Leaping Bunny Certified: The Standard of the Future

Leaping Bunny Certified: The Standard of the Future

When you think of leading haircare brands like L’Oreal and Pantene, you’re probably not aware of the widespread animal cruelty that goes into the production of these products.

While many haircare products may claim to be cruelty free, that’s often a bold-faced lie. The claims “cruelty free” and “no animal testing” actually don’t have any regulation within the U.S., meaning these terms are practically worthless. “The Leaping Bunny Logo is the only internationally recognized symbol guaranteeing consumers that no new animal tests were used in the development of any product displaying it.”

In order for a product to get the Leaping Bunny  Certification, it’s required that all raw ingredients, fragrances, and manufacturers are 100% cruelty free with absolutely no animal testing.

The unfortunate truth is that compared to the massive amount of haircare products being sold, very few of them actually adhere to the Leaping Bunny guidelines. In fact, 88% of top beauty companies fund animal testing. At House of Dear, we believe that no animal should suffer on behalf of our products, so that’s why we are proudly Leaping Bunny certified. We’re avid pioneers of standardizing cruelty-free testing methods, and we encourage our customers to support the movement as well.

We believe that at some point in the hopefully near future, all products will be held to this standard. Younger generations are demanding more from corporate-world ethics, and animal testing is an outdated, unnecessary tactic that will not be tolerated by future generations. Actually, 70% of people worldwide believe that animal testing should be banned. So far one fifth of all countries have banned animal testing, but the U.S. is not one of them (yet). The fact of the matter is that consumers hold the power in pushing this movement forward. Continuing to support companies that use these archaic practices is perpetuating the problem. By choosing products that are Leaping Bunny Certified, consumers can essentially vote with their money to save helpless animals from abuse and build a more compassionate, humane future.

Certified cruelty-free products are an expression of respect for the animals that we share this incredible planet with. From cuddly bunnies to intelligent monkeys, an estimated 500,000 of our fuzzy friends are being tortured and killed by cosmetics-related animal testing practices every year. That’s just the cosmetics industry alone… if you zoom out and look at animal testing as a whole, that number jumps to over 100 million. Animals are restrained while chemicals are forced into their eyes, skin, and mouths, and that’s just a small glimpse into the horror. Many of the animals are killed when testing is completed. Needless to say, this abuse is full of pain, and cannot even be “justified” by the notion that this sort of testing is a necessary evil to protect humans. 

Modern science has come a long way since the inception of animal testing, and the same results can be determined without the use of cruelty against a living creature. There are very few modern circumstances in which cosmetics-related animal testing be should be considered “the only way” to determine whether or not a product is safe for human use. A scientific report released in 2007 identified how modern methods can rely on human cells, rather than living creatures, which results in tests being more efficient, informative, and less costly.

What do you stand for, and how do your consumer-based actions align with your values? It’s time to step into the future and raise the bar of what is and is not acceptable. If you’d like to support us in our efforts to modernize the cosmetics industry, take the haircare quiz and shop the House of Dear Collection.