because the animal died for nothing more than a fashion statement. The Indians killed a buffalo and they used every usable piece of the entire animal. They used gut, bone, teeth, meat, and hide. I get that. The use of animals for nothing but their hide is wasteful, slothful, greedy and completely unnecessary. I think it's pretty disgusting. Now as for the poster who said he would have his burms skin tanned out after it passed. I totally get that too and think it's very cool. While life and death are all just part of the cycle, we should have respect for the preciousness of life. It is not, in my opinion, to be piddled away for someone's waist coat or stylish boots.

I voted no, just because I really do love snakes and wouldn't really want to wear the skin of one who was killed just for its skins to make products. Plus, to me, it's just a waste of money buying something I don't really even need.

Yeah I don't like waste. Which is why I don't like the milk industry. They have to keep the cows pregant to keep them producting and any male calfs born and useless and it costs more to grow them up than they would get so they just shoot them in the head. So mean.

i voted yes cuz we wear leather not much of a diffrence if u ask me

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Originally Posted by DarkSean

Yeah I don't like waste. Which is why I don't like the milk industry. They have to keep the cows pregant to keep them producting and any male calfs born and useless and it costs more to grow them up than they would get so they just shoot them in the head. So mean.

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Not so. A good dairy animal can stay in milk for a year (an exceptional one, two years). Once production tapers off, they're bred again, generally once a year. Just like meat cattle. Male calves aren't always destroyed. That, if anything, would be a waste, especially since you couldn't do anything with the carcass. Dairy animals generally don't have enough meat on them for food. Generally they're sold to other farms, or sent to auction.

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Originally Posted by CoolioTiffany

Plus, to me, it's just a waste of money buying something I don't really even need.

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Do you really need all of those snakes you own? :gj: If it's just of money, I am willing to buy a few :D

All this talk of fur and leather has made me want a new stole. Any suggestions? Red fox? silver fox or raccoon?

With digital imagery today I dont see the need for killing reptiles for clothing when it can be reproduced quite easily artificially. In the old days you had to kill a croc or snake to make wallets, boots, shoes, suitcases and other products. People have always enjoyed reptile designs for the same reason we probably enjoy breeding BP morphs, they are beautiful! But with todays technology I dont see the need to kill the animal just for the hide. I am currently working on some clothing designs with reptile patterns but it is all reproduced digitall, no need to kill anything anymore. A camera and a computer is all you need. You can even adjust colors, use different materials for different applications etc...

I agree with earlier posts that reptile skins dont wear so great and also that native americans used animal hides for clothing but also respected the animals and used every part as not to waste.

I voted no

No animal should be killed for clothing

There's no way in heck I'd wear dog fur, so there's no way in heck I'd wear snake skin.

Also, videos like these deter me from wearing them. I'm sure some of you have seen these before. There are more videos on the skinning/drying process if you click to the lizardkingbooks homepage.

YouTube - Bryan Christy on Assignment: Reptile Slaughterhouse



Dennis

I surely would.

For me it all comes down to the care of the animals while they are alive, and the process by which they are slaughtered. If it is all done humanely, I have no problem with it.

When I was in Australia for a month or so visiting my brother after he finished up a study abroad program there, one of the things we did was go on a tour of a croc farm.

I was thoroughly impressed with the care and maintenance of the facility and their animals. The breeders were basically kept in all naturalistic enclosures that rival some of the best zoo and other captive croc enclosures in the world. The young were raised communally, divided by size, in concrete ponds with some of the cleanest water I've ever seen. I don't know how they do it, but keeping water clean with an enclosure full of young to adolescent crocs is freaking hard.

I ate croc while I was in Australia. It really would surprise me if it didn't come from that farm because there aren't a ton of croc farms in the country. I would happily buy a croc wallet from them if I was in the market for one, and if it were legal in the US (it isn't, it is too hard to distinguish saltwater croc skin from american croc skin).

When people raise cows, every bit of the cow gets used. The meat is sold as, well, meat. The hide is turned into everything from shoes to car seats. The hooves are turned to glue and the bones are probably a big component in reptile calcium supplements. I have no issues with leather wallets as long as the cows are raised and slaughtered humanely, and there is no waste with the remnant parts of the animals. The same goes for reptiles.

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Originally Posted by Hapa_Haole

There's no way in heck I'd wear dog fur, so there's no way in heck I'd wear snake skin.

Also, videos like these deter me from wearing them. I'm sure some of you have seen these before. There are more videos on the skinning/drying process if you click to the lizardkingbooks homepage.


Dennis

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That video shows nothing but the skinning of an animal. There is nothing wrong with that. How do you think they get that peice of steak or burger or chicken nugget?

If anything the video shows people with great skill.

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Originally Posted by DarkSean

That video shows nothing but the skinning of an animal. There is nothing wrong with that. How do you think they get that peice of steak or burger or chicken nugget?

If anything the video shows people with great skill.

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Exactly. Its the simple fact that I own reptiles that makes me not like it (going back to my dog comment).

I understand that animals must die for others to live (although I'm not sure how killing reptiles sustains human life), I just avoid eating/using the animals I have certain affinities for.

Dennis

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Originally Posted by Hapa_Haole

Exactly. Its the simple fact that I own reptiles that makes me not like it (going back to my dog comment).

I understand that animals must die for others to live (although I'm not sure how killing reptiles sustains human life), I just avoid eating/using the animals I have certain affinities for.

Dennis

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Ahhh right. I understand, thats understandable. Well I guess you could see it as those people have to earn a living, im sure they have families and im sure its not really a first choice job for most of them but something they have to do to live.

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Originally Posted by shooter bc420

I voted no

No animal should be killed for clothing

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I agree especially not for ugly, and tacky clothing lets face it everyone in wearing animal fur or skin looks tacky.

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Originally Posted by DarkComeSoon

I agree especially not for ugly, and tacky clothing lets face it everyone in wearing animal fur or skin looks tacky.

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Boo! hiss boo

I'm sorry, but people wearing leather do not look tacky to me... <lol>

One other comment--never think for a moment that anything in the fur or meat industry EVER 'goes to waste'. If there is a scrap of value to be had from part of that animal, it will be had. The meat is turned into pet food, most of the time. The bones are ground into meal for feed additives and soil amendments. Hooves are turned into glue and other products. You would honestly be amazed if you knew just how many products are made from the parts of the animal that aren't eaten or worn as clothing.

Nutria fur farmers sell the skinned nutria as feeders, and alligator farmers buy them in bulk to feed their gators (for example).

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Originally Posted by DarkComeSoon

I agree especially not for ugly, and tacky clothing lets face it everyone in wearing animal fur or skin looks tacky.

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I think it looks quite good. Plus, it has the bonus of being pretty warm.

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Originally Posted by DarkComeSoon

I agree especially not for ugly, and tacky clothing lets face it everyone in wearing animal fur or skin looks tacky.

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thats all a matter of taste, there is someone that thinks the exact same about how you dress and for every style there are people that think its the uglyest way to dress in the world.

My favorite animals are the crocodilians. Many farms throughout the world aid with the conservation efforts of these beautiful animals by reducing the market on wild animals, educating the public, and even helping to provide viable breeding populations for areas that have seen reduced numbers.

They make much of the monies needed to maintain the farms through sales in skin and meat.

BIG YES for me when I think of this question. It is my responsibility to make sure the origin of the product.

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Originally Posted by Raptor

I think it looks quite good. Plus, it has the bonus of being pretty warm.

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Yeah, as much as faux fur is cool, it will never be as good (look, feel and warmth) as real fur.

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Originally Posted by Heartlandherper

My favorite animals are the crocodilians. Many farms throughout the world aid with the conservation efforts of these beautiful animals by reducing the market on wild animals, educating the public, and even helping to provide viable breeding populations for areas that have seen reduced numbers.

They make much of the monies needed to maintain the farms through sales in skin and meat.

BIG YES for me when I think of this question. It is my responsibility to make sure the origin of the product.

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Yeah they are good points