While caring for a litter of foster kittens, I realized I was spending an inordinate amount of time running to the trash room with kitten related garbage, even after I had recycled the kitten food cans and the plastic medication containers. So to celebrate Earth Day 2016, I have created a list of eco-friendly suggestions to reduce your pet’s carbon pawprint.
Shop for Environmentally Friendly Products
Many pet families feed their pets on paper plates. While they are easy and simple to cleanup, they add to your pet’s trash production. Purchase recycled paper plates to use when feeding your pet or consider using disposable bamboo plates and bowls. Bamboo is a wonderful sustainable and eco-friendly material. Instead of using plastic grocery bags to pick up dog poop, always purchase biodegradable poop bags and send those plastic grocery bags to the recycling center.

Use Recycled Pet Products

Once I realized the major culprit in kitten trash production was cat litter, I investigated alternatives to traditional clay/sand litter. I tested ökocat™ dust-free, allergy-friendly all natural cat litter in the kitten litter pan. This biodegradable product comes from reclaimed wood. The kittens loved it, the litter pan didn’t smell, and just like the box said, the litter clumped and you could easily scoop the waste. Next time I have a litter of kittens, I will try the multi-cat ökocat formulation.

I thought hamsters, guinea pigs and other pocket pets might have an opportunity to use more eco-friendly bedding. I checked with an AMC veterinarian and guinea pig owner. Her pig prefers carefresh® custom bedding which is made from sustainably harvested paper fibers without chemicals. Both ökocat and carefresh are members of the Pet Industry Sustainability Coalition.

Recycle Some Stuff Yourself

Discarded fabric can take years to decompose in a landfill. Keep old clothing out of the landfill by using it to make pet beds. Build a cat tent out of an old T-shirt, coat hangers and a cardboard box. Your cat will adore this retreat because it smells just like their favorite person – YOU. Purchase a dog duvet cover and fill it with old clothes to fashion a soft and attractive bed for your dog, while keeping more fabric out of landfills.
Finally, the ultimate in recycling: adopt a shelter pet – a living and loving form of recycling!