Cat with human

Environmentally friendly cat keeping: easier than you think!

Cats are popular pets and delight many a family with their original characters. However, in an ecological household, keeping cats in an environmentally friendly way is also an important issue. We show you what you can look out for!

What few owners keep in mind: One kitty adds up to 0.39 tonnes of CO2 per year! After all, this is more than one third of what experts would like to see per capita for every human being on earth: namely 1 tonne of CO2. In view of the increasing number of domestic cats, this figure adds up considerably. But don't worry, by keeping your cat in an environmentally friendly way you can contribute to keeping the ecological pawprint as small as possible.

Cat relaxed

Environmentally friendly cat husbandry: meat food as one of the main culprits

As with other pets, such as dogs, two elements in particular contribute to the lack of sustainability: The cat food and the litter box. Since cats, unlike dogs, are really pure carnivores, you must not switch them to a vegetarian diet. The dog can also meet its needs from vegetable protein, a cat would fall ill on such a diet, because the food would lack important trace elements such as taurine and essential vitamin A. A vegan cat diet would therefore be cruelty to animals.

Cat with human

Environmentally friendly cat husbandry: the packaging makes the difference

So you can't save on meat for your kitty - but you can save on packaging. Dry food in paper or cardboard containers and wet food in cans that are as large as possible reduce the CO2 footprint. It is even better to make your own wet food, freeze it and feed it to your pet (properly defrosted and slightly warmed): for example, you can take meat that is not too fatty, without any spices, and a few aromatic vegetables such as carrots or courgettes and cook and puree them. Voilà, you have homemade cat food! Cats appreciate the flavourful addition and variety of vegetables, even if they get little nutritional value from them. With home-cooked food you can reduce packaging waste and also adapt to the preferences of your own cat(s). 

Cat eating

The right cat litter for environmentally friendly cat keeping

Besides food, cat litter is a considerable source of waste. As much as pet owners are pleased that even very young cats quickly take care of their own needs, the litter disposed of with a cat litter tray accumulates. Even in normal cases, this adds up to quite a lot, and if the cat becomes kidney-sick in old age, it can become even more. Of course, the simplest solution is to let the cat outside - unfortunately, this is not possible in all cases.
The litter box should only be spared if there are really suitable outdoor areas for the cat to explore and roam around. However, there are also possibilities to behave more ecologically with litter trays. To make it suitable for cat and environment, you should avoid chemical-laden products such as litter crystals with fragrances. More environmentally friendly is cat litter made from renewable ingredients, it is also available without fragrances, often compostable and also helps to reduce the cat's CO2 emissions. Particularly suitable are wood pellets or also sawdust, which can be filled into the litter tray in coarse or fine form, depending on the cat's preferences.

Cat portrait

Cats only need a few accessories - and none made of plastic

The accessories that are really necessary for cats are manageable and also enable environmentally friendly cat keeping by dispensing with plastic. A cat only needs a transport basket for occasional visits to the vet or for travelling. Such baskets are also available woven from wicker, which can be closed with a grid. In addition, the animals appreciate a scratching opportunity. Instead of industrially produced scratching posts or scratching landscapes, you can use boards or pallets and wrap them with jute or sisal. Home-made scratching posts have the advantage that you can replace the tattered parts and thus extend the life of the piece enormously. You can also make toys "for the cat" yourself - with crocheted mice made of sturdy yarn or quite simply with paper balls held together with string. Cats discover the play potential of objects on their own anyway and let us know what they like. If you would still like to buy special toys for the kitties, you can also find them second hand.

Cat playing

Environmentally friendly cat keeping is less difficult than thought

Cats in particular are curious and inventive - when they play, they demonstrate how sustainable pet ownership can be by helping themselves to paper bags and cardboard boxes. As a cat owner, you can follow suit, for example with litter made from renewable raw materials and with wet food that you cook yourself in some cases. If you can let your cat outside occasionally, you have already taken a big step towards environmentally friendly cat ownership. We at NIKIN also try to make a difference with many small things. For example, we use very little paper, and if we do, then only tree-free paper. Our shipping from us to you is climate-compensated and we have an electronic company car. Find out where else we save resources and how we live sustainability here.

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1 comment

Abstain from cat and dog food with fish would be another important tip, as these contribute to a large part of overfishing to illegal fishing. It is not enough to look only at the taste, but absolutely look at the ingredients.

Marisa

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