Doggie Doo Good

With environment so prevalent in all of our minds as the horrors of the BP oil spill continue to be a daily reminder of human impact on the planet, you may be wondering what else you can do to tread more lightly on the earth. I thought I’d share some ways Fido can help minimize his footprint too. If you’re like me, and agonize over what the lesser evil is… reusing plastic bags to pick up after the dog or recycling them at the grocery store (which uses a large amount of energy to do)… you probably cringe at the thought of tossing 3-4 bags away per day during your daily dog walks. I stop and read the fine print on the bags in my local Doggie Spot poop scoop stations to check if they biodegrade before grabbing one. But the big question, even if a bag is labeled ‘Biodegradable’, is exactly how long it takes to break down. According to ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) specifications, to be classified as ‘Biodegradable’, a product must degrade at a similar rate as an apple, and leave no large plastic fragments behind. Frustrated with the choice of bags I find in most big box pet stores that boast more eco-friendliness than they actually deliver, I decided to search for something better online. Here’s what I found, the price points, where to find them and the pros/cons of each:

Walk the Dog
Cost: About $10 for 45 bags – that’s .22 per bag

Available on: Amazon.com and WalkTheDogmfg.com

Pros: Flushable! 100% biodegradable (in 90 days if not flushed), free
shipping on $50 or more on the vendor site. Because the poo ends up in the sewer instead of to the landfill, these little bags pack a punch when it comes to keeping potential toxins out of our ground water systems

Cons: The price point hurts a little


BioBags
Cost: Small bags are $4.49 per bundle of 50 / Large bags are $5.99 per bundle of 50 – that’s .08 to .11 per bag

Available at: Petco, BuyGreen.com and other online retailers

Pros: Made from cornstarch, biodegrade like food scraps in 10-45 days, leaving no harmful residues behind. Comes in 2 sizes, and they also make cat litter liners.

Cons: Around $6 for shipping


PoopBags

Cost: The 1 Month Bonus Buy Pack is $19.99 for 100 bags – that’s .19 per bag

Available on: PoopBags.com

Pros: Made of renewable resources like corn, decompose in a commercial composting environment between 60 and 90, free shipping in the US

Cons: I can’t find any


Scoopies
Cost: $4-5 per box of 30 mitts - that’s .13 - .17 per bag depending on retailer

Available on: eBay.com, Amazon.com and other online retailers

Pros: It’s a glove. Oxo-Biodegradable plastic completely disappears from the environment in about 18 months and as opposed to compostable products, don’t produce methane during degredation

Cons: Contains very small (catalytic) amounts of metal salts (which aid in the natural degradation process), shipping adds about $5 to cost

If you’re still not motivated to buy biodegradable poop bags… consider this:
Plastics are the 4th highest generated waste in the U.S., originate from petroleum which is non-renewable, do not biodegrade, and take thousands of years to break down. Plastics are the least recycled with a 6.8% recovery rate. In 2008, the U.S. produced 31.5 million tons of plastic and only recycled 2.14 million tons (Source: EPA.gov)