Apr 21, 2008 7:02 pm US/Eastern
Consumer Watch: 'Green' Products For Pet Care
Domesticated Animals Are Being Polluted At Higher Rates Than Humans, But There Are Ways To Fix The Problem
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
A new study has found American pets are polluted with even higher levels of toxic chemicals that researchers have recently found in people. The study also shows pets are more likely to develop health problems from exposures to these toxins more rapidly than humans.
What if anything can you do to protect your pet? As CBS 2 HD recently found out more and more pet owners are going green.
Debra Tarter's boxer Patchez is the picture of health, but not that long ago Patchez had all sorts of health problems.
"She got ill and we took her to the vet and she had uh, some kidney problems," said Tarter.
Now, Patchez is the poster pup for going green.
"We switched her diet and went to organic," said Tarter.
Debra Lynn Dadd, Author of "Really Green," said there are green products for every aspect of life, and every aspect of pet care.
From pet beds made of recycled plastics to toxin and dust-free kitty litter, pet lovers are fast adopting a more natural lifestyle for their animals. Organic product sales are up to about $1 billion per year.
"Anything like cat litter to gourmet organic doggie treats to hemp dog collars and cat collars," said Dadd.
Also known as "the green queen," Dadd said you just need to know how to read the label to go green.
"There are two major things that you want to avoid that would make a product not green and one of them is the presence of toxic chemicals, and the other is many ingredients or materials that are made from crude oil," said Dadd.
But just because green products are available doesn't mean Fido's owner is going to bite. There's a catch.
"Even though people say they want to do things that are better for the environment, they won't actually do it unless the product actually performs," explained Dadd.
Researchers said one reason for all the new "green' products" is empty nesters are pampering their four-legged "babies" with the latest luxury craze "green" goods.
Tarter really doesn't care about being trendy, she's just happy that Patchez is up and running with the rest of the gang.
"She's our baby. My children are all grown, so of course we're very concerned about her," said Tarter.
You may find all the new categories of pet food confusing: There's natural, meaning nothing artificial, included in the ingredients. There's organic, meaning no chemicals were used in growing any of the ingredients. And then there are a whole host of other claims such as human-grade or locally grown food -- and "ethical" claims such as "no cruelty" in testing. The packaged food report says these new labels are cropping up with growing frequency.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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