Going pet free to reduce climate change

[LittleLottieChaos]

I don’t think I’ve seen a thread where people get told not to have a pet because it contributes to climate change… but more often than not when someone asks ‘shall I have a child’ there’s an immediate ‘but think of the planet’ response.

Does anyone else find this ridiculous as a double standard? Pet food farming IS an issue and pets are not necessary (yes yes nor are kids but that’s not the debate here), we should be keeping less domestic animals. Why does a dog owner need 3+ dogs?

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.euronews.com/green/amp/2021/04/28/what-s-worse-for-the-climate-crisis-your-child-or-your-pet

*but more often than not when someone asks ‘shall I have a child’ there’s an immediate ‘but think of the planet’ response.
*
Is there?

I have only seen advice on getting married first and not throwing your career to the wind. Making sure that you are financially secure before having a baby.

Yes it is a double standard, but an understandable one.

Having more than 2 DC is sometimes commented on, because more than 'replacement rate' can be seen as an indulgence. But having pets is a luxury, and far more optional. You'd never see the comment on posts about eg working or assistance dogs

@NotNowBernarrd

*but more often than not when someone asks ‘shall I have a child’ there’s an immediate ‘but think of the planet’ response. * Is there?

I have only seen advice on getting married first and not throwing your career to the wind. Making sure that you are financially secure before having a baby.

Very, very much so www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4319395-To-ask-for-your-real-advice-about-deciding-to-have-a-third-child?pg=1

I completely agree, although I daresay that it's an even more unpopular opinion than "don't have children".

It's not just the carbon footprint of your average pet dog or cat. There's also the environmental damage caused by flea treatments, faeces and predation (the latter by cats, specifically).

On the brighter side though, I recently saw an advert on social media for cat food made out of insect protein, so maybe the pet food side of things will start to improve?

What if you have a pet that doesn't eat meat/huge amounts of meat? I once read that hamsters have the lowest carbon footprint of any pet. I imagine rabbits or guinea pigs would be similar.

This is another reason why I would only consider a rescue pet. There are enough animals out there already who need a home without fueling the breeding industry.

YY to insect protein pet food. It's the future.

Yes insect derived feeds would be a better way forward. However now that dogs and cats can be found to have such specific dietary needs I don’t think it would be widely used.

Really depends if you buy from a breeder or rescue surely. A rescue animal is already there, and the rescue centre will be feeding them anyway so you adopting them isn’t going to make a difference.

I’m definitely against breeding though. I hope that lab grown meat might partially solve the animal based pet food problem.

Blame it all on pets.Just look at your big cars(like fucking tanks) to transport your DC to school and everywhere else.Humans have a ten times bigger carbon footprint!

I read not so long ago that a dog has the same carbon footprint as an SUV.

@Megameg56

Blame it all on pets.Just look at your big cars(like fucking tanks) to transport your DC to school and everywhere else.Humans have a ten times bigger carbon footprint!

Where has OP blamed it all on pets?

I don’t think getting a pet dog or cat is in any way comparable to adding another human on this planet. Sure they do eat food, but generally nowhere near as much as a human. They also don’t drive cars, shop fast fashion from China, fly away on foreign holidays or travel on a cruise ship.

I have two dogs and what they own is a collar and lead each, a bed each, a few tennis balls and some rope toys. I also have two kids, and although I do try and be sensible when it comes to buying stuff, they have many thousands percent more stuff than my dogs.

My dogs also gets around using zero emissions (walking), my kids use busses, trains and uber (teenagers).

However, if you do want to blame the animals, then have a look at the meat industry, particularly beef.

A bit off topic but Just the other day someone posted that women should have as many children as they want. Not the first time I’ve read that on MN, where there seems to be a tendency of 3 child families. Many people hoard, but they don’t see it that way. They “like the idea” of a large family, a few dogs and a cat or two.

@Rummikub

I read not so long ago that a dog has the same carbon footprint as an SUV.

I remember a question on QI a couple of years ago which showed a family of four taken outside a house, with obligatory car in the drive and dog by the family. The question was “what’s the most efficient thing this family can legally do to save the planet?”. The answer was to kill the dog.

Spot on,well said🙂

We dont need to kill anything,the planet is doing it for us and it seems,humans are on the top of the list to be killed by the planets reaction to our pollution.

@Megameg56 ex-queeze me but I at no point have advocated killing anything. Breeding needs be reduced and ownership more selective, with obvious exceptions like guide and working dogs.

@Megameg56

Blame it all on pets.Just look at your big cars(like fucking tanks) to transport your DC to school and everywhere else.Humans have a ten times bigger carbon footprint!

In my experience, families with the biggest cars are ones with dogs as they need the huge boot space for the dog(s). Not to mention the fact that they then sling them in the back and drive several miles somewhere naice for a walk.

I think it’s a good reason to adopt rather than buy from a breeder.

And give vegan/insect-based dog food a try.

Insect-based cat food? Now there’s a plan for my vicious moth-hunting moggy.

@MoreRainThanAnyYet

Insect-based cat food? Now there’s a plan for my vicious moth-hunting moggy.

It exists - look up YORA.

But it's bloody expensive. Over four times what my regular cat food costs, so I'm afraid my three are stuck with Harrington's and Felix

Ah - whereas yer actual moth is a free source of fun and food.

I will only have rescues. They already exist and need feeding etc so I am not adding to the problem.

A lot of dog food is made from the waste products of human food consumption - even the veg that goes into it will often not have been fit for human consumption. I'd much rather that the bones and cartilage of my meat eating habits were ground up and fed to dogs than just chucked away. We do home butchery sometimes and between the freezer and the dogs there is almost nothing left. And yes, I do drive to walk my dogs, but I'm not then driving to go to a squash court or whatever in a bid to get some exercise.

The carbon footprint of the average dog is less than a flight to New York. And I'd rather give up flying than not have a dog.