Earth-Friendly Traveling Dogs

I love the planet. So, so much. Seriously, I may never find the right man to marry but mother nature would win any day, anyway. Yes, I have a dog and travel constantly and relish in nature daily. But guess what- you can be the coolest person + dog team and travel ALL over the world and still do many things to help our beautiful planet.

Here are some quick tips for traveling with a dog, in an earth friendly manner. (Earth Friendly auto corrected to earthquake and it’s funny because that’s not too far off from the normal blog posts I have. Traveling with a dog in an earthquake- ha! Ask me about hurricane Dorian sometime.)

Just a note: be safe when traveling during the pandemic! Even if you’re vaccinated, mask up. Here’s a post I wrote about pandemic roadtrips.

Mugs and Mason Jars and Straws, oh my.

We can skip down the yellow brick road with Dorothy and Todo! And we might be joined by a coffee mug hiding in our purse, begging to be used at your next coffee stop. The brick road continues to a local farmers market where the tomatos, green peppers and foods you don’t see around your neck of the woods dwell! Reusable bags are definitely handy; as are mason jars.

Okay, but if you are traveling and find a doggy boutique- seriously check them out! I LOVE local doggy boutiques for their genius dog ideas, frequent pet guests, and usually baked goods for dogs. Mason jars or reusable bees wax are definitely handy to keep nearby on these excursions! And when Dorothy is dying for a drink, reusable straws are easy to tuck into a pocket, purse or wallet. There are straws that even fold up now! It’s amazing. Find a folding straw so you can enjoy a fancy drink with your dog, while you travel.

I usually bring my yeti mug, where I tuck a straw, mason jar and bees wax in! I keep the glass protected with a reusable bag as well. All of the needs, in one small, travel friendly, container.

Planes Trains or Automobiles

Traveling on planes with your dog is tough right now! I truthfully haven’t tried it. I do know that direct flights are the best flights, both for your pup and for the environment! Chloe is over 50 pounds now, and unfortunately that also means train travel in the amtrak is out of the picture- but 20 pound dogs can use this form of transportation!

Chloe and I find ourselves on road trips pretty frequently. We have a green-burning diesel engine with diesel exhaust fluid that helps reduce our emissions! We keep our tires full, our filters, fluids and fuel as clean and green as possible; especially before a big trip. These are all important for both our earth, but also our vehicle!

Other tips for the greenest roadtrips possible:

Drive smoothly, and gently
Don’t break the speed limit
Plan your route in a fuel efficient manner
Let your electronics be- charging takes energy
Windows down in town; AC uses energy at slower speeds too!
Keep your vehicle light and aerodynamic
Recycling and a garbage bin in your car for the win!
Keep track your fuel economy

I’ve recently heard the best thing you can do for the environment, is hold on to your vehicle as long as possible. And don’t worry- the Super Beauty is a beast, and we will keep her around forever.

It’s also important to note- use your bike and public transportation whenever you can!

Reuse or Recycle dog food containers

One of the trickiest things about traveling with dogs is what the heck to do with their food! I am constantly digging in my truck after Chloe’s food bag; despite always saying how important it is to keep in an easy to access location.

More relevant to this post though, is what the heck can you do with your dog food bags? Well first:

Canned food is recyclable- boom.
Wellness and open farm food bags are recyclable
There is this cool thing called terracycle (linked right there for you) that will recycle some dog food bags.
I literally just found terracycle and I am so excited to try it!

You can also re-use dog food bags into some pretty nifty, travel friendly stuff. Reusable grocery bags, lunch boxes and even an apron! Keep an eye on our Facebook group here, or my Instagram @barkingembarkers to join in a craft night with your old dog food bags in December!

Talk About Being Green

So here’s the thing- most of us know about the environmentally friendly poop bags, the fold up doggy water bowls (or the infamous dog mugg if you follow my social media- if not you should; this dog mugg is SO COOL), and the perks of plant produced products (there are some adorable collars and leashes and halters on etsy!)

But we don’t always think fast enough to tell someone “no straw” or we feel weird asking if a coffee shop could use our own mug. We might use a drive through taco bell with a million and fifty napkins, instead of the local nacho joint where you can dine-in using the reusable, fabric napkins. There are so many lifestyle choices we make on the road that can be easily changed!

If you are looking to be more earth friendly, the very first thing you can practice, is talking about it. Maybe you talk to your dog first, just to practice. It makes it easier when you’re in Montreal and trying not to accept napkins in French.

I truly believe that together we can make a positive impact on our earth! The more people who work together to reduce their carbon foot print; the happier we will be when exploring nature.

Alright yall made it through my first blog in a while! I stepped into a management role in my current job (I know, I know, that’s up there on the list of crazy things to do) and it’s been tough to manage my time properly! BUT I love writing this blog more than most things (not the earth- mother nature still wins) and definitely missed this! I do apologize if my posts are more sporatic than usual though.

Chloe and I are roadtripping back to the lovely state of North Dakota for Thanksgiving! Does anyone have any environmentally friendly challenges for me? Maybe limiting my trash to a Mason jar size? Or seeing how many times I can use my own coffee mug?

Thank you all so much for reading! Keep your eyes on my social media for a similarly themed photography project titled: Project Planet! I am posting a photo from a now inaccessible area due to fires, every day ♡ Happy tails, and happy trails to you all.

Barking Embarkers