I had an interesting discussion about this article in an oddities group, in which many of these bats are sold, the other day.
Again there were several people saying basically “I didn’t realize that the mummified bat trade was actively funding bat slaughters, so I won’t buy or sell any (more.) I only want to be involved in sustainable vulture culture, utilizing waste, not killing animals only for their preserved remains.”
Only one person defended the practice, saying that the people who kill and sell the bats are poor.
I was surprised, though, to see a lot of people saying that they didn’t care that they were buying or selling animals that were killed specifically for decor, and didn’t even want people to talk about it.
“Don’t like it, don’t buy it.”
“Who cares? People kill chickens all the time.”
“That’s nice sweetie…I have a business to run.”
I am just a little bit surprised that there are so many people in vulture culture and oddities who don’t really believe in considering the ethical and environmental impact of their trade, or even about transparently telling their clients where the animals came from. Not all are like that of course, not even all bat sellers. But for those of you who don’t want to support killing animals….it’s complicated.
