Month: February 2019

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Ecological Paw Print

by Christina Manuel ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

It may be hard to believe, but even little Fido can leave an ecological paw print. In 2017 a total of 89.7 million dogs in the U.S. were registered as pets, making it necessary to practice a sustainable lifestyle not only for ourselves, but for our dogs too.

Potty training your dog

Potty training a new puppy or living with an indoor dog can create a lot of waste from cleaning supplies and trash bags. If your pet still hasn’t grasped the whole, “use the restroom outside” rule, consider biodegradable pads like the Bamboo Training Pads that are made of 25 percent bamboo rayon and 75 percent wood pulp. You can also try the Petmaker Puppy Potty Trainer to reduce waste.

Dog food

Is you dog’s food USDA certified organic? (Photo by Ally J.)

Only buy food brands for your dog that are USDA certified organic to support farming that keeps pesticides out of food and water runoff. Brands include Organix, Tender and True, “I and love and you” and many more. As well, most dog food bags are lined with plastic and can’t be recycled. However, TerraCycle is a recycling service where you can send back waste items including dog food bags to recycle and repurpose the plastic. TerraCycle is currently partnered with Open Farm, Royal Canin and Wellness dog food brands.  

Sustainable toys

Bite the bullet (or plastic) and make your own dog toys out of old clothing. (Photo by Kris)

Humans are producing around 300 million tons of plastic every year, and a majority of pet toys are made of plastic that can’t be recycled after it’s chewed and slobbered on. Instead, you can recycle household items by making chew toys out of old clothing, and your dog will never know the difference. If you aren’t keen on the idea of making dog toys, consider buying from West Paw that uses eco-friendly materials through a recycled plastic fiber system, IntelliLoft.

Pet waste options

When you’re out and about with your companion, make sure to carry biodegradable poop bags to clean up your pet’s droppings. According to Clear Choices Clean Water, the average dog poops 0.75 pounds of waste daily, which totals over 400 pounds per year. If not collected properly, dog poop can contaminate rivers, streams and other bodies of water. You can also compost your dog’s poop in your backyard with an EnsoPet Kit.

Buy green necessities

My dogs Jack (left) and Thor (right) posing for their annual Christmas photos. (Photo by me)

Before buying supplies from a pet store, look into eco-friendly and organic products for your dog. From shampoo and beds to cleaning products, consider sustainable options for your furry friend, and help reduce their ecological paw print.

Out With the Old, in With the Used

Out With the Old, in With the Used

by Christina Manuel ♥ 1 Comment

Before buying new clothing and accessories to spice up your wardrobe, consider buying second-hand. Not only will this help you save money by avoiding inflated prices of brand names, you’ll also be saving clothing from ending up in a landfill.

How many pounds of clothing have you thrown away this year? (Photo by Bruno Glätsch)

It’s hard to believe, but Americans throw out an average of 81 pounds of clothing every year. With textile production of clothing doubling from 2000 to 2014, 60 percent of clothing contains polyester that can take decades to break down and can pollute the oceans with plastic microfibers.

Sell the gently-used clothing that’s cluttering up your closet. (Photo by Pexels)

Instead of buying from retail stores, download marketplace apps like Poshmark and Mercari to buy second-hand and even make money by selling your gently-used items. Ebay is also a great place to find the specific items you’re searching for.

It’s also easy to contact sellers through these marketplaces to let them know you want your items shipped with as little plastic as possible.

To avoid plastic packaging completely, consider marketplace apps like OfferUp to meet with buyers and sellers instead of shipping items.

Check out your local thrift store for major savings on brand names! (Photo by Pexels)

And of course, don’t forget about thrift stores. Ninety-five percent of clothing that is thrown away has the potential to be re-worn, reused and even recycled. Thrift stores are a great way to find brand names for a steal and donate your gently-used items to a second home.

Start a More Sustainable Lifestyle with These Five Tips

Start a More Sustainable Lifestyle with These Five Tips

by Christina Manuel ♥ 1 Comment

Jumping into a zero-waste lifestyle isn’t for everyone and can be harder than you think. Instead of diving right in, start with smaller, more doable changes. Here are five sustainable tips to begin with:  

1. Invest in a reusable water bottle

My Klean Kanteen travels with me everywhere! (Photo by me)

One of the simplest ways to reduce plastic waste is to buy a reusable water bottle. You’d think this would be common knowledge by now, but every day in the U.S. more than 60 million plastic water bottles are thrown away. Invest in a durable, reusable water bottle like the stainless steel and BPA-free Klean Kanteen to take with you everywhere you go.  

2. Look before you buy

Before going out and buying daily necessities, consider purchasing eco-friendly versions of the same product. Sustainable alternatives include pillow cases, toothbrushes, reusable tea bags, toilet paper and much more. Investing in reusable eco-friendly versions of the same items can help reduce your overall waste.

3. Say no to take-out cutlery  

Invest in a reusable utensil set and say no to single-use plastic. (Photo by Tania Van den Berghen)

Think about how many times you’ve ordered food to go this year. Now, think about how many plastic knives, forks, spoons, chopsticks and even straws you’ve used and thrown away each time. According to the Clean Air Council, Americans use enough plastic cups and plastic utensils every year to circle the equator 300 times. Also, with 500 million plastic straws used in the U.S. daily, it’s necessary to switch to a more sustainable solution. Start carrying reusable straws and a reusable utensil set in your car or purse and say no to plastic utensils every time you eat out.

4. Go paperless

There’s a good chance that the majority of your mail consists of bills and junk mail. If you haven’t already, change your billing preferences to electronic statements and save paper. Reduce paper junk mail by providing an email address for companies to send offers to instead. You can also request to be taken off mailing list with services like DMA Choice for a small fee and the free service of Catalog Choice.

5. Go through your waste

What’s taking over your garbage bin? (Photo by Manfred Antranias Zimmer)

As disgusting as it sounds, dig through your trash! Look through your bins and pinpoint what the majority of your trash is. List which waste you want to cut down on and plan out how to avoid it. Looking in my trash bins, the majority of my waste used to be makeup wipes and cotton rounds. To cut down on my trash, I invested in the reusable makeup eraser. You can also try alternative, more eco-friendly trash options like composting for all of your biodegradable waste.