Green Dog Supplies

Dogs don’t care about how much money you spend on their favorite bed or toy. They just want to eat, sleep, poop, play, and be loved! You can go to a pet store and spend hundreds of dollars on supplies for your new pup, or you can make many of them for free in a matter of minutes. To construct the five dog essentials—bed, pooper scooper, collar, food, and toys—all you need is an old belt, some worn blankets, a plastic orange juice container, a beat-up tennis ball, a bit of rope, leftovers from last night’s dinner, and a few hours of time.

GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT: Instead of buying new supplies, you’ll reuse your oldies to make goodies for your pup. And the pooper scooper will save thousands of plastic bags from going into our landfills!
Cost: Low
Time and Effort: Low

Projects:

1. Dog Bed

Materials:

1. Two big pieces of fabric, preferably fleece. How big? Bigger than the size of your dog. Check your local thrift stores and yard sales for cheap cloth/fabric.
2. Scrap cloth or foam for filling
3. Scissors
4. Ruler or tape measure
5. Safety pins

Instructions:

1. Lay the two pieces of fabric on top of each other, then keep them like that for the remainder of the project. The sides that you don’t want to show should face in.
2. Cut out a large circle. To make a perfect circle, pick a center point on the fabric and mark it with a safety pin. Then decide on your circle’s radius (let’s say you chose 2 feet) and measure 2 feet away from the center point in at least eight directions. Mark each point with a safety pin and cut from safety pin to safety pin. Once you’re done cutting, you should have two circles, since you stacked the two pieces of fabric on top of one another in step one.
3. Beginning at the edge of the stacked circles, cut about 3 to 4 inches towards the center of the circle. Then move about 1or 2 inches along the edge of the circle and once again cut about 3 to 4 inches towards the center of the circle. Repeat until the edges of both circles have strips all around.
4. With a square knot, tie one of the strips on the top circle to the matching strip on the bottom circle. Continue until all but 3 (or so) strips are tied.²
5. Stuff the bed with scrap fabric or foam.
6. Tie off the last three strips.
7. Call Spot on over to try out his new bed!

2. Pooper Scooper

Materials:

1. Plastic bottle. Make sure it has a handle, is less than eight inches wide, and is made of strong plastic. An orange juice container will do.
2. Scissors or serrated knife
3. Marker

Instructions:

1. Wash the plastic container and remove labels.
2. Mark the container about an inch below the handle. From there, draw a horizontal line that curves half-way around the bottle. At both ends of the horizontal line, draw an intersecting vertical line that extends down to the bottom of the container. See photos for reference.
3. Cut the container along the marked lines. Then cut out the bottom of the container. Be careful!
4. Trim edges and round all sharp corners. Your finished scooper should look like this:
5. Scoop!

3. Collar ⁶

Materials:

1. An old belt. Kids’ belts work best. Avoid leather belts (which shrink when they get wet) and belts with large buckles, studs, or braiding.
2. Measuring tape
3. Marker
4. Awl (a long pointed spike)
5. Hammer
6. Shears

Instructions:

1. Measure your dog by wrapping the belt around her neck. Add another two inches, and mark the belt at that length.
2. With the awl and hammer, make a hole at the mark. The hole should be about the size of the buckle pin.
3. Measure about 3 inches away from the new hole. Cut the belt at this mark. Round the corners.
4. Outfit your dog with her new collar, inserting the buckle pin into the new hole. Make sure the collar isn’t too tight. You should be able to fit two fingers between the collar and her neck.

4. Dog Food

Materials

1. Protein (for example: turkey, chicken, beef, eggs)
2. Vegetables (carrots, peas, green beans)
3. Grains (lentils, barley, brown rice)
4. Raw bones

Instructions

1. In general, mix 1 part protein with 2 parts vegetables/grains.
2. Never include these ingredients: Avocados, onions, garlic, grapes, raisins, macadamia nuts, chocolate, coffee/caffeinated products, or dairy products.
3. To avoid your dog having gastrointestinal distress, don’t use gas-inducing ingredients such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and barley.⁸
4. Because dogs don’t chew much, grind all ingredients. This will aid digestion and ensure that your pup gets all of his nutrients.
5. Add water to mix, bring to a boil, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until well done.
6. Cool before letting your dog dig in.
7. To promote healthy gums and teeth, supplement dog food with raw bones.
8. For more recipes read this Greeniacs Guide on making eco-friendly pet food at home!

5. Dog Toy

Materials:

1. Tennis ball.
2. Drill or knife.
3. Strong rope. About 12 inches long.

Instructions:

1. Drill through a tennis ball, creating two holes on opposite sides. Alternatively, cut two slits in the ball.
2. Thread the rope through the holes.
3. Tie the end of the rope into a sturdy knot.
4. Throw the ball, or play tug-of-war!

Now go outside and have fun playing with your best buddy!