PETA is calling on Gordon Brown - the British Prime Minister and the Ministry of Defence (MoD), to stop using bear pelts to make headpieces for the five guard’s regiments and to have the hats fashioned from luxurious faux fur instead.

Bears are cruelly killed for their hides; they are either shot during hunts or ensnared, possibly for days, in painful traps. During hunts, as many as one bear in seven is not killed immediately after being shot, and some escape wounded, possibly dying later from blood loss or starvation. In some Canadian provinces, there are no restrictions on the shooting of mothers who have nursing cubs, leading to the slaughter of entire families during hunts.

For nearly two centuries, the MoD has waged a war on black bears while doing nothing to further the search for synthetic materials. In fact, when it was presented with high-tech synthetic materials by PETA - sourced from leading faux-fur manufacturers around the world and made to the MoD's own specifications, the MoD do no more than drag their feet and come up with lame excuses for not using the synthetic alternatives.

Sign the petition to Prime Minister Gordon Brown in support of bears today!