A STRICT vegan is cashing in on dead animals by turning them into fashion accessories including handbags and sporrans.
Emma Willats says she is making a killing with her products in big demand.
But the taxidermist claims she sees no hypocrisy in how she earns a living as long as the animal has not be deliberately killed.
She depicts the faces of the dead animals on some of her products such hand bags and sporrans – a traditional Scottish pouch worn round the waist – for which she charges up to £750 a piece.
She said: “The way I look at it is that if something has been killed for me then that’s wrong.
“But if it’s something that’s died naturally or been run over then we should try to preserve it in some way.
“It feels like a bigger waste to just throw an animal to the wayside once it’s dead. It’s better to use them in taxidermy than have some council employee just discard them.”
The unusual form of taxidermy sees her use the bodies of animals such as foxes, badgers and raccoons to make an array of accessories.
Ms Willats, 32, from Marnoch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, has turned her taxidermy hobby into a full-time job.
She uses foxes, badgers, hares, raccoons and other animals to ply her trade.
Ms Willats, insists her interest in taxidermy does not contradict her vegan lifestyle.
She added: “A lot of friends have been embracing my weird job and letting me know if they ever find some roadkill.
“I’ll either collect it or, in some cases, they’ll bring me the dead animal to see if it was something I could work with.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get bored of taxidermy.”
