Greening Your PetsWe love our pets, but they can be remarkably high-carbon (in their space and food requirements) and can be dangerous for wildlife. It’s estimated, for example, that cats kill around 250 million birds and small animals every year in the UK.
Here are some thoughts to help you green your pet. Share a Pet
Rather than buying, why not help a neighbour or friend with walking duties and holiday care? Alternatively, there are websites that will put you in touch, such as Borrow My Doggy. |
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Buying Local
If you do feel you want your own pet, why not try Bristol’s Animal Rescue Centre? Bristol and Wales Cats Rescue is another alternative, as is the Holly Hedge Animal Sanctuary, and MuttsWithFriends in Chew Valley.
If you are buying ‘new’, consider whether you need an exotic breed that you have to travel hundreds of miles to collect. There are many sites advertising pets available in Bristol. Pets4Homes, Freeads and Gumtree are all good places to start.
If you do feel you want your own pet, why not try Bristol’s Animal Rescue Centre? Bristol and Wales Cats Rescue is another alternative, as is the Holly Hedge Animal Sanctuary, and MuttsWithFriends in Chew Valley.
If you are buying ‘new’, consider whether you need an exotic breed that you have to travel hundreds of miles to collect. There are many sites advertising pets available in Bristol. Pets4Homes, Freeads and Gumtree are all good places to start.
Protect Wildlife From Your Pet
Here are some useful suggestions from the RSPB on how to curb your cat’s killing instincts… Most important, put a bell on its neck and keep it inside early morning and at dusk between March and July and December to January.
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Pet Products
There are several websites that sell ‘eco-friendly pet products’. Here are a few, but do search the web for others. Green Pet Food
There are several websites selling vegan pet food and (they claim) ‘greener’ food options. Green Petfood is one, Green Pantry is another - and you may be able to find more online. One of our readers highly recommends Yora, a range of insect-based food for dogs and cats, made in the UK and claim that land-use, water-use and carbon emissions for its products are tiny compared to meat-industry pet food. And if you want to find out a bit more about feeding insects to your pets in general, then head to the Pet Food Manufacturer's Association website, which gives some advice. |
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