Reduce your Pet’s Carbon Paw Print

 
Everyone is talking about reducing their carbon footprint but what about our furry friends.  According to The Humane Society of the United States American households are home to 78 million dogs and 88 million cats.  Here in Northern Virginia there are more than half a million dogs. Even at just a few ounces of dog poop per day, that adds up to more than 50 million pounds per year. 

Here are some statistics from Stuff Happens with Bill Nye.

• 40% pet owners don’t clean up after dogs
• 30% pollution in typical stream is dog poop
• It takes 100yrs for plastic bag to degrade
• 1 dog + 1 bag per poop = about 1000 dog bags per year

In Arlington that would equal a lot of poop filled plastic bags.  Try using biodegradable bags which can be found at your local pet stores.  AND it’s not just the dogs that impact the environment; cats have BIG CARBON PAWS too.    
  

 

Cat litter

• 1947 litter invented
• Most commercial litters are made of clay or sodium bentonite which soaks up 10xs its weight in water.
• It doesn’t biodegrade.
• 2 billion tons per year goes to the landfill.
• The process starts with strip mining for kitty litter.

There are alternative and environmentally friendly options for cat litter out there and you can always attempt toilet training your cat, I haven’t been successful yet.  But it sure would be funny to come home and see one of my boys sitting on the toilet reading the latest issue of Cat Fancy.  Here are some other tips to Green Your Pet .