Mohair
Curly-haired Angora goats endure repeated exposure to distressing shearing practices and painful mutilations for fashion products
Mohair is a luxury fibre produced from the long curly hair of the Angora goat, often found in luxury fashion products. Angora goats (of which the hair is used as 'Mohair') are not to be confused with Angora rabbits (of which the hair is used as 'Angora'). To harvest mohair, Angora goats are sheared twice a year. But keeping these goats for commercial purposes and harvesting their hair can come at a significant cost to their welfare.
Reports of unethical practices, poor welfare conditions and inhumane procedures are commonplace in the mohair industry. Goats are forced to endure painful mutilations such as dehorning and castration, often without anaesthesia, poor living conditions, rough handling during shearing and inappropriate slaughter methods.
Did You Know?
Most of the world’s mohair (over 50%) comes from South Africa, Turkey and USA.¹ Approximately 4,550 tonnes of mohair is produced annually², with one Angora goat usually producing up to 8kg of mohair wool per year.³ A typical life expectancy of an Angora goat is around 10 years.⁴ As soon as they are no longer profitable for mohair production, they are sold for meat production and slaughtered.
Animal welfare issues
Distressing Shearing Practices
- Shearing takes place twice a year. For goats, who are natural prey animals, being forcefully pinned down with tied up legs for the shearing process is extremely distressing.
- With workers who are compensated based on the number of goats shorn, the incentive to shear a goat quickly often results in rough handling and injuries which are often left untreated.8 The animals can also suffer from twisted guts afterwards which can be lethal.9
- Angora goats are also vulnerable to thermal stress, particularly during the first 6 weeks after shearing.10 Unlike sheep, goats do not have insulating layers of body fat to keep them sufficiently warm after shearing. Even in moderate temperatures, freshly shorn goats can be vulnerable to pneumonia, and some even die.11
Painful Mutilations
- When they are just around 1 week old, baby goats may be de-horned with a hot iron or with a caustic chemical paste that can cause severe burns or even blindness if it comes into contact with their skin or eyes. The procedure is very painful and bears the risk of many life-threatening consequences.5
- Male kid goats are often castrated using rubber rings or clamps. These methods can cause pain and distress for days, even weeks, as goats endure the slow process of waiting for the testes tissues to die off.6 They are also left susceptible to tetanus infections.7
- Here you can find more information about mutilations in (Angora) goats.
Transport & Slaughter
- Angora goats may be sheared at locations away from where they are kept or transported to slaughterhouses. They might even be tightened by ropes during the transports. Many experience stress due to fear, unfamiliar surroundings, unstable footing, vehicle movement, prolonged standing, and lack of access to food and water.12
- Goats may be slaughtered without adequate prior stunning and after having experienced further distress from transportation, handling, and separation from their herd.
FOUR PAWS calls for:
- Ban on distressing shearing procedures and painful mutilations
- Improved human-animal relationship to minimise the animal’s stress
- Higher standards during transport and slaughter
- Better management of animals and fulfilment of their basic needs
What we are doing
Through our Wear it Kind programme, we are building a worldwide movement of people, designers, and brands who are demanding kindness to animals used in fashion.
FOUR PAWS is committed to exposing the truth behind fashion, we are contributing to the development of animal welfare certification initiatives, and we are supporting them to make the changes needed to stop animals suffering in the name of fashion. Through our work we want to see an end to animal suffering, and we fight for continuous and meaningful improvements to the physical and mental health wellbeing.
What you can do
To make kinder fashion choices, you can avoid mohair and shop for animal-friendly alternatives. You could also consider buying second-hand clothing, if you are buying brand-new, there are several sustainable alternatives. You can find out more in our animal-friendly shopping guide.
- Take the Wear it Kind pledge and show the world you want fashion free from animal suffering.
- Use our Wear it Kind Shopping Guide and Kind Knitting Guide to find out more about alternative materials to mohair and other ways you can show compassion in fashion.
- If you want to purchase mohair, at minimum, ensure it is certified by Responsible Mohair Standard (RMS), however its vital to remain aware that while such certifications can help to mitigate animal welfare risks, they do not remove them entirely.
Source
2. Correspondent S. Sustainability Drives Hit as Global Fibre Production Rises and Recycling Intake Dips for First Time. texfash.com. 2023 Dec 2 [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://texfash.com/update/sustainability-drives-hit-as-global-fibre-production-rises-and-recycling-intake-dips-for-first-time
3. Resources U of C Division of Agriculture and Natural. Angora Goats: A Small-Scale Agriculture Alternative. [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://sfp.ucanr.edu/pubs/brochures/ANGORA/
4. Garman J. How Long do Goats Live? Goat Journal. 2020 [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://goatjournal.iamcountryside.com/health/how-long-do-goats-live/
5. Hempstead M, Waas J, Stewart M, Sutherland M. Goat kids are not small calves: Species comparisons in relation to disbudding. Animal Welfare. 2020;29(3):293–312. https://doi.org/10.7120/09627286.29.3.293
6. Small Ruminant Castration. [accessed 2024 Nov 20]. https://open.lib.umn.edu/app/uploads/sites/208/2018/11/sm-rumin-castration-web-doc.pdf
7. How to perform a castration on Angora Goat. SA Mohair Growers. [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://www.angoras.co.za/article/how-to-perform-a-castration-on-angora-goat
8. Shearing Guidelines. SA Mohair Growers. [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://www.angoras.co.za/article/shearing-guidelines?_jtsuid=87108170678772259494807
9. “Twisted gut” “Draaiderm” “Rooiderm.” SA Mohair Growers. [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://www.angoras.co.za/article/twisted-gut-draaiderm-rooiderm
10. Why do Angora goats seem to die more from cold during summer than winter? SA Mohair Growers. [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://www.angoras.co.za/article/why-do-angora-goats-seem-to-die-more-from-cold-during-summer-than-winter
11. Hetem RS et al. Shearing at the end of summer affects body temperature of free-living Angora goats (Capra aegagrus) more than does shearing at the end of winter. Animal. 2009;3(7):1025–1036. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731109004364
12. Transporting Angora goats. SA Mohair Growers. [accessed 2024 Nov 19]. https://www.angoras.co.za/article/transporting-angora-goats