Vegans avoiding wool products isn't understood by many people. Since sheep need to be shorn to remove their excess wool, people don't really see anything wrong with the wool industry.

One simple reason vegans avoid wool is because it involves the exploitation of sheep. What most people don't realize however, is that the wool industry also involves a lot of cruelty.

Sheep need to be sheared. OK, so sheep do grow wool naturally. This is where the parallel between myth and truth stops. Sheep grow wool as protection for themselves. As a result, they have evolved to grow just enough wool for protection from the cold and to keep cool in the summer. Wild sheep do not need to be sheared. Their time of shedding occurs when it is of benefit to them. In Australia, domestic sheep are shorn in spring, after lambing, before they would naturally shed their winter coats. To get all the shearing done in time, it starts before it is healthy for the sheep. As a result, an estimated one million sheep die from exposure after premature shearing. Not only is the time of shearing unsuitable for the sheep, but the way in which it is done can be quite damaging for the sheep;"...flies feed on shearing wounds or the thin, exposed skin which delays wound healing or causes wounds..."

Merino wool, angora wool, shahmina wool, shahtoosh wool, vicuña wool, "pure" wool… behind the colors, the softness, the expensive tag, the brand, the style… there is ONE story: the story of confinement, of loneliness, of trauma, of bereavement, of illnesses, of deliberate physical hurt, of loveless touches, of being used, of being abused, of suffering in the cold, of suffering in the heat, of suffering without food, of suffering without water, of smelling death, of suffering in silence…

Guilty-free, kind woolens are not only possible, they exist. Vegan woolens are warm without being bulky and besides are easy to maintain, less costly, environment-friendly, colorful, and stylish. Vegan warm clothes are made from humane fabrics such as cotton, acrylic, polyester or polar fleece, orlon, gore-tex, polarguard, polartec, thinsulate, and any other wool fabric preceded by the term "synthetic". The labels clearly indicate which.

i choose not to knit with animal fibres, but there are all kinds of interesting yarns that i do choose to knit with. this is a constantly-updated list of non-animal yarns that i have heard about, have knit with or have been coveting. More….