Thu
Dec 24 2009
12:07 pm
Polluting Pets
By: redmondkr

My friend Becky posted a disturbing link on Facebook the other day. A couple in New Zealand is alleging that my dog is more hazardous to the planet than that guy's Hummer.



continued...

Combine the land required to generate its food and a "medium" sized dog has an annual footprint of 0.84 hectares (2.07 acres) -- around twice the 0.41 hectares required by a 4x4 driving 10,000 kilometres (6,200 miles) a year, including energy to build the car.

They do acknowledge the fact that pets are good for us old folks but suggest that, if we must have one, it should at least provide benefits to compensate for its polluting ways. For instance we could keep a hen for the eggs or a rabbit (if we are heartless enough to kill it and eat it). The Smothers Brothers had a routine about how Mom always liked you best. Dickie had a dog, Mom gave Tommy a 'lousy chicken'.

Then again we could take the advice of the American Rottweiler Club, ditch the SUV, and put one of these in our garage. I must admit though, they are prodigious methane emitters.

I share with you this 'card' from Becky and her children, Roddy, Hop-Along Cassidy the three-legged therapy dog, and Taz.

Topics:
sugarfatpie's picture

Thanks for the info! I

Submitted by sugarfatpie on Thu, 2009/12/24 - 1:31pm.

Thanks for the info!
I wonder how much impact my fantasy pet, a large snake, would have?
Low metabolism.
Eats pests!

Unfortunately you can't curl up with a nice boa on a cold night due to the risk of strangulation.

-Sugarfatpie (AKA Alex Pulsipher)

"X-Rays are a hoax."-Lord Kelvin

cafkia's picture

I am unconvinced. Are we

Submitted by cafkia on Sat, 2009/12/26 - 11:36am.

I am unconvinced. Are we speaking of excavating the small mountain to get the ore for the metals used? Are we including the smelting operations for their energy usage and the pollutants that result from the process? What about the acquisition and refinement of the raw materials that become the paint, tires, and plastic bits, are those included?

On the other side, an awful lot of popular dog food is products left over from the processing of food for human consumption. A respectable amount of the ingredients used to go to the landfill or were dumped in the ocean.

I get that people want to feel good about driving their Hummers but the numbers are going to have to be really strong to convince me. My '88 bimmer doesn't get the best mileage (not bad but not the best) but when I think about what it would take environmentally to replace it, I get much more comfortable with it.

Plus I have no means to afford a new car.

----------------------------------------------------------- 

It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument.
  - William G. McAdoo

lovable liberal's picture

If anyone bothers to counter

Submitted by lovable liberal on Sat, 2009/12/26 - 2:20pm.

If anyone bothers to counter this so-called analysis, I'm sure it will turn out to be obvious bullshit. One tell is the annual miles driven they picked - 6200! What other choices did they cherry-pick to arrive at the conclusion they wanted?

Upshot: Don't trust wingnuts. They lie. It's the only way they can gain power.

Liberty and justice for all.

My home

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.

TN Progressive

TN Politics

Knox TN Today

Local TV News

News Sentinel

    State News

    Wire Reports

    Lost Medicaid Funding

    To date, the failure to expand Medicaid/TennCare has cost the State of Tennessee ? in lost federal funding. (Source)

    Search and Archives