Nauset Kennels

Like many of you, we are concerned with our environmental impact or carbon footprint. We try hard to recycle (Jules tries to recycle everything!). Products are not just haphazardly picked up and put in our cart; instead, we read the label for chemicals and try to find products that share our philosophy. If you asked Kirsten about my preferences, our doggy day care bus and van would be running on solar or veggie oil and the whole kennel would be completely “off the grid.”

And while we did all kinds of research for our new building, for some reason I didn’t think about our carbon footprint in terms of our own personal animals. Oh yeah, Scout, Pecan and Hoot are leaving their own carbon paw prints too.

From the type of food we feed them to the various products we use on them, our personal pets do indeed have an environmental impact.

Hoot’s biggest problem is her poop and what to do with it. Cat poop contains toxoplasma, a parasite that is very harmful. When kitty poop is flushed into the toilet, many water treatment centers cannot destroy this parasite. Kitty litter isn’t really compostable because of the toxoplasma.

Hoot’s other issue, related to the poop, is kitty litter. For cat owners, clumping kitty litter is the next best thing to sliced bread. However, clay based litters have big environmental issues, from the mining to its production. And while the new plant based litters are good and maybe a better environmental choice, the question about the actual poop and what to do with it remains.

Pecan and Scout also have issues. First of all, let’s talk about packaging. Like kids’ toys, dog toys, treats and foods all contribute packaging waste, and lots of it. (Alright, you parents of human kids out there know that human kid toys are actually probably 5,000 times worse than dog toy packaging!). In the kennel, we throw out lots of bags every week, most of which cannot be recycled because they are foil lined and the foil seems permanently glued to the paper.

Speaking of toys, if dogs are color-blind, why do we need such brightly colored dog toys? And why do we need so many of them? Many dogs are thrilled to have a toy or a tennis ball. Or, if you just can’t forgo buying your Scout another toy, then consider buying a “green toy,” one that is made of recycled or natural materials by a local company that isn’t shipping from halfway around the world.

Yet another issue is a familiar one: poop. If you don’t clean up after your pet, you might not realize that pet feces can pollute storm water. If you are a good dog owner, you pick up after your pet. But if you use a plastic bag that isn’t degradable, then poop on you! Hmmm…this poop is really a problem. Maybe a robotic pet is the answer?

So, let’s talk about the food that produces all that poop. Dogs and cats are meat eaters, even if you aren’t. It is in their DNA to be carnivores. Where does all that meat in our pet food come from? Well, like human food, you can either go with the food that uses high-volume farming practices or choose to buy from local farmers practicing sustainable farming. Of course, that comes with a price too: a higher dollar figure.

Unlike the controversial idea posed by the New Zealand sustainable architects Robert and Brenda Vale in their book, Time to Eat the Dog: The real guide to sustainable living, I am not proposing anything other than thinking and educating yourself before you buy. Think before you buy that fourth pet. Think before you buy yet another pet toy. Educate yourself on food that are environmentally friendlier, but affordable for you.

According to Maps of World, the US has an estimated 61,080,000 dogs, while Brazil has an estimated 30, 051,000 (http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-top-ten/countries-with-most-pet-dog-population.html) mounds of dog poop, toy trash, and dog food bags! And that’s not including the number of cats in our world.

While we’re all trying to figure this out, Scout, Pecan and I will see you all at the recycling center. Hoot is staying at home enjoying her homemade catnip toy (okay, so that’s a stretch!).

For more information, the following links proved helpful:

Katterns, Tanya. “Save the Planet: Eat a Dog?”. May 23, 2010. <http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/national/2987821/Save-the-planet-eat-a-dog>

Keith, Christie. “The Environmental Impact of Pets”. May 23, 2010. <http://articles.sfgate.com/2007-11-27/living/17267881_1_recycled-pet-supplies-interactive-toys/2>

Nestle, Marion. “No, My Dog is Not Destroying the Environment”. May 23, 2010. <http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/blogs/healthy-food/pets-environmental-impact-47122303>

Postins, Lucy. “Environmental Paw Print” . May 23, 2010. < http://www.greenlivingtips.com/articles/213/1/Environmental-paw-print.html>

Tags: carbon footprint, environment, pets

This entry was posted on Friday, May 28th, 2010 at 9:55 pm and is filed under Informative. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.