Pet care

Avoiding plastic when it comes to picking up dog poo might seem like a challenge that’s too difficult, but there are alternatives. The same goes for plastic free pet food products.

What can you do

Avoid using plastic bags to pick up dog poo. Choose plastic free alternatives for your pet.

How can you do it

Rather than picking up dog poo using a single-use plastic bag, try using a shovel or pooper scooper and putting it straight in the bin. If you’re out on a walk, you can use compostable bags or even scrap pieces of paper, newspaper, or paper bags.

As far as feeding your furry friend goes, be sure to source pet food that comes in paper bags or tins which can be recycled, not plastic. Many butchers and fishmongers are happy to fill your reusable containers with bones, fish and other meaty treats, rather than using a plastic bag.

To store bones and meat in bulk, separate and freeze them on a tray first. Then, put them into a container and freeze until they’re needed.

Bird owners can find it difficult to avoid plastic packaging, but you can reduce wastage by buying grains and seeds in bulk.

Taking the next steps

You can make sure your pet’s poo doesn’t end up in landfill by:

Composting it, separately to the compost you will use for the vegetable garden.
Burying it in your yard, away from any vegetable patches you might have or where the kids play.
Pet fur can also be added to the compost or used to feed to a worm farm.

To further reduce waste, you can also make your own pet food. Be sure to choose beds made of jute, hessian or cotton, and toys made from rope, recycled rubber, hemp, rice, and other sustainable materials, rather than plastic. You can also reuse a worn out shoe as a toy – Fido will appreciate it all the same.