The Agony in Your Pillow and Jacket: Time to Ditch the Down

by Stephanie Ernst

category: Farm Animals

Published November 03, 2009 @ 06:52AM PT

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We've talked about leather on this blog (e.g., here and here). We've talked about wool (e.g., here and here). We've talked about fur. But we haven't talked about one of the other animal products few people give much thought to: down, the soft feathers that start out on geese and ducks -- who need them -- but end up in humans' pillows, comforters, and jackets, but only after we force much suffering on the birds, who are ultimately destined for violent slaughter.

Despite the fact that down and its victims do not generally get as much attention as other animal products and animal victims, animal activists have been stepping up and standing up for these birds noticeably recently. First, Ari Solomon wrote an excellent piece titled "Down with the Truth" at Huffington Post in late September, after listening to a Food for Thought podcast on the topic (which I'm afraid I haven't heard), and last week, my friend and animal advocate Marie from Texas shared a video on Facebook I'd never seen before -- showing the live-plucking. The latter is what reminded me that down still needs to be addressed in this space (thanks, Marie).

As Ari pointed out, people may assume that the feathers fall out, and humans merely collect them. But that's not at all how it happens. Explains Ari,

If you're taking feathers off a bird, there are two ways to do it: you can rip them off while the bird is still alive, or you can rip them off after the bird is dead. The feather industry considers feathers from live birds better quality, hence they're more valuable. So geese and ducks get "live-plucked" 3 to 4 times a year. This happens from the time they are 10 weeks until they're 4 years old. Then they're sent to slaughter for their flesh. Ducks and geese in the wild have a lifespan of 12-15 years.

They suffer through a life of repeated trauma, pain, and suffering, right up until brutal slaughter. And the similarities to (1) wool and "mutton" or "lamb" and (2) leather and "beef" (and, really, dairy and "veal" too, as well as eggs) are notable. The exploitation of and injury to animals for their wool, feathers, milk, and eggs and the killing of animals for their skin are tied up in the killing of animals for food. If you don't eat animals, but you still use down, wear leather or fur, or consume dairy and eggs, you're still a part of the processes. You're still creating demand and paying for these young animals' slaughter. The killing of animals for food is profitable not just because people will buy their flesh and milk -- but also because people will buy the other so-called products and byproducts of these industries. And whatever the animals are initially exploited for, they're always slaughtered in the end.

Back to specifically down: Down-alternative pillows and comforters are widely available and just as comfortable as those that depend on the suffering and killing of geese and ducks. Winter jackets with alternative fills, such as those made from recycled plastic bottles or bamboo fibers, will keep you just as warm. Please, for the birds, ditch the down.

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Photo by Flickr user zenera

Read more from Ari's post here.

If you choose to watch the earlier-mentioned video below, you'll see and hear the birds struggling and crying out as they're restrained and the feathers are ripped from their bodies. And you'll see them stumbling around afterward, disoriented from the painful experience.