AfSD\u2122(ADVOCATE FOR SAVING DOGS\u2122and all living creatures)<\/a><\/p>\n
Posted by Green Your Pets: <\/font><\/p>\n Download my friend Patricia Dines, of www.askecogirl.info<\/u><\/b><\/a> excellent information: <\/p>\n Protecting Your Family From Toxic Pet Products<\/font><\/u><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n And my blog:<\/p>\n Feeding dogs and cats an Earth friendly healthy diet<\/font><\/u><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n Pets are such a source of joy; science has proven that having an animal companion provides many physical<\/a> and psychological<\/a> benefits. But America\u2019s more than 160 million owned dogs and cats surely impact the environment. <\/p>\n <\/b>Get \u2018Em Fixed<\/b><\/p>\n Animal overpopulation is an issue not only because up to 4 million shelter animals are euthanized in the U.S. each year<\/a>, source<\/a><\/p>\n The environmental impact <\/p>\n By Christie Keith, Special to SF Gate<\/a><\/p>\n Christie So, you got up one And then While You called your dog, hoping he’d pooped When you got home, you This In this What goes in must come out America’s 73 million While there are regional composting operations that accept dog Compliance rates on canine While Disposing of used cat Back to ‘what goes in’ Even people who spend hours at Whole If you’re a It can also be harder to “buy local” when using commercial Speaking of Cheap plastic imported crap<\/b><\/p>\n If Imported plastic toys in bright colors fill the Unlike children, who have Location, location, location<\/b><\/p>\n We Of course, not every But whether a matter Drugs, shampoos, and chemicals<\/p>\n <\/b>People These unwanted residues The great outdoor cat debate<\/b> <\/p>\n Because What you can do<\/b><\/p>\n I’m Part 2: The environmental impact of pets, Part 2: what you can do<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n Easy Changes: Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n Want The outside story.<\/b> Pet food, pet Even Always The inside story.<\/b> \u2022 SmartyKa<\/a>t \u2022 PoochPlanet<\/a> From the same folks who brought us SmartyKat, dog toys, treats, and beds made with recycled materials — including a line of dog beds<\/a> \u2022 West Paw Design <\/a> \u2022 Planet Dog<\/a> \u2022 Everyday Studio Cat Trees<\/a> \u2022 Earthbath Grooming Products<\/a> Where’s it from?<\/b> The pet Some companies, such as PlanetDog.com<\/a>, Pet service businesses.<\/b> Businesses use stuff, too. If you’re looking for an eco-friendly place to board your dogs and cats, San Francisco’s Pet Camp<\/a> was founded by two former EPA staffers, and is certified as a Green Business<\/a> Bigger Changes: The Ins and Outs<\/b><\/p>\n First, the “out.”<\/b> When it comes to pet poop, there are a few options.<\/p>\n Flush it.<\/b> The best place to dispose of dog poop is the toilet, and yes, there are flushable pooper scooper bags<\/a>. <\/p>\n For Toss it.<\/b> If your plumbing system can’t handle flushable cat litter, or your cat is T. gondii<\/i> Products that can make tossing pet waste more eco-friendly include:<\/p>\n \u2022 Biobags’ Doggie Waste Bag<\/a>, probably the most common choice.<\/p>\n \u2022 Scooperbox <\/a>, a fully degradable cardboard scooper made from 100 percent recycled materials.<\/p>\n \u2022 Dispoz-a-scoop<\/a> combines the best of both methods, and is a degradable plastic bag with a rigid cardboard frame.<\/p>\n \u2022 Feline Pine<\/a> \u2022 World’s Best Cat Litter<\/a> Degradable and flushable. Made from corn.<\/p>\n \u2022 Yesterday’s News<\/a> \u2022 SWheat Scoop<\/a> \u2022 Green Tea Leaves Litter<\/a> Let it rot.<\/b> Can you If you want to try composting dog poop and used degradable (non-clay) cat litter in your own garden, CityFarmer.org<\/a> Many Now, the in:<\/b> Food. If supporting humane and sustainable agriculture with your shopping dollars is important to you, consider making your pets’ food yourself<\/a>, I’ve been making my pets’ food for almost 23 years now, \u2022 By Nature Organics<\/a> \u2022 Castor & Pollux Organics<\/a> \u2022 Primal Pet Foods<\/a> \u2022 Karma Organics<\/a> Dry food and treats for dogs using 95 percent certified organic ingredients, including meat. USDA Organic certification.<\/p>\n Dogs For those Not convinced?<\/b> A Indoor vs. outdoor cats.<\/b> The Biggest Step of All: Thinking about it another way<\/b><\/p>\n It Back in the And then in 1991 I adopted my dog Colleen from the Even Perhaps most importantly, the One last word about recycling. My dog
Kindness of Strangers for the Earth & Animals<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n
Spay and Neuter<\/p>\n<\/a> <\/p>\n
\n but also because of the environmental impact of too many stray and
\nabandoned animals: they can harm local wildlife, deposit waste, and
\nspread trash. You can help curb the problem by having your pet spayed or neutered<\/a><\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/imgs.sfgate.com\/graphics\/columns\/thumbs\/yourwholepet.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nYour Whole Pet<\/a><\/h2>\n
of pets<\/font> <\/p>\n
\n Keith is a contributing editor for Universal Press Syndicate’s Pet
\nConnection and past director of the Pet Care Forum on America Online.
\nShe lives in San Francisco.<\/i><\/p>\n
\nmorning, looked in the mirror, and vowed to reduce your carbon
\nfootprint. That backyard composting project you’d been putting off for
\nyears? Definitely time. The stack of newspapers by the kitchen table?
\nGoing to the recycling center this week, you swore. <\/p>\n
\nyour cat rubbed against your ankles, asking for her breakfast. You
\nopened the box of cat food and shook the last of the kibble into her
\nbowl, and tossed the empty box into the trash. The noise brought your
\ndog into the kitchen, looking for a walk and his breakfast, too.<\/p>\n
\n you were driving the few miles to the dog park, you hit the
\ndrive-through espresso place, your engine idling while you waited your
\nturn. You sat on the bench at the park watching your dog play with other
\n dogs, sipping a latte and chatting with other early-morning dog
\nwalkers, maybe about your newfound resolution to be a better
\nenvironmental citizen.<\/p>\n
\nwhile you were otherwise distracted, threw your empty coffee cup into
\nthe trash can, and headed back home. You didn’t stop at the bank or post
\n office because it was too warm to leave the dog in the car, so you’d
\nhave to make a second trip later that day.<\/p>\n
\n opened a can of dog food and mixed it with some kibble. You threw the
\ncan away, and then dumped your cat’s litter into a plastic bag, and
\nthrew that away, too. Then you got back in your car to do those errands
\nyou’d had to put off when you were out earlier with the dog.<\/p>\n
\n isn’t a lesson in spotting hypocrisy, nor even a subtle message that
\npeople who let their dogs poop without picking it up are jerks.
\n(Although they are \u2014 so much for “subtle.”) It’s really nothing more
\nthan a checklist of a few of the ways humans impact the environment with
\n the decisions we make about caring for our pets. <\/p>\n
\ncolumn, I’m going to look at the environmental impacts of pet ownership,
\n some of which are fairly obvious and some of which most of us rarely
\nconsider. Then in my next column, I’ll examine the solutions to these
\nproblems, and even provide a glimpse into ways that sharing our lives
\nwith companion animals improves the planet.<\/p>\n
<\/b>
From
\n that not-\u200bso-\u200bfragrant pile on the sidewalk to the cat litter box
\nhidden in the laundry room, the biggest piece of the pet pollution
\npuzzle is poop. Whether you dispose of it in the trash, flush it or
\nleave it where it falls, it’s a problem.<\/p>\n
\ndogs produce around 10 million tons of dog poop per year \u2014 6,500 tons of
\n that in San Francisco alone, making up around 4 percent of the city’s
\ntotal residential waste. The litter from America’s 90 million pet cats
\nresults in around 2 millions tons of cat litter being sent to landfills
\neach year. Making the problem worse, clay-based litters aren’t
\nbiodegradable, as they’re already in their final state of decomposition.<\/p>\n
\nand cat waste (I’ll have more on that in my next column, as well as on
\nan innovative San Francisco solution to the dog poop problem), getting
\nrid of used cat litter and dog feces is one of the most difficult
\nchallenges for the green-minded pet owner. Feces left in gardens, parks,
\n empty lots, and on the streets will run off into storm drains and
\nwaterways, contaminating them with bacterial waste that can cause human
\nand wildlife diseases. <\/p>\n
\npooper-\u200bscooping vary wildly from community to community. Some areas
\nactually hire commercial poop removal services because local dog owners
\naren’t picking up after their pets, while many dog parks are
\nself-policed to such an extent that before your dog has finished
\nsquatting, six people are hollering at you: “Clean up after your dog!”
\nBut even the most conscientious poop-scooping dog owners might be
\npicking up their dog’s feces with a plastic bag, creating serious
\nproblems as the degradable poop is sealed inside a non-degradable bag
\nthat will spend something close to eternity in the landfill, along with a
\n couple million tons of similarly-\u200benshrouded cat litter.<\/p>\n
\ndog feces can be safely disposed of in the toilet, used cat litter
\nshould never be flushed. Modern waste treatment doesn’t kill a pesky
\norganism known as toxoplasma gondii<\/i>. When water containing this
\nparasite enters the ocean, it sickens and kills sea otter populations.
\nToxoplasma also causes disease in humans, especially the
\nimmune-\u200bcompromised and pregnant women.<\/p>\n
\nlitter is only half the problem. The other half is figuring out what to
\nuse as litter in the first place. Clay-based cat litters are not a
\nby-product of the manufacture of something else, but produced by strip
\nmining. The clay, known as bentonite, is found under several layers of
\nsoil, which are removed in the mining process. The first few inches of
\nclay are discarded, and the final clay is removed and processed into cat
\n litter. When it comes to “green” products, you don’t get much less
\ngreen than that. (Some more planet-\u200bfriendly options will be discussed
\nin my next column.) [posted below]<\/p>\n
<\/b>
In
\n addition to the difficult problem of pet waste, there’s also the stuff
\nthat creates the waste in the first place: pet food. Just as with human
\nfood, pet food is the tip of the iceberg on a whole host of
\nenvironmental challenges.<\/p>\n
\nFoods reading labels and querying the butcher about the life and death
\nof that night’s dinner often just grab the nearest brightly-\u200bcolored
\nsack or box for their pets. I used to argue with the owner of a small
\nhealth food store in Sonoma County — who wouldn’t even sell organic or
\ngrass-fed meat or chicken for people because she believed eating animals
\n was cruelty — about the really terrible pet food she carried. Not only
\n were they low in quality but their meat sources were far less
\nconsistent with her store’s supposed humane and ecological values than
\nthe free-range and organic meats she wouldn’t carry.<\/p>\n
\nconsumer who is concerned about the impact of factory farming on the
\nenvironment (and if you think cat poop is a problem for the environment,
\n let’s talk about high-volume hog farming sometime), the source of the
\nmeat products in your pet’s food deserves as much scrutiny as the source
\n in your own. If you only buy locally grown, organically raised produce,
\n try to support sustainable methods of agriculture, and seek out meats
\nraised and slaughtered in ways you find humane, you might be surprised
\nto find out how hard it is to apply those same standards to your pets’
\nfood. <\/p>\n
\n pet foods. Even companies located nearby might manufacture their foods
\nin plants in other states, using ingredients shipped in from all over
\nthe world. Nearly every vitamin supplement used in this country is made in China<\/a>,
\n and, as this year’s pet food recall taught us, so are many of the raw
\ningredients of pet foods. The environmental cost of packaging, shipping,
\n storing, and distributing those sacks and cans of pet food has to be
\ntallied, along with the convenience of using them.<\/p>\n
\npackaging, how do you dispose of the empty containers? While dog poop
\nmight make up 4 percent of San Francisco’s solid waste, product
\npackaging makes up one-third of the stuff sent to landfills. Boxes,
\nbags, and food containers make up the single largest segment of that
\nsold waste stream, although there are no statistics indicating what
\npercentage of that is from pet food. But every pet food can, box, pouch
\nor sack tossed in the trash ends up in a landfill. While some pet food
\nmanufacturers, such as San Diego’s Honest Kitchen, are switching to
\npost-consumer recycled packaging, and some packaging, such as cardboard
\nboxes, is easily recycled, pet food product packaging unquestionably
\nmakes a bad situation worse.<\/p>\n
\n the pet poop problem reminds anyone of the disposable diapers problem,
\nthen it won’t be a surprise to know that pets and kids share another
\nissue: toys.<\/p>\n
\naisles of pet supply stores pretty much the same way they fill the
\naisles of toy stores. Manufactured in countries where environmental
\nregulations are lax or irregularly enforced, shipped into and all over
\nthe United States, these cheap goods usually don’t last long. The broken
\n toys end up in the landfill and we head back out into the stores in
\nsearch of yet more cheap plastic crap.<\/p>\n
\ntheir consumer desires fostered by a whole marketing machine aimed right
\n at them, our pets really don’t care if they have the same cool stuff as
\n the cat and dog next door. In fact, cats are usually much happier with a
\n paper bag to play with, and our dogs can’t see those bright plastic
\ncolors in the first place. We’re buying that stuff for us, not for them.<\/p>\n
\n drive our pets to the groomer, the vet, the park, doggy day care. Their
\n food, toys, combs, brushes, and other supplies are shipped from
\nlocations all over the country, or even all over the world. When you get
\n right down to it, it’s all about the gas.<\/p>\n
\npet owner lives walking distance from a park, veterinarian, groomer, or
\ndoggy day care any more than they live near their children’s schools,
\ntheir hairdresser or their own workplaces. Sometimes that twice-daily
\ndrive to the dog park is a necessity rather than a choice. And because
\nit’s not a good idea to leave dogs in the car while we do other errands,
\n particularly on warm days, it’s hard to bunch trips to the dog park
\nwith grocery shopping and returning the DVDs. Because dogs suffer more
\nfrom heat than humans do and driving with the windows open isn’t always
\nsafe when there are pets in the car, sometimes we have to use our air
\nconditioners more when transporting the dog.<\/p>\n
\n of choice or necessity, all those miles of driving have a cost, one we
\npay for once at the gas station and again in environmental harm.<\/p>\n
\n rarely dispose properly of their own unused medications and garden
\npesticides, and this is no less a problem when it comes to drugs and
\nchemicals used for our pets. Unfortunately, knowledge about proper
\ndisposal of chemicals or the waste of animals who are on certain
\nmedications is not widespread, and many people have simply never thought
\n about the issue at all. But from the shampoo you cheerfully rinse off
\nyour dog in the backyard to the medications you flush down the toilet
\n(or into the storm drain in your pet’s urine or feces) or the flea and
\ntick control product containers you toss into the trash can, the
\ncontamination of the country’s water supply with antibiotics,
\npesticides, and industrial chemicals is a problem that, while not
\nlimited to pets, certainly includes them.<\/p>\n
\n are known as “emerging pollutants of concern” or
\n“\u200bmicroconstituen\u200bts.\u200b”\u200b When they enter the environment, even at very
\nlow levels, they can help contribute to the development of
\ndrug-resistant bacteria, affect the central nervous systems of animals
\nexposed to them, contaminate ground and surface water, and harm aquatic
\nlife such as fish and frogs. <\/p>\n
\n the indoor-outdoor cat debate is such a vast and contentious issue, it
\ndefinitely deserves its own column. I promise it’s coming in the future,
\n but for now, let’s just say that whichever side in this unending battle
\n is right, there’s no argument that free-roaming pet cats urinate and
\ndefecate in other people’s backyards, vegetable gardens, and planter
\nboxes, and cats can have at least strong localized impacts on wildlife.
\nCats who are kept indoors have a much smaller carbon paw print than cats
\n who are free to roam, but, depending on location and who you ask, half
\nor fewer of all cats live indoors all the time.<\/p>\n
\n a pet writer, a lifelong dog and cat owner (although currently
\ncatless), and a passionate believer in the bond between humans and
\nanimals. All our decisions, including those we make about our pets,
\nimpact the planet in some way. In my next column, I’ll cover the many
\nways that pet owners can reduce the carbon paw print of their dogs and
\ncats, and one way in which pets actually reduce environmental damage and
\n help make the planet a healthier and better place for all species. <\/p>\n
what you can do <\/font> <\/p>\n
\n to lighten the load just a little? America’s pet product manufacturers
\nare ready to help. Welcome to the wonderful world of recycled and
\nrecyclable pet products!<\/p>\n
\ntoys, pet supplies, pet cleaning and grooming aids, pet medications —
\npretty much all of it has one serious environmental problem, and that’s
\npackaging. Just as with products intended for humans, those seeking to
\nbe more eco-friendly should try alternatives such as bulk buying and
\nusing products that come in recycled and recyclable packaging.<\/p>\n
\n cardboard boxes used for dry pet foods are not always recyclable, as
\nsome of them are lined with metal or plastic to prevent food spoilage.
\nCheck the bottom of the packaging for recycling information.<\/p>\n
\n dispose of drugs, pesticides, shampoos, chemicals and the containers
\nthey come in safely. Federal guidelines for the safe disposal of human medications<\/a>
\n apply to veterinary drugs as well. Flea control products, as well as
\nmany pet shampoos and dips, need to be disposed of carefully as well,
\naccording to EPA, state, and local guidelines<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n Then there’s the stuff itself. Fortunately, there’s no shortage of pet
\ntoys and supplies made with recycled, degradable, and recyclable
\nmaterials — in fact, annual sales of “green” pet products are estimated
\n to reach over $1 billion this year. So for your own pets, or the
\neco-friendly pet owners on your holiday shopping list, consider some of
\nthese toys and supplies:<\/p>\n
\n A complete line of cat toys, treats, and beds using recycled and
\nrecyclable materials. Some favorites include the SuperScratcher,\u200b as
\nwell as several play-\u200bencouraging and interactive toys.<\/p>\n
\n filled with recycled plastic bottles. According to the company, their
\ncustomers kept 30 million recycled bottles out of the waste stream last
\nyear alone.<\/p>\n
\n This Montana-based company makes dog and cat toys and beds using
\nrecycled and organic materials, including the popular Organic Bumper Bed
\n and the Eco Nap Mat.<\/p>\n
\n This company makes two toys out of pre-consumer recycled materials,
\nand the toys themselves are recyclable. They also make collars, leashes,
\n and harnesses using hemp, a sustainable, degradable, and recyclable
\nfiber.<\/p>\n
\n Designed by San Francisco artist Susan Kralovec, these cat trees are
\nmade of corrugated cardboard, with 35 percent minimum recycled content.
\nMaterials are non-toxic and low VOC. <\/p>\n
\n They’re free of phosphates and enzymes, and are biodegradable. They
\nalso sell in bulk for professional use, or for those who want to
\nminimize packaging waste.<\/p>\n
\nfood and toy recalls of products made in China have made most of us
\naware that many things we buy for ourselves and our pets are made all
\nover the globe, and that not all countries have similar manufacturing
\nstandards. Even products made locally might contain ingredients and
\nmaterials that came from all over the world, with the attendant
\necological fuel cost.<\/p>\n
\n have made a commitment to re-locating their manufacturing plants closer
\n to their market. Others like West Paw started out with that commitment,
\n and still make their line of dog and cat toys and beds in Bozeman,
\nMontana. Always investigate where the products you buy for your pets are
\n made, as well as how far the ingredients and materials used to make
\nthem had to travel to get there.<\/p>\n
\n by the City and County of San Francisco. While they’re the only
\npet-related business to receive such certification, eco-aware pet owners
\n might want to check with other pet service businesses they use. Does
\nyour dogwalker use biodegradable poop bags? What kind of shampoo does
\nyour groomer use?<\/p>\n
\n Pet poop is polluting storm water and, when it is enshrouded in
\nnon-degradable plastic bags, taking up landfill space. High levels of
\ncanine-origin fecal bacteria have been found in bodies of water into
\nwhich surface water drains, and sea otters have been sickened and killed
\n by a parasite found in the feces of some cats. Many common brands of
\ncat litter are non-degradable and are produced by strip mining. So what
\ndo you do with all that pet waste? <\/p>\n
\n used cat litter, the situation is less clear. Some litters are produced
\n specifically to be flushable, and for cats who don’t carry the parasite
\n Toxoplasma gondii<\/i>, that’s a good solution. But around half of
\nall cats do, and their feces should not be flushed. Even those indoor
\ncats who were infected in the distant past can, under some
\ncircumstances, still shed cysts in their feces, so before you decide
\nyour cat is one of those who don’t, have your veterinarian run a T.
\ngondii titer test on your cat. If the test is negative, and your cat has
\n no opportunity to eat soil, prey or any form of raw meat, then you’re
\nprobably safe to put flushable cat litter down the toilet.<\/p>\n
\n Big dogs mean big poop, and lugging dog waste back home and flushing it
\n isn’t always the most practical solution. The next-best course is to
\nuse a degradable scooper and toss the poop in the trash. <\/p>\n
\n positive, goes outdoors, eats raw meat, or doesn’t like flushable cat
\nlitter, the next-best option is to use a degradable recycled litter and
\ndispose of it in the trash in a degradable container such as a paper
\nbag. Litters are available made from post-consumer newspaper, as well as
\n degradable plant materials such as wheat, corn, and cellulose. Clay
\nlitters are produced by strip mining and do not degrade, so unless your
\ncat is one of the ones who doesn’t care about the environment but does
\ncare about his special litter not being replaced, they’re not the best
\necological choice.<\/p>\n
\n Made of reclaimed pine dust from lumber yards. Degradable. The company
\nsays the product is flushable but labels the product with a warning
\nabout T. gondii transmission.<\/p>\n
\n Made from recycled newspaper — the company says a “significant
\nportion” of that is post-consumer, and also says that “most” publishers
\ntoday use safe inks, and their manufacturing process neutralizes all ink
\n residues. Degradable but not flushable.<\/p>\n
\n Made from wheat. Degradable, and claims to be “the only litter on the
\nmarket that’s certified flushable in sewer or septic systems by the SGS
\nU.S. Testing Company.”<\/p>\n
\n Made of pre-consumer manufacturing waste, this litter contains just
\nwood dust and green tea. It clumps, it controls odor, and it’s
\ndegradable and flushable.<\/p>\n
\ncompost pet waste? It depends on who you ask. Pretty much everyone
\nrecommends against using compost made with any fecal material on food
\ncrops, but studies done in Alaska<\/a> found that properly handled compost made using dog poop got hot enough to break down into clean, usable compost. <\/p>\n
\n has step-by-step instructions and even a video demonstration. You can
\nalso try one of a number of in-ground mini-septic systems such as the Doggie Dooley Pet Waste Disposal System<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n cities around the world are trying different approaches to dog waste
\ndisposal. San Francisco is testing a method that doesn’t just reduce the
\n dog poop carbon pawprint, but creates energy instead of waste. Sunset Scavenger<\/a>
\n processes dog poop in a methane digester, where bacteria turn the waste
\n into methane gas. Methane can be used just like natural gas, and can
\nalso be used to produce electricity. <\/p>\n
\n out of fresh, locally produced ingredients. That way, you can control
\nthe quality of the ingredients just as you do in your own diet, and also
\n eliminate all the wasteful shipping, storing, packaging, and
\nadvertising that goes along with the multi-billion dollar pet food
\nindustry.<\/p>\n
\n and it’s easier than most people think, but if it’s not for you, some
\ncommercial foods are more eco-friendly than others. It’s not enough just
\n to buy foods that claim to be “natural” or “healthy,” but meats,
\ngrains, and vegetables that are produced in accordance with the
\nregulations of the California Certified Organic Farmers and other
\nindependent third-party certifiers such as Oregon Tilth must meet
\ncertain standards of sustainability in their production. There are also
\nsmall, local companies that may be producing pet foods using locally
\ngrown, sustainably produced ingredients. A few companies that offer
\nsustainably raised and\/or certified organic meats in their pet foods:<\/p>\n
\n Organic products are certified by Oregon Tilth. They make both dry and
\ncanned cat and dog foods. Not all foods are organic, so read labels.<\/p>\n
\n A complete line of both canned and dry cat and dog foods, plus treats.
\nProducts vary in how much of their content is organic. USDA Organic
\ncertification.<\/p>\n
\n Their produce is certified organic, and they claim “All of our meats,
\npoultry and game are purchased through farms and ranches that take pride
\n in producing wholesome sources of protein through natural, sustainable
\nagriculture.” Their foods are sold frozen and are intended to be fed
\nraw. They are located in the San Francisco area.<\/p>\n
\n and cats are both members of the order carnivora, and evolved eating
\nthe flesh of prey animals. Some people worried about the environmental
\nimpact of meat diets want to make their carnivorous pets into
\nvegetarians or even vegans. Although a vegetarian diet is possible for
\nboth species, a vegan diet is at best controversial and at worst,
\ndangerous for an obligate carnivore such as the cat. <\/p>\n
\nwho want what’s best both for their pets and the planet, there’s a
\nmiddle road. Most of meat’s bad rap belongs not to livestock raising per
\n se, but to industrialized,\u200b high-volume farming practices. Locally,
\ngroups such as SF Raw<\/a>
\n seek out small, local farmers and ranchers who raise their livestock
\nusing sustainable methods such as pasturing and grass feeding, and
\npractice environmentally\u200b careful agriculture, and buy their meat, eggs,
\n and other products in bulk. This saves money as well as minimizing
\nshipping. Groups like this one exist nationwide and are listed at DogAware.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n Although dogs and cats are the most popular pets in America, there are
\nmany herbivorous animals who make wonderful companions. By no means
\nshould anyone give up their current pets, but if the consumption of meat
\n is an important issue for you, consider a pet such as a rabbit in the
\nfuture. Rabbits make wonderful companions, and there are many of them in
\n need of homes. And, as pet columnist Gina Spadafori writes<\/a>, ecologically, it doesn’t get much better than a bunny:<\/p>\n
\n rabbit is better than a garbage disposal. It’s true: You can give a
\nrabbit all your green kitchen trimmings and he’ll eat them with
\nenthusiasm, no electricity required. Then he’ll produce lovely waste
\nthat will super-charge your compost pile, providing you eventually with
\nthe most luscious rich compost for your garden. So you can grow more
\nlovely vegetables, giving him the trimmings, and on it goes. The circle
\nof life, without the petro-\u200bchemicals!\u200b<\/p>\n
\n While this doesn’t exactly match the “in and out” I was talking about,
\ncats who roam freely do have a greater impact on the environment than
\ncats who are kept indoors or only allowed into safe outdoor areas.
\nBecause it’s a big topic, the indoor\/outdoor cat debate and ideas for
\nenriching the lives of indoor cats will be the subject of a future
\ncolumn. Nevertheless, it’s a fact that keeping cats indoors with access
\n to safe outdoor enclosures will protect wildlife from their predation,
\nkeep cat feces and urine from contaminating soil and water, and prevent
\nyour cats from contracting T. gondii. If your cats do roam, consider
\nusing a collar with a bell on it to alert birds to their presence. And
\nwhile I’ve never tried it, there’s also a cat bib<\/a> that supposedly prevents cats from harming birds.<\/p>\n
\n may seem that humans keeping and caring for companion animals puts a
\nstrain on the planet. But the balance isn’t as unequal as it might seem
\nat first glance. Sharing our lives and homes with animals has the
\npotential to make us better environmental citizens — and better people,
\n too. I know, because that’s what happened to me.<\/p>\n
\n80s, I was the typical over-achieving workaholic. I lived in San
\nFrancisco, stopped every morning for my triple-shot latte at the Caf\u017d
\nFlore, and spent the whole day indoors working, and most of my evenings
\nin clubs, theaters, and restaurants. My main form of recreation was
\nshopping.<\/p>\n
\nPeninsula Humane Society, and all of that changed. Every morning I went
\nto the dog park or the beach, and every evening I walked her all around
\nour quiet neighborhood. I started seeing things I’d never paid any
\nattention to before: The stars. Flowers growing on the side of the road.
\n Birds in the trees and the skies. On our trips to the Bay Area’s state
\nand county parks, we saw bobcats, coyotes, snakes, and jackrabbits. Once
\n I even saw a mountain lion off in the distance. I began not just to see
\n but to care about the natural world in a way I never had before.<\/p>\n
\n if it can be challenging to reduce our pets’ carbon pawprint, I’d argue
\n that their net ecological impact is positive. That’s because in seeing
\nthe world through the eyes of our animals we come to both know and care
\nabout the natural world. The saying “God invented the cat so that man
\nmight caress the tiger” doesn’t only mean that we get to have a tiny bit
\n of the wild in our laps at night; it also means that a little piece of
\nour heart goes out into the wild. <\/p>\n
\nhuman-animal bond fosters compassion not just for our pets, but for all
\nliving creatures — other humans included. An open heart is never a bad
\nthing, for us, for the planet, and for the other people and animals with
\n whom we share the earth.<\/p>\n
\nColleen was one of the millions of second-hand animals who are waiting
\nfor a home in America’s shelters, pounds, and rescue groups. They say
\nlove is better the second time around, so if you’re ready to bring
\nanother pet into your home, perhaps you can practice some of what I’ve
\npreached on an animal who needs a second chance.<\/p>\n
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