Pets Gone Green

In Pets Gone Green, New York Times best-selling author Eve Adamson explores how pet owners can have a positive effect on the environment and their pets' place within it. This engaging and enlightening book outlines strategies that pet owners can pursue to reduce the family's carbon foot- and pawprints, from using less toxic flea repellant to offering earth-friendly treats and toys to our much-loved pets. Adamson's goal in writing Pets Gone Green stemmed from her desire to find ways to save her dogs from the increasingly toxic environment around us. "…we are obligated to speak up for our furry companions, who are unable to think or act green on their own." Pets Gone Green remains a timely exploration of many of the hot-button topics in our world today, from eating local and animal rescue to activism and recycling! The book offers practical advice for owners of all pets, from dogs and cats to birds, small mammals, and more. As pet rescue has increasingly become "the thing to do," the book begins with a chapter on "Recycled Companions: The Ultimate Earth-Friendly Act," in which the author discusses the many advantages of rescuing a pet from a shelter or rescue society. Pet food, another hot topic in the pet world, is the subject of "Green Food," which includes a brief history of commercial food and the pluses and minuses of using natural, homemade, raw, and vegetarian diets for pets. The chapter "Altered States" is devoted to the importance and health benefits of spaying and neutering pets. Buying and eating local, diminishing consumerism, organic materials, holistic pet care, and recycling are all discussed in terms of improving humans' and pets' lives and reducing waste on a community, national, and global level. Printed with soy ink on recycled paper, Pets Gone Green presents the original artwork of New England painter and woodblock printmaker Willy Reddick. The book includes over 50 woodblock images of her beautiful peaceful animals, lending a down-home organic feel that is truly unique for a pet book. The ultimate message of the book is summarized in the final chapter "Animal Wisdom," in which Adamson focuses in on what our pets can teach us about the world around us through their natural instincts, simplicity, and view of the world. She concludes, "…animals are companions worthy of our respect, love, and care, and because they are so close to nature in ways we can only begin to comprehend, they are also the key to our salvation….Animals understand how to live lightly on the earth, and we can learn from them." Resources of animal welfare websites and agencies, green organizations, holistic resources, green product manufacturers, and green websites and publications included. Fully indexed.