Pet dogs and cats are only making global warming worse, according to a University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) study.
The study claims the meat-based diet of many dogs and cats requires more meat than the average human diet, meaning the existence of pets is making global warming worse.
“I do think we should consider all the impacts that pets have so we can have an honest conversation about them,” Gregory Okin, a UCLA geography professor involved in the research, said in a press statement. “Pets have many benefits, but also a huge environmental impact.”
Okin claims that dogs and cats eat a lot of meat, which releases the equivalent of about 64 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) annually. He says that getting rid of dogs and cats would be the environmental equivalent of removing 13.6 million cars from the road. Dogs and cats are especially environmentally unfriendly compared to other vegetarian pets.
Okin claims pets are responsible for 25 to 30 percent of the environmental impact of meat consumption in the U.S., and if Americans’ 163 million dogs and cats were a separate country, it would rank fifth in global meat consumption behind only Russia, Brazil, the U.S., and China.
“I’m not a vegetarian, but eating meat does come at a cost,” Okin said. “Those of us in favor of eating or serving meat need to be able to have an informed conversation about our choices, and that includes the choices we make for our pets.”
Okin claims that if Americans stopped owning pets, the resources used to the “pink slime” used to feed dogs and cats food could be redirected to feeding humans.
“It’s perfectly edible and completely safe, but it’s unappetizing, so people don’t want it in their food,” Okin said. “But frankly, it’s a good, inexpensive protein source.”
Environmentalists are terrified of all the CO2 emissions generated by cooking meats, including those used for pet food.
“Studies are emerging that whether the meat is grown locally or far away, it still requires a lot of resources, including carbon resources,” Mike Tidwell, head of the environmental group Chesapeake Climate Action Network, told The Baltimore Sun. “If you really want to have a low-impact diet in terms of change, then you just have to eat a lot less.”
Tidwell claims raising beef generates the most CO2, but also says farm-raised fowl, like turkeys, are “still high-impact.”
Read more at Daily Caller
How much money do they flush down the john over these iditotic studies by these idiot UCLA wackos anyway If these jerk is a total vegan then this is proof Vegans have shrinking brains A Goldfish is more intellgent ten this twit
What will those idiots from PETA have to say about this pea-brain collage professor and their idiotic study? Since the PETA jerks beleive that pet ownership’s a form of slavery they will aproove of freeing pets becuase PETA IS STUPID and SO IS OKIN
Must cheaper to let increase the quota Japanese has on hunting whales. That way it will reduce the amount of meat the consume which can add up to thousands of tonnes each year, this in turn will reduce the amount of CO2 used to produce that meat. Much easier to spear one whale for free vs making 10,000 people pay more for their petrol.
Q. What do bears call bicyclists? A. Meals on Wheels. I once saw this refrigerator magnet showing a bear and cub and a enviromentalists wacko in a sleepingbag the cub was saying LOOK MOMMY BURITOS YUM and THE FAR SIDE cartoon shows three men in sleeping bags and a bear saying SANDWHICHES
Having worked for a large petfood manufacturer, most dog and cat food of the dry variety is made of crushed up grain and coated in chicken guts to make it palatable.
Gator is right about animals eating offal – the good stuff goes to humans.
Climate change is about hating humans, not the enviornment.
GATOR, Steve, you made excellent points. However, wouldn’t any competent university department research these points? I guess I answered my own question with the word, “competent.”
Making pet food is like making sausages….DON’T LOOK! A friend of mine was desperate for a paycheck. He applied to a rendering plant. Part of his job interview was a plant tour. I’ll skip the gory parts and tell you that he went home afterwards and immediately showered. It didn’t remove the stench.
Having said that , our pets have a better existence than wild animals .
Okin isa nit-wit a intellectial egghead with a walnut sized brain and UCLA like most all liberal camposes are full of nit-wits,idiots and pinheads
Bullcrap!
The pictures presented on cans and bags of pet food conjure up images of a chef cooking divine meals of wholesome cuts of meat and vegetables for our beloved pets. Although this is a lovely idea, it is rarely the case. When animals are slaughtered for food production, the lean muscle is cut off for human consumption. The remaining carcass (bones, organs, blood, beaks, etc.) is what goes into pet food, commonly known as “by-products,” “meal,” “by-product meal,” or the like. Read on if you are not faint of heart.
In addition to the carcasses described above, other “leftovers” from the human food industry (restaurant grease, out-of-date supermarket meat, etc) and “4D” livestock animals (dead, dying, diseased, disabled) may also be found in pet food through a process called rendering. Rendering is defined as “an industrial process of extraction by melting that converts waste animal tissue into usable materials”. In other words, rendering involves placing livestock carcasses and possibly “leftovers” into huge vats, grinding it up and cooking it for several hours. Rendering separates fat, removes water, and kills bacteria, viruses, parasites and other infectious organisms. The fat that is separated becomes “animal fat” that goes into pet food (for example, chicken fat, beef fat, etc). The remaining dried protein solids become “meal” or meat “by-product meal” for addition to pet food.
A truck drove by the other day. It was carrying “Holistic Pet Food” .