I am a bit confused, can you help?

Question

I was wondering if you could be vegan and still use things such as leather? I do not eat animal products and avoid useing/wearing them. But being an equestrian I have to use it for saddles and bridles ect.

So to be a vegan do you just not have to eat any animal product or do you also not have to use them?

Answer 1

Vegans do not use animal products that can easily be avoided as well as not eating animals. A saddle would fall under something easily avoided.
Personally I would think someone who rides horses can't be a Vegan anyways just because they ride horses. You could rescue horses but riding, buying, or selling horses is exploiting them, and that's not a Vegan thing to do. I know this may not be the most popular of opinions but if we are following the strict interpretation of the word, it's what makes the most sense.

VEGANISM may be defined as a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practical, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.

Answer 2

You need to disassociate yourself from all animal products to call yourself a vegan. For most its a compromise because of the hidden nature of some animal products in others. However i would say a leather saddle was not part of that compomise and should be avoided. There must be other ways to avoid a leather saddle. If you can't avoid the saddle, then i would suggest a real vegan would avoid horse riding. A real vegan would not, for example, keep a dog that cannto live on a vegan diet.

I agree with Matt H about riding horses.

We have pet sheep and cows, all rescues from farms. Most people claims we needed leather straps for the cows but no, we wove our own.

There must be alternatives to leather saddles. If they are very expensive, i still don't think its a reason to sue leather.

At best you are a vegetarian and fair do's to you. Its great.

I'm a veggie and personally cannot see how anyone being a veggie for moral reasons can wear leather.

i am one of 2 people in the UK who ordered my particular brand of car without leather seats !!! ( the extra cost me £7K..oh well. You either believe and commit to a belief, or you don't )

Answer 3

The term 'vegan' refers to more than just diet, it refers to an entire lifestyle that tries to exclude as many animal products from use as possible. Nobody can be 100% vegan - it's impossible. The tires of your car or bike have animal products in them. Those life-saving medications you might need either have animal products in them or were once tested on animals. Etc. We live in an imperfect world, and we are imperfect beings. A vegan should strive to be as vegan as possible. So this means that if there is a vegan alternative, you should take it.

If you are comfortable that the horses you ride are kept in humane conditions and aren't being exploited (this is something you have to decide for yourself), and you have elimiated all possible other means of finding vegan alternatives for the equipment, then it can just be looked upon as one of those unavoidable things in life we must use that have animal products in them.

I'm not sure if you own the horses, or if they are somebody else's, but if you are responsible for buying the equipment, perhaps you could buy used saddles, etc? That way you aren't specifically creating demand for new leather products, but recycling a product that otherwise might go to waste. I would also suggest not just tossing the leather saddles you currently have, but using them until they are worn out, or selling them if you are not comfortable using them.

Answer 4

By definition vegans do not use any animal products so using leather saddle would exclude you from legitimately calling yourself vegan. I don't call myself vegan simply because on occasion I eat soyfoods that contain trace amounts of dairy or egg. When people ask I simply state that I'm a total vegetarian; perhaps that might suit you also.

Answer 5

Well...my opinion is what's the difference between eating an animal and wearing one? The trouble is, so many things are made out of leather, and this could be a problem since you are an equestarian. Ever heard of 'pleather'? It's synthetic leather that feels pretty much the same. Try it!

Answer 6

It is my understanding that veganism is a dietary term. However, people are usually vegans for ethical reasons, and those reasons would normally extend to other products besides food (clothing etc).

I would therefore imagine that strictly speaking, a vegan could wear whatever they want and still call themselves vegan, but they would be contradicting their moral senses. I am pretty sure the vast majority of vegans would not use leather products or other animal skins.

Answer 7

I've known several vegans, and worked side-by-side with one. He felt VERY strongly about all animal products. He went so far as to order his non-leather shoes from Italy and had nothing to do with anything made from animals.

I think it's a matter of choice; some vegans seem to be more "hard core" than others.

Let your heart and head guide you - you'll find the right answer for yourself. :-)

Answer 8

The smell of horses and leather is a pretty strong 'perfume' isn't it? I too ride and while not a vegetarian (I eat fish and dairy) I understand your dilema somewhat.
If you are really concerned about it there are very good synthetic saddles (Some Wintecs are permissable in the show ring even) and bridles,halters,splint boots are available in synthetics as well. They llok good and have the bonus of being very easy to maintain.

Answer 9

Vegan is something that should come naturally to you- you should want to do it because you know about the animal abuse. Veganism is a lifestyle. If you are trying to find out if you can be vegan if you do this or that- you are not looking into the actual concept of veganism. have you gone into peta.org? vegansociety.org? They helped educate me on animal abuse. I no longe desired to use any animal product in any way.

Answer 10

As per the answer above, the simple fact that you ride horses would preclude you from describing yourself truly as a vegan. If you look at the website for the Vegan Society you will find lots of info regarding their opinions/attitudes on, for instance, keeping pets. Horse riding would be seen as enslaving what should be a wild animal.
Veganism isn't just a dietary description. It should refer to a whole lifestyle. It is, in today's world, extremely difficult to keep to a completely vegan lifestyle - but it does indeed preclude the use of any animal by-product (leather, wool, silk, honey etc etc).