Lesson Fifty: Pets & The Planet
There are over 150 million cats and dogs in North America.
While our pets can provide a huge benefit to our lives, one topic that isn’t talked about is their toll on the planet; their eco impawct.
IMPACTS OF CATS AND DOGS
When looking at a dog or cat’s eco impact, a few things are taken into account:
🥩 meat consumption
💩 animal excrements
🧸 toys + packaging
🥩 MEAT CONSUMPTION
A UCLA study has found that dogs and cats are responsible for 25% to 30% of the environmental impact of meat consumption in the United States.
Cats and dogs have more meat in their diet compared to an average human-diet.
Meat requires a lot of energy, land and water to produce (not to mention the related erosion, pesticides and waste). Taking all of that into account, the emissions from Fido diet adds up quick.
In a study done at UCLA, it was calculated that meat-eating by dogs and cats creates the equivalent of about 64 million tons of carbon dioxide a year.
That’s the same climate impact as driving 13.6 million cars for one full year.
💩 ANIMAL EXCREMENTS
Dogs and cats produce about 30% (± 13%), by mass, as much feces as humans do. That’s a lot of poop. 💩
Since most dogs and some cats “go” outside, their waste also contributes to freshwater ecotoxicity. Not to mention all the doggie bags and kitty litter piling up in landfills.
Oh, and for dog owners who use compostable dog bags, you need to place your used bags in a green/compost bin. Just placing them in a garbage bin 👏 won’t 👏 do 👏 crap (pardon the pun).
You also need to check your local municipal compost guide to see if they accept waste compostable bags in their program.
🧸 TOYS & PACKAGING
Similar to most things that are consumed in today’s society, there is a lot of packaging.
From toys, cleaning products, food packages, treat bags, and more, there is a lot of waste that comes from our furry friend’s items (with little options to buy sans-packaging).
WHAT SHOULD I DO ABOUT IT?
This lesson isn’t to dissuade people from getting pets, but a conversation needs to be started about pets being a big contributor to carbon emissions.
If this is something that’s important to you and you’re in the market for a furry companion, the smaller the pet, the smaller the impact.
That’s all folks! If you have any questions, I’m here for you!!
