PETA pens open letter to Conor McGregor urging him to stop wearing fur

Animal rights organisation says 'fur is dead'

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PETA has urged mixed martial artist and boxer Conor McGregor to stop wearing fur and donate his mink coats to the group’s amnesty programme.

On Wednesday, the animal rights organisation penned an open letter to McGregor calling for him to give animals a “fighting chance” after the athlete shared photographs of his collection of Gucci fur coats on Instagram.

The note, signed by Elisa Allen, director of PETA, detailed the cruel conditions involved in fur farming before pleading with the UFC fighter to join the ever-growing list of fur-free stars.

“Although it's too late to help the animals who were killed for your coats, you can help prevent more animals from suffering by donating these pieces to PETA,” Allen wrote.

The animal rights activist went on to explain how the coats would be put to good use if McGregor was to donate them to its fur amnesty programme.

Allen suggested that PETA could use the garments in a display to inform people about the fur trade, give them to refugees in war-torn countries or people sleeping rough and even use them as bedding for orphaned animals.

“Fur is dead,” Allen continued.

“And since Ireland announced last week that it's phasing out fur farming, that message has never been clearer.

“So what do you say? Will you help us knock out cruelty to animals by swearing off fur and donating your coats?”

The letter comes after the boxer received criticism on Instagram from animal rights campaigners for sharing a post about his one-of-a-kind coats from Gucci, which are both made of mink fur.

In the caption, McGregor explained that he spent $55,000 (£43,730) on the white coat shown in the first image, while the one featuring a dragon design on the back cost him $80,000 (£63,608).

“They are now even more rare and iconic, as Gucci have since discontinued all animal skin clothing from their line,” McGregor wrote before explaining that he is currently storing them in a large freezer – a tip he said he learned from fashion designer Donatella Versace at the British Fashion Awards.

Gucci discontinued the use of fur in its collections in October 2017.

The athlete concluded the post by saying he plans to leave the coats to his children as he expects they will be worth “a hell of a lot” in years to come.

Many social media users commented on the post to criticise McGregor for purchasing the fur coats.

“Cool, let’s brag about animals who were brutally killed and skinned made into a coat and how you paid a stupid amount of money for them”, one person wrote.

Another added: “Baffles me why you would brag about wearing a dead animal that had a desire to live.”

A spokesperson from PETA has confirmed to The Independent that the organisation is yet to receive a reply from the boxing champion.

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“We’ve not heard a response from McGregor yet, but we’re hopeful that he’s considering our request,” the spokesperson said.

Should McGregor decide to donate his furs to PETA, he will find himself in good company as a number of celebrities including Mariah Carey, Kim Cattrall, and Anjelica Huston have already done so.

In 2006, Carey donated two fur coats that were sent to her by a Russian fan to the organisation, while in 2013 Cattrall gave PETA the coats which were used in the Sex and the City movie.

Last year, Huston donated her old furs, including a lynx-fur jacket, a muskrat fur-trimmed coat and a black rabbit-fur hat, to the group.

Some of the coats were used to help keep the homeless warm while others were sent to orphaned wildlife.