Today is November 15, which just so happens to be National Recycling Day. From a young age we are all taught the importance of “reduce, reuse and recycling”! While one day a year isn’t quite enough, to celebrate the day – we need everyone to properly recycle and dispose of their trash and pet waste so we can enjoy our earth for as long as humanly possible. So in this blog post, we wanted to provide you with some tips for properly disposing of pet waste & systems that you can implement in your own home!
Why Scoop the poop?
Pet waste, whether you own a dog or cat, their poop can be harmful to our watershed. It contains lots of bacteria which can spread and bring diseases and illnesses to other animals, humans and affects our drinking water. You can visit our FAQ as we answer this one in more-depth, with infographics!
What’s the Scoop on Poop-Bags?
We love our pets, and as responsible pet owners we have a dooty to take care of our pet’s waste… it is admittedly the least glamorous part of owning a pet, but EVERYONE POOPS! It is time some of us learn how to properly dispose of pet waste. If you follow our social media we have some helpful graphics on what poop bags are the best, but we will also share it here:
Plastic bags:
Here at Scoop 2 we urge you to think twice about using plastic bags, while the cheaper option, we are paying for it in the long run as these take over 500 years to degrade in landfill, if at all. Hundreds of thousands of marine animals are killed yearly by plastic bags so lets try and stay away from this option!
Biodegradable bags:
When we hear the word “biodegradable” we think we are doing good for our planet, when in fact the term “biodegradable” is just a marketing word – there is no legal definition or legitimate standard for biodegradable. These bags take 3 or more years to decompose.
Compostable bags:
Compostable pet waste bags are considered bioplastics which look and feel like plastic but are made from renewable resources such as plant starch and designed to breakdown with the help of microbial activity within 3 months – now that’s a great option!
How to Properly Dispose your Pets Waste?
As previously mentioned you can use poop bags, these are the go-to method when you are on the go to dispose of your pet’s waste. As a responsible pet owner you must stoop & scoop, and as a scoop 2 member – we always try and scoop at least 2 pet wastes we find on our daily walks, if you don’t see any other pet waste then we always try and scoop litter. This helps our community and our watershed! To properly dispose of your pets waste really depends on your location! While in bigger cities like Toronto, you can dispose of your pet’s waste in a compost bin, in others you are required to toss it in the garbage. If your town doesn’t have any specific systems or mention it on its website I would also like to encourage you to reach out to your town and plead for some proper solutions.
How to Properly Dispose Pet Waste on the Go?
When you walk your furry friend, is typically the time they do their doo. So how can we ensure as responsible pet owners that we are properly disposing our pet waste while walking? If you live in the city of Toronto, there are many pet-waste specific bins located around the city – you can find most locations here. If you don’t live in Toronto, we encourage you to research proper waste disposal locations in your area – there may be Sutera disposal systems (read our previous blog on what Sutera is doing with the poop!)
Toronto accepts pet waste in its compost bins. Check out this quick video the City of Toronto has shared on how to dispose/compost.
Pet Waste Systems to Implement in your Home
Now it is paw-ssible to implement easy-to-use systems in your own home to make disposing of pet waste even easier. Flushing pet waste (again, check with your sewage system or the town on this) can be an easy solution, simply scoop, dispose and flush! As mentioned, you could use compostable pet waste bags to scoop their waste and dispose in the compost bin. While locations like Toronto scrape for plastics and it isn’t required to use compostable bags, lessening our plastic production and use is extremely important as the plastic bags would still end up in our landfill and do not degrade over time.
Easy Pet-Waste Disposal Products to use at Home
Our friends over at Doo Doo Baggie Club are helping everyone do their dooty with the ease of their awesome products – check them out here!
We hope this blog posting was helpful, educational and enlightening on how to properly dispose pet waste. As a responsible pet owner we would love for you to join the Scoop 2 community – Join us in the Poovement & start making a difference today! Finally, we would like to once again urge you to take action with your town to find waste disposal solutions that better our planet, like Sutera! Questions? Comments? We’d love to hear from you, so fill in a contact request, or head over to our social media channels and let’s chat!