#7 Wool is not just a trim: What happens to sheep in the wool industry | Interview with Claire Hamlett

Wool is often marketed as a natural, sustainable, and animal-friendly material. But that's actually very far from the truth. What's really happening to the sheep in the wool industry? In this interview, we sit down with Claire Hamlett, PhD researcher in animal ethics & freelance journalist covering animals, environment, and climate. We pull back the curtain on the wool industry's less talked-about dark side, from selective breeding and routine mutilations to its high environmental impact.In this episode, you'll find out:★ Why sheep "needing" to be sheared is a human-made problem★ What sheep in the wool industry are put through: mulesing, tail docking, and castration ★ Why the so-called high UK animal welfare regulations fall short in practice★ Why sheep grazing in open fields isn't the idyllic picture it's painted as★ The environmental impact of wool, and how it compares to cotton★ What to wear instead of wool (and no, it's not synthetics)🐑 Learn more about Claire Hamlett's work: https://clairehamlett.weebly.com/Mentioned in the episode:📚 HOGWOOD: a modern horror story (about multiple investigations by Viva! into a pig farm in Somerset): https://viva.org.uk/animals/campaigns/hogwood-a-modern-horror-story/📚 Shear Destruction: Wool, Fashion and the Biodiversity Crisis by the Center for Biological Diversity & Collective Fashion Justice (environmental data comparing Australian merino wool sweater vs. cotton one): https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/population_and_sustainability/pdfs/shear_destruction_final_report.pdf📚 Human hair sweater? If your first thought is “Ew”, read this: https://www.shoplikeyougiveadamn.com/blogs/human-hair-sweater-if-your-first-thought-is-ew-read-this/bl-463📚 Why Don't Vegans Wear Wool?: https://www.shoplikeyougiveadamn.com/blogs/why-dont-vegans-wear-wool-/bl-261📚 No wool collection (alternatives): https://www.shoplikeyougiveadamn.com/blogs/no-wool-collection/bl-411Find us on: 💚 Website: https://www.shoplikeyougiveadamn.com 💚 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shoplikeyougiveadamn/ 💚 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@shoplikeyougiveadamnChapters:00:00 – Welcome & introduction01:52 – Is wool a byproduct of the meat industry?03:26 – The UK's insufficient animal welfare regulations04:04 – Why sheep are always kept outside in open fields05:57 – The "sheep need to be sheared" myth09:19 – The mutilations in the wool industry10:39 – What's mulesing?12:55 – Why "wool is natural" is misleading13:40 – Animal-free wool alternatives & wool vs. cotton15:44 – Final reflections