What are “Green” Pet Supplies?

Recyclable/Recycled Materials – Reusing items diverts waste from landfills.

There are many products in the store made from recycled materials; from beds that use fleece made from recycled soda bottles, to leashes made from retired climbing rope, to one of a kind metal animals cut from the hoods of old cars. We all know that recycling is important, but purchasing products made with recycled materials “closes the loop”.

Organic /Natural ingredients – Avoiding pesticides, chemical fertilizers, hormones, antibiotics, and chemical preservatives is good for our animals and for our environment.

pic_green_treatWe love to find foods and treats made with natural and organic ingredients. We have many treats and foods that use organic fruits and vegetables, pastured (grass fed) meats, cage free organic poultry, and organic grains.  (By the way, there are very few treats we sell at our store that we wouldn’t encourage you to pop right into your own mouth – the ingredients are human grade and natural – nothing you wouldn’t have in your own food!)

Sustainable Sources – Choosing products that minimize our impact on the environment means our planet’s resources are not depleted as rapidly.

It’s important to us to provide alternatives to common materials in order to lessen the impact of their use. For example, did you know that according to the United States Geological Society, 2.54 million tons of clay are strip mined each year, with an estimated 85 percent used for pet waste – primarily cat litter (Pet Product News, June 2008). If you do the math, this works out to a ballpark of over 4 billion pounds of cat litter each year. The sad thing is that we then turn around and landfill it as well, where it will never go away.  Cat litter can be made from all sorts of alternative, more sustainable materials – wheat, corn, mill wastes like Pine and Cedar, even recycled newspaper. The beauty of all of these litters is not only do they come from a sustainable source and clump as well as clay, they can be composted in your home compost pile, or in some areas of the country, even flushed right down the toilet. How easy is that?

Durable Products – If one toy lasts as long as 30 less durable toys, There are 29 fewer toys in the landfill.

pic_durableWe have a friend who has two big American Bulldogs that love (I mean LOVE) to play with the flying disc. Trouble is, every time they’d catch one, there would be tooth holes in it, as their jaws are so strong. Every day she’d throw away a mangled 99 cent disc. What a waste and a big expense for her over time. Then she found this product called JAWZ. It’s a flying disc made for competition flying disc dogs and it is so puncture resistant that it solved her whole problem. She’s had one of those things for three years without a hole in it. There are around 900 hundred fewer plastic discs in her landfill, and she only paid $16.99 for 3 years of flying disc fun (obsession?). We had a big epiphany when she told us about this, realizing that durability was going to be one of our definitions of a “green” pet supply. There is no perfect toy, nothing that some dogs will not destroy eventually. However, it’s important to us not to bring in any old cheap or disposable product that’s destined for the garbage the same day you buy it. We’re always searching for the toughest and best made products, especially toys — got one you love? Tell us about it!

Locally Made – Buying from local sources means that products will not have to be shipped as far, reducing emissions and fuel consumption.

Locally made products are one of our favorite categories of environmentally friendly supplies and gifts.  Think of how many trucks, ships, trains, etc it takes to get something here from China, and how many fossil fuels are used in the process.  Not only that, but in these tough economic times it’s even more important to support our locally owned businesses, keeping money in our community and stimulating local growth, in our own small way. We have loads of locally made products, from leashes and collars, to beds, toys, cat furniture, foods, treats, greeting cards and more, and we’re always looking for new products made locally.

Read more about buying local: http://www.sectionz.info/ISSUE_3/

Read more about lessening your pet’s “Carbon Pawprint” http://www.greendogpetsupply.com/blog/reducing-your-pets-carbon-pawprint/