With the holidays just around the corner, you might have already started thinking about gifts for the pets in your life. This year, we encourage you to go green with your gift-giving so that our planet benefits too. 

Our company, The Kind Pet, started out of a combined love for our pets and our planet. As much as we adore our furry friends, we also recognize the disastrous effect their toys, treats, accessories, food, and waste have on our earth. We hope to reinforce the idea that we can love and adore our our pets without harming our planet. 

The great thing is that it’s possible to give a thoughtful gift without buying expensive or new items. From DIY to giving items new life through repurposing or shopping second hand, there are a lot of sustainable gift-giving alternatives out there. 

Without further ado, here is the ultimate sustainable pet gift guide:

Second Hand Gifts for Pets

Heading to the thrift shop is a fantastic way to shop second hand and give a pet toy a new home. Your pet won’t care whether it’s new or secondhand, so long as it’s fun to play with! We highly encourage you to head to your local thrift shop and check out their selection of pet toys before purchasing something new. Also check out fun human toys that can be used for pets too like used tennis balls, pillows or blankets for bedding and materials you may need to make a DIY item below.

DIY Toy Gift Ideas For Pets

It’s not just children who enjoy receiving toys at Christmas – our pets equally love and deserve to play. While playing is healthy for your pet’s mental and physical stimulation, it shouldn’t come at the cost of our planet.  Approximately 634 million dog toys end up in US landfills per year. We need to do better. Thankfully, making cat or dog enrichment toys at home DIY takes nothing more than a little time and effort. Many of them you can make with items already found in your house. Here are some more DIY ideas for you to try.

Sock Toy 

It’s easy to make a dog toy if you end up with one mismatched pair of socks. Simply cut a hole in the toe-side of a full length sock and stuff a water bottle inside of it. Then tie each end with twine. If you have a squeaker from an old toy, you can also stuff that inside the bottle to entertain your pet for hours. 

T-shirt Rope Toy

Your stack of T-shirts you no longer wear can be used to create an easy T-shirt Rope Toy for your dog. They’re durable, fun, and a great way to save money on expensive new toys that would probably be ripped to shreds in no time anyway! 

Towel Tug Toy

Give a tattered towel second life by fashioning it into a washable toy for your pet. To make it, cut the towel into 3 strips, tie off one end with a small towel strip and then braid it. Use another towel strip to tie off the end.

DIY Toy Treat Ideas For Pets

Pets love treats and unlike most humans, they don’t care how nice they look as long as they taste good!  Here are some easy ideas you can make at home. 

Peanut Butter Treat

To make this yummy treat, all you need is 1/2 cup each of peanut butter and oatmeal, 2 cups of flour and 2 eggs. Mix all ingredients together until combined, then add water until the dough is wet enough to be rolled out. Either cut into little squares or use a cookie cutter for fun shapes (more for your enjoyment than your pets!), bake them for around 20 minutes at 350 F. 

Tuna and Catnip Treat

In a food processor, add 1 4oz can of tuna, 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp of dried catnip, and 1 egg. When a smooth dough develops, form the dough into 1/4-teaspoon-size balls and cook for about 15 minutes at 350 F.  

When to Buy NEW Sustainable Pet Products

We strongly encourage you not to buy anything new for your pet this holiday (and we challenge you to do the same for the humans in your life too!), but if you are not a DIYer or can't find the time to visit the local thrift store, then buying new cat or dog toys is absolutely ok. And we have a great selection of sustainable pet gift options so you won't feel any gift-giving guilt. From packaging to shipping, we only source products with various eco-friendly values like being recyclable, hand-made, organic, biodegradable, compostable, low-waste, plastic-free and other sustainable values. 

Upcycled Sustainable Pet Bed 

This 100% cotton Sustainable Dog Bed Duvet (for cats too!) will smell like you because instead of a plastic poly fill, you stuff it with your old and worn linens, towels, and clothes. For every pound of clothing you use to stuff the bed, you can reduce your carbon footprint by 20 times! Now that is the gift of giving, to your pet and the planet!

Handmade Wool Cat Cave

This Handmade Wool Cat Cave is made with anti-microbial and odor-resistant sustainable wool. Your kitty will adore sleeping, hiding, or playing it. The purr-fect gift for the cat owner in your life. 

Handmade Cotton Pet Bandana

Why do pets always look cuter in a bandana? Ok, so this Handmade Cotton Pet Bandana is probably more for your than your pet, but still. It's a pet bandana. All dogs and cats need at least one, don't you agree?

Fashion Forward Accessories in Cork

How about a fancy new cork collar, leash or harness for your cat or dog made in sustainable cork? These gorgeous creations are handmade in the USA and feature metal only, zero plastic.

A Gift for You and Your Pet - it's possible!

This USA-made Treat Clincher will entertain your pup for hours and hours without you even lifting one finger, after setup, of course. This is for those times when throwing the ball 100 more times to avoid your dog giving you puppy eyes isn't in the schedule. Your dog will be gifted with entertainment and pure joy and you will be gifted with time to work, watch tv, you name it. It's a gift for both of you! 

So, what will you be giving your pet this holiday? Some extra belly scratches with a side of homemade treats? We can see the tail wagging and hear the purring already!

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