Mink fur farming causes severe and chronic animal suffering in conditions that prevent the expression of natural behaviour and cause significant psychological distress.
Mink farming causes some of the most severe documented welfare failures in commercial animal production. Mink are solitary, wide-ranging semi-aquatic predators whose normal behaviour repertoire is entirely incompatible with cage farming. The chronic frustration of natural drives including swimming, hunting and territorial exploration causes endemic psychological distress manifested in stereotypies and self-mutilation. The behavioural evidence for suffering in farmed mink is unambiguous and extensive. The phase-out of mink farming across much of Europe reflects societal recognition that fur production cannot be justified given the documented welfare cost.