You know I’m all for doing things to reduce our collective environmental impact, but I never thought I’d install (or more accurately, purchase, then watch my husband install) a septic system for our pet waste. But that’s exactly what we did last week.
Inspired by a tip from Green Mom Finds and the “How to Green your Pet” guides on Treehugger, we purchased a Doggie Dooley pet waste system at the local big-box pet supply store two weeks ago and started using it this past week. This is basically an inverted pyramid with a step-on lid on top that gets buried in the ground above a 4-foot deep hole. You can then deposit your doggie doo into the hole, fill it with water and a few tablespoons of a special enzyme, and leave it to break down and absorb into the surrounding ground much like septic waste is supposed to in a leach field.
You probably also know I’m one for pushing the limits of these types of gizmos. So I’m not just putting Durango’s waste into the Doggie Dooley. I intentionally purchased one designed for two large animals thinking that I ought to come up with a way to keep Mystic’s litter and poo out of the landfill. So a few weeks ago, when we finished off our last bit of conventional cat litter, we switched to an eco-friendly pine litter that I felt would both break down in the Doggie Dooley if a little was stuck to the cat poo, and add beneficial carbon–not to mention nitrogen from the break-down of the ammonia in the cat’s pee–to the compost bin.
And how long did this change in pet waste disposal take? How much did it cost? The Doggie Dooley was $50. The cat little was a slight bit more expensive than the conventional, but also lasts longer (1 inch of pine litter in the cat box as opposed to the 3 inches recommended by the conventional company). We are already scooping dog poop several times a week to keep little feet (and fingers) from getting into it in the yard, so now we just plop it into a hole in the yard instead of into the trash can. Once a week I have to dump a bucket of water into the thing with some enzymes dissolved in it, which takes about 2 minutes.
And the grand total that it took me to separate the poo from the rest of the cat box contents and deposit one bag in the Doggie Dooley and the other in the compost bin was about 3 minutes longer than just putting the whole lot on the landfill. I think I can live with 3 minutes longer and I have to admit that the pine litter sure does smell nicer than the clay stuff!
So for five minutes a week and a $50 investment, you too can green your pets by keeping their poo out of the landfill, while at the same time protecting your cat from all the ailments that can be caused by conventional litter.
Do you have a green pet tip you’d like to share? Leave a comment and if I try out your tip, I promise to blog about it soon!
2 comments
Julie says:
May 29, 2008 at 10:06 pm (UTC 2 )
We did Yesterday’s News at one point a year or so ago and the kitty didn’t like it. We also thought the odor was pretty bad! I like the pine better and the kitty hasn’t complained too much so far (no accidents, but who knows how she may be protesting in her little kitty mind).
We are feeding Durango Eagle Pack dry food. He was on the soft food as well until recently because he was so emaciated when we brought him home
He’s gained 16 pounds (doubling his weight) in the past 3 months and, although he’s still eating 3-4 cups of food a day (!!) he’s doing a lot better and doesn’t look like he’s starving anymore.
You know how I love to compost things, even things that are on the no-no list, like dead birds, dairy products, wood ash, etc., so I would totally be up for composting Durango’s poo. However, just to be absolutely safe, if this septic system works, I will stick with it and just put the cat pee pine litter in the compost…
Nicole says:
May 29, 2008 at 7:45 am (UTC 2 )
Great post, J!
We tried the pine litter (and Yesterday’s News) but my cat wouldn’t go for it. He’s absolutely meticulous about his cat box, as long as it’s scoopable litter, otherwise he potties in the house. How unenlightened of him
Out of curiosity, what are you feeding Durango? I’ve found that the higher quality the food, the less waste to clean up. For a long while we fed the BARF diet and I’d imagine you could compost the waste from that w/out the Dooley. I’ll pass on a book to you!