When using a perfume could you imagine that you may put the extraction of an animal’s anal gland on your skin? You may be surprised but this is exactly what Civet is.
What is civet
Civet is a catlike animal with a long tail and a long, pointed muzzle like that of an otter. Its various species are native to Africa and much of Asia. It belongs to the same family of animals used for the production of the famous Kopi Luwak coffee. The paste is the potent secretion produced by the perineal glands of both male and female civets.
Pure civet is a crude, buttery-yellow paste that turns darker with age. At full strength the tincture smells fecal and nauseating, but when diluted it has a radiant, velvety, floral scent. It gives great effects in perfumes, smoothing out rough patches, adding a sense of shimmer, diffusion, and warmth. Chemists have developed synthetic versions like civetone, but they can’t quite replicate the complexity and effects of natural civet.
Origin
These days civet paste from farmed animals is imported into Europe and the United States, virtually all of it from Ethiopia, traditionally shipped in the horns of zebu cattle. Each dried horn holds about five hundred grams of paste, the amount one civet can produce over a period of about four years.
The World Society for the Protection of Animals has investigated civet harvesting and found out that the animals are kept in tiny cages for years. Every few days the keepers scrape the civet out of the anal sacs, a painful procedure for the animal. There have been efforts for a thoroughly humane way of harvesting civet. Some companies claim that they keep animals in adequate space with proper care and the paste is harvested in a non painful way. However the animal is still confined and away from its natural environment.
In Ethiopia there have been efforts to collect the substance for the animal’s natural environment by marking the areas where it is deposited. This could be the solution for taking the substance without harming the animal but it seems that the production is not adequate for the demand.
Although most brands claim that they do not use animal ingredients, the demand for natural civet proves that it is still used. It only up to the consumers to stop this by asking for vegan perfumes.
