The Humane Society of the United States today revealed that Macy's is selling a coat advertised as containing faux fur that contains real fur that is visually similar to that of raccoon dogs killed inhumanely in China. The news comes just days after other fur garments were discovered falsely advertised as faux at Burlington Coat Factory and Loehmann's, revealing an industry-wide problem with fur labeling.

The latest discovery is a Sean John brand jacket advertised on the Macy's website as having an "imitation rabbit fur collar" and "Nylon/faux fur/goose down." Only after our investigators purchased the coat could they read the labels stating that the coat is "Made in China" and trimmed with "genuine raccoon fur."

The HSUS has submitted the fur for DNA testing, to determine whether it is raccoon dog, a type of dog raised in China whose fur resembles raccoon. Animal welfare groups, including The HSUS, have documented extremely cruel conditions under which fur-bearing animals—including dogs, cats and raccoon dogs—are raised and killed in China, including video that shows animals being skinned alive. At least half of all finished fur products entering the United States for sale come from China.

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Earlier this week, The HSUS revealed that Burlington Coat Factory was falsely advertising real fur garments as faux fur in newspaper circulars, on its web site and in store displays at its 350 locations nationwide. The company pulled the ads and has agreed to discuss its fur policy with The HSUS. The HSUS has also submitted those fur garments, which were labeled as raccoon fur and coyote fur from China, for DNA testing to determine whether they are dog fur.

Industry-wide problems are not limited to incorrect advertising. Many jackets sold in the United States with real fur trim are not required even to indicate the presence of fur on the label, leading consumers to guess whether the trim is real or faux. The HSUS is working to close this loophole through federal legislation. Congress adjourned last week without taking action on a fur-labeling bill, but The HSUS intends to seek reintroduction of the measure in 2007.

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Update: 12/24/2006

Macy's has pulled from its shelves and its Web site two styles of Sean John hooded jackets, originally advertised as featuring faux fur, after an investigation by the nation's largest animal protection organization concluded that the garments were actually made from a certain species of dog called "raccoon dog."

"First these jackets were falsely advertised as faux fur, and then it turned out that the fur came from a type of dog," said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States.

Pacelle added that the issue is an "industry-wide problem" and its investigation demonstrated that retailers and designers "aren't paying close enough attention to the fur trim they are selling." He added that the issue is especially problematic when "the fur is sourced from China where domestic dogs and cats and raccoon dogs are killed in gruesome ways."

Raccoon dogs -- which are not domestic animals -- are indigenous to Asia, including eastern Siberia and Japan, and have been raised in large numbers because their fur closely resembles raccoon, Pacelle said.

Orlando Veras, a spokesman at Macy's, a division of Federated Department Stores Inc., confirmed Friday that the retailer had removed the jackets, releasing a statement saying that it has a "long-standing policy against the selling of any dog or cat fur." He continued, "This policy is clearly communicated to all suppliers."

The Sean John jackets -- one a snorkel style, the other a classic version -- had been labeled "raccoon fur," but were advertised as faux fur, Pacelle said.

In a statement by Sean "Diddy" Combs released by his publicist Hampton Carney, the designer said: "I was completely unaware of the nature of this material, but as soon as we were alerted, the garments were pulled off the Macy's floor and Web site. I have instructed our outerwear licensee to cease the production of any garments using this material immediately."

Macy's removal of the coats comes on the heels of other tests conducted by the Humane Society of the United States on a range of fur-trimmed jackets from retailers such as Burlington Coat Factory, Bloomingdale's, J.C. Penney and Saks Fifth Avenue as well as from designers and clothing lines such as Baby Phat, Andrew Marc, MaxMara and Calvin Klein. Those tests revealed that most of the jackets labeled as "raccoon" or coyote" from China in fact contained fur from raccoon dogs.

Of the 10 garments tested by the Humane Society, nine tested positive as raccoon dog fur and were mislabeled, a violation of federal law.

The Humane Society is also calling upon Congress to amend the Dog and Cat Protection Act -- which bans the sale of dog or cat fur in the United States -- to include raccoon dog, since the organization says these dogs are so "inhumanely" killed and their species are similar to domesticated dogs.

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