Denials involved seal furs (8)
I believe the answer is:
refusals
'denials' is the definition.
(refusal is a kind of denial)
'involved seal furs' is the wordplay.
'involved' indicates an anagram.
'seal'+'furs'='sealfurs'
'sealfurs' is an anagram of 'REFUSALS'.
(Other definitions for refusals that I've seen before include "problems for showjumpers?" , "negative decisions" , "Denials" .)