Components

Sheepskin

Sheepskin Colour Chart

Black	Dark Brown	Mid Brown	Light Brown	Dark Grey	Mid Grey	Light Grey	Forest Green	Oaten

Possum Fur

Please do your bit for the New Zealand environment by purchasing Possum products!

We have far too many possums! The New Zealand brush-tail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) was introduced from Australia to New Zealand in 1837 under government sanction, to establish a fur industry.

However, the fur trade died out during the late 1970s due to the success or the worldwide anti-fur lobby, and as a consequence the NZ possum population exploded. It is now estimated that there are up to 60 million brush-tail possums in New Zealand consuming 21 thousand tons of native forest vegetation nightly! In Australia there are so few palatable plant species that possum numbers have never been a problem. Many Australian plants  have defenses against possums; e.g. spines, prickles or poisonous leaves. Palatable New Zealand plants, which evolved in a totally browser-free environment, do not any defenses at all.

The possums thrive on NZ indigenous trees like the pohutukawa, rata, totara, kowhai and kohekohe. They also compete with other animals for food (berries, fruits etc), thus they are at least partially responsible for a decline of rare plants, birds and animals. Worse, whilst they are herbivores, possums are known to steal eggs from the nests of native birds. Their over-browsing defoliates the trees, reducing and weakening forest canopies which then become susceptible to climatic extremes and attack by pathogens and insects.

Possums are also implicated in the transmission of Bovine Tuberculosis, and are thus seen as a serious threat to the countries dairy, beef and deer herds. 

The New Zealand government began possum control operations in the late 1940s. Over the years, control measures have included a bounty scheme, and the use of poisons such as 1080. The New Zealand government currently invests over $NZ58 million per year to control possums.

Possum Fur Colour Chart

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Components

Construction is made more complex by the variety of components on offer, outlined as follows E.g. 7 colours of suede used for both possum and sheepskin, 6 core colours of sheepskin and 2 main colours of possum for adults and heaps of colours for kids.

Possum Fur

Please help the New Zealand environment - purchase Possum products! The New Zealand brush-tail possum was introduced from Australia to New Zealand in 1837 under government sanction, to establish a fur industry... We now have too many possums! more....

Construction

The moccasin slippers and baby booties that we sell are all handmade crafts created from local materials. The construction process provides a great deal of opportunity for customisation for individual purchasers, as there are various options and components.