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Helping Fido go grrrrreen

12:23 PM EDT on Friday, March 28, 2008

By Gina Kim

McClatchy Newspapers

Worldwise makes the Pooch Planet Dog Bed with fiber created from recycled plastic bottles.

You reduce. You recycle. You reuse. Shouldn’t Fido and Felix do the same? With a burgeoning pet product industry, here are ways your pets can go green, too.

POOP BAGS

Why you should sit up: It seems like a good idea to reuse bags to pick up Fido’s feces. But you’re also preserving poop for generations to come.

Why you should roll over: These dog poop bags and cat pan liners, by BioBag, are 100 percent compostable and biodegradable, made from cornstarch and renewable resources.

Where to fetch: www.poopbags.com

How much: $18.45 for 100 dog waste bags; $18.40 for 10 cat pan liners.

WILD BIRD FEEDER

Why you should sit up: Plastic soda bottles take hundreds of years to decompose in landfills, so why not find another use and feed birds in the process?

Why you should roll over: Watch the birds when you hang the TerraCycle Wild Bird Feeder, made from a used soda bottle and a recycled plastic feeding pan. It comes with birdseed and can be refilled.

Where to fetch: Select Wal-Mart stores or www.terracycle.net

How much: $4.88

DOG BALL AND BONE

Why you should sit up: Fido always needs a new toy. The preservation of your shoes and couch depend on it.

Why you should roll over: The Orbee-Tuff RecycleBALL and RecycleBONE are made from leftover material that would otherwise be thrown away. And if your dog chews through one of the non-toxic and minty toys, you can send the bits back to the company and they can recycle it into future toys.

Where to fetch: www.planetdog.com

How much: $9.95 per toy

DOG LEASH

Why you should sit up: In an era when danger lurks with every car, Fido should be leashed rather than having free paw throughout the neighborhood.

Why you should roll over: These leashes by Krebs Recycle are made from old climbing rope. Climbing gyms retire rope after three months and climbing guide services retire it after a season for safety reasons. These high-quality ropes are hand-sewn into long-lasting leashes.

Why you should play dead: The company doesn’t guarantee specific rope patterns because of constantly changing stock of recycled rope.

Where to fetch: www.krebsrecycle.com

How much: $15 for a six-foot leash; $13 for a two-foot heeler leash.

CAT LITTER

Why you should sit up: Most cat litter on the market is made from strip-mined clay. In addition, there are some who believe that clay dust can be harmful to Felix’s respiratory system.

Why you should roll over: There are a number of eco-friendly cat litters on the market made from newspaper or plant bases such as corncob, wheat grass or oat hulls. Next Gen Pet Products manufactures a litter made from industrial construction scrap wood and green tea leaves, which are naturally deodorizing.

Where to fetch: www.nextgenpet.com

How much: $14.99 a bag

DOG TOWEL

Why you should sit up: Fido loves the beach. He even likes the kiddie pool at the dog park. But your car already smells like dog, does it need to smell like wet dog?

Why you should roll over: This chamois towel by Planet Dog is made from recycled wood chips and absorbs 10 times its weight.

Where to fetch: www.planetdog.com

How much: $19.95

DOG BED

Why you should sit up: Fido and Felix need a place to rest their furry heads and tired paws.

Why you should roll over: Worldwise makes beds filled with fiber created from recycled plastic bottles. The plastic is cut into small pieces and then heated and formed into pea-sized pellets.

Where to fetch: Raley’s and Target

How much: $24.99 for the 29x36 PoochPlanet bed; or $19.99 for the SmartyKat LoveBucket cat bed.

SMALL ANIMAL BEDDING

Why you should sit up: Rabbits and gerbils want to be environmentally conscious, too. And these small pets, along with hamsters, rats, guinea pigs and birds want healthy homes.

Why you should roll over: This bedding, by FiberCore, is made from 100 percent post-consumer waste — recycled paper that is then shredded and crinkled.

Why you should play dead: Make your own from all that printer paper you toss into the recycling. Send it through the shredder and get crinkling.

Where to fetch: www.fibercorellc.com

How much: $5.99-6.99 for 1.5 pounds

DOG HARNESS

Why you should sit up: You don’t walk Fido; Fido walks you. Take back your alpha status with a harness, which takes the pressure off his throat (those choking sounds when he’s trying to chase a cat mean he’s really choking).

Why you should roll over: Planet Dog makes a 100 percent hemp fleece-lined adjustable harness. Hemp is durable and eco-friendly. Plus, the harness doubles as a doggie seatbelt.

Where to fetch: www.planetdog.com

How much: $26.95

CATNIP MOUSE

Why you should sit up: Felix likes his toys so much, he’s practically eating the plastic cheese and cotton fishie. That means he’s ingesting toxic plasticizers and cotton treated with pesticides, defoliants and dye chemicals.

Why you should roll over: Purrfectplay sells a line of dog and pet toys created from organic dye-free cotton. The catnip is organic too.

Where to fetch: www.purrfectplay.com

How much: $7.50