Letter to the Editor: Pet Ownership and Climate Protection – an Overlooked Connection

vienna.at

Factuality

Ownership

There are around 2 million cats and 800,000 dogs living in Austria – almost every second household has a pet. What is rarely considered is the carbon footprint. A medium-sized dog produces up to 800 kg of CO₂ per year, and over 6 tons if fed exclusively wet food. By comparison, the climate-friendly annual budget per person is about 1.5 tons.