A North Vancouver furrier says an act of vandalism this week by animal rights activists won't deter him from his business.
"You think a couple of punks will deter me from business?" said Eugene Klein, who has been in the fur business 60 years.
"They're terrorists and they're just sneaking in the middle of the night," he said. "We will never quit."
This week Klein's home-based business Capilano Furs was one of four Lower Mainland fur companies targeted by the Animal Liberation Front, an extreme animal rights group.
Someone went to Klein's home on Delbrook Avenue in the early hours of Tuesday morning and spray-painted a new Dodge truck and Volkswagen in the driveway with red paint.
The same night, windows and signs at three other businesses in the Lower Mainland including Speiser Furs, Snowflake Canada and Pappas Furs were also hit with red paint.
The Animal Liberation Front later sent out a message claiming responsibility, saying the red paint was "to remind the public of the innocent blood spilled every day in the vicious fur trade."
Klein called the activists "yellow-bellied cowards" and said one of the vehicles hit with paint wasn't even his.
Klein said the cost of the damage is covered by insurance, so "every insurance holder is paying for it."
It's not the first time the business has been targeted. In October 2010, Klein's doorstep and cars in the driveway were covered in black paint.
"It's always the same thing," he said.
Klein said he has a surveillance camera set up to watch his property and has reported the latest incident to the police.
Klein said he had an inkling something might be up earlier when he noticed some people walking by his house during the day. One of them stopped and took a photo of his sign just as he was looking out the window, said Klein.
Cpl. Richard De Jong of the North Vancouver RCMP said police are now examining footage from Klein's security camera and are working with the Vancouver Police Department on the investigation.
In an anonymous statement, the Animal Liberation Front said it was dedicating the latest acts to "the hundreds of thousands of mink suffering and dying on the many filthy, polluted fur farms in the Lower Mainland." It also pointed to a fur auction in Seattle, warning participants that "every time you take a step forward, profiting off of violence, abuse and destruction of the natural world, we will be right behind you, ripping and tearing at your heels."
Klein said he doesn't agree with the activists, but he doesn't mind them expressing their opinions - as long as it's not through property damage and other illegal acts. "If they want to express their opinion, they can come knock on the door," he said. "They don't seem to understand we are not a killing machine."
Klein said he doesn't buy mink from local mink farms, although he added they are regulated and subject to inspection.
Most of the fur connected with his business comes from trappers up North, he said, where the income helps support Inuit and other First Nations people.
Klein added he doesn't see any reason why activists are picking on his business.
"Cows and sheep are slaughtered every day for SuperValu and Safeway," he said.
