Dogs have the eco-footprint of SUV’s

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Yes, I know, you love your dog. The truth is, however, we need a scapegoat for why the planet is warming. We’ve tried blaming cows, whose farts are the fodder of anit-global warming forces across the globe, but that wasn’t enough. So, now we have a news headline sure to get everybody all worked up:

Dogs eco-footprint is a Hummer, study says

And in said article we learn that dogs eat a lot of food. And that the growing of food has an environmental impact. Plastic dog toys, too, are problematic because they require resources to produce.

You can read all about it in a new book, titled “Time to Eat the Dog: The Real Guide to Sustainable Living.”

Co-author Robert Vales explains his thinking in putting the spotlight on dogs (and cats, who don’t leave quite as big an ec0-pawprint):

“We’re not actually saying it is time to eat the dog. We’re just saying that we need to think about and know the (ecological) impact of some of the things we do and that we take for granted.”

Feeding your pet over its lifetime is, apparently, one of those things. With this kind of attitude adjustment for pet ownership, can it be too long before we see a follow up, titled “Time to Eat Your Kids?”