Four Carbon Footprints

By Colleen Heenan

We have all heard about our carbon footprint and ways to reduce it. Things such as driving and flying less, or recycling and eating locally are all good suggestions to lower a human’s carbon footprint. But what if you own a dog? Could owning a dog increase your carbon footprint or could it make you intuitively more connected to Mother Nature?

I recently thought about this question when my dog-owning friend placed me on the hot-seat. When asked the what-is-better question of; “is it better to reuse old grocery bags to pick up your doggie waste, or to buy smaller bags, which reduces plastic waste, to pick up the waste?” This led me to do some research on suggestions for pooch-owners.

An organization called Dogs’ Trust is doing research on whether or not dog-owners have a smaller carbon footprint. They said, because dog-owners are more likely to multi-task a walk with a daily errand, which can result in driving less, they may be reducing their own as well as their dog’s impact on the earth. Also, it is thought that they are more likely to shop locally because they are already out and the convenience factor plays a role. Here are some other suggestions for the green conscious dog-owners:

• Biodegradable waste bags: these bags are a much better option then the petroleum based bags because they will easily breakdown in landfills.
• Sustainable accessories, such as collars and sweaters, booties, beds, etc. are a great choice because they are sturdy and made from reused or sustainably made materials such as hemp or organic cotton.
• Products packed in biodegradable packages: This is a great idea, considering the many large wax-dipped food bags that you go through, which are not usually reusable or recyclable.
• Walks: this is inevitable if you own a dog, but while you are walking you are not using other resources such as fuel for driving, or energy while watching TV or listening to the radio.

With almost 75 million pooches in America alone, it is important to take responsibility for our pets and to make sustainable choices when possible. With the increase of sustainable products and foods for our pets, we should utilize the resources and not forget that our pets have four footprints verse our two!

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