Purrfectplay

Toxic Burden and Our Pets

 

For cats and dogs, paws and tongues are basic tools.  Tongues become washcloths, paws become utensils. They stick their noses everywhere. Much more than us, our pets interact and meld with their environment. They live “nose deep” in the world.

This modern world is risky for our barefoot brethren.  They walk thru an environment full of synthetics and chemicals. They eat off the floor.  Their foods come in plastic lined cans and Teflon coated bags.  They sleep on bedding soaked in flame retardants and stain resistant chemicals. Loving guardians pet them after handling all types of materials—some safe, others not so safe.  They chew on toys containing plastics, dyes, and heavy metals.  How is this “nose deep” experience effecting our companions?

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a not-for –profit, researching and educating about the impact of industrial toxins on our health. They are also concerned about companion animals. They recently tested the blood and urine of cats and dogs, looking for 70 common industrial chemicals.  Their study found 48 of these potentially toxic chemicals, with 43 at much higher levels than found in humans.

Among the chemicals found at high levels were: Teflon, Phthalates (Plasticizers), Fire Retardants, and BPA. Future posts will discuss these in detail.

Until then, take a moment-- look around.  If you were at floor level, barefoot, and using just your hands and tongue as basic tools-- how would it be for you?

Responding to a Huffington Post article on The Environmentally Conscious Pet

I like many of the green pet ideas in this Huffington Post's article but our pets SHOULD NEVER chew on recycled plastic-- maybe its good for the planet but NOT for our pets.  Would you let your human baby chew on recycled polyester filler?  Babies do not even have teeth but yet we understand they should not chew on plastic.  Guess what?  Puppies shouldn't either!

Plastic is biologically problematic because of it's smallest components-- monomers. These tiny components are chained together into polymers. Simply put, Polymers = Plastic.  Destructive processes such as chewing, grinding, aging, heating, and micro waving release monomers from the polymer chain.  These small biologically active units are implicated as hormone disruptors, so why the heck put plastic into the wet warm toothy mouths of your pets!

Reusing plastic is less efficient than recycling aluminum, paper, or glass. To recycle plastic it must be heated and agitated, leading to a lower quality product. This "down cycling" of plastic uses lots of water and energy while producing toxic by products. Is "recycling" partially a marketing ploy used by the plastics industry to dampen our guilt so we will continue to consume their product?

Using recycled plastic in pet toys and fabrics is not new-- marketing it as  "green" is. Compared to other products like organic cottons and wool, hemp, organic cotton batting, agave fibers, and kapok, plastic fleece fabrics are super cheap-- which is why they can be found everywhere.  It would be great for our bottom line if we used "eco-fleece" in our toys. It would cut our material costs by 70% --easily. We just can't and won't do it.  

Read more about plastic fabrics here-- lots of worthy info!

Plastics 2: Adipates and Phthalates

Smile you silly pup!
Originally uploaded by something.from.nancy

Monomers are small chemical units that make up the conglomerate we call plastic.  Sometimes extra monomers are added to plastic that create unique functional characteristics.

Plasticizers are monomers which impart flexibility by interspersing around the polymer chains, preventing the creation of a tight bond. Without them, plastic is rigid and difficult to shape or mold.  Because plasticizers are basically lone agents and not tightly bonded to the structure, they can spin off the chain easily. With the addition of heat or friction (sometimes called “use”) these small units end up in the plastic’s immediate environment. This could be the ocean, your micro-waved lunch, or the water you drink. (this is, of course, a shortened list of possible transfer sites in our everyday lives!)

Two major families of plasticizers are the adipates and phthalates.  Adipates and phthalates do much of their damage through a process called “endocrine/ hormone disruption”. By mimicking or blocking natural hormones they disrupt the body’s normal functioning.  Because endocrine disruptors affect development of the body’s vital organ and hormone systems, infants, children, fetuses, kittens, and puppies are more vulnerable to exposure than fully formed adults. Some experts have implicated these hormone disruptions in our increased incidents of cancer, especially breast cancer.

Canada, most of Europe, and some major cities in the US ban the use of phthalates and other known hormone disrupters in the manufacturing of baby toys, teething rings, and baby bottles. The main types of plastics banned from these uses are:  Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) which contains toxic monomers along with the plasticizers that make it pliable, and Bisphenol A (BPA) found in many polycarbonate plastics. BPA is found in plastic labeled as microwavable, lining beverage cans, and in baby bottles—to name just a few sources in your everyday life.

Why is this important for pet parents? Unfortunately a plastic toy squeaks almost always because it contains lots of plasticizers-- otherwise it would be rigid and non squeakable.  This is compounded by a puppy’s toothy warm mouth which provides warmth and friction. Here is one scenario on what can happen when a chew-happy puppy or cat plays with one of their colorful soft squeaky plastic pet toys.  (Also, for goodness sakes don’t wash your pets’ plastic toys in a hot soapy washing machine. Remember: friction, heat, UV light, and age are what sets free the little monomer units.)

Basically if it is flexible and made of plastic it is full of hormone disruptive plasticizers. This is simply a fact. Hormone disruption and health do not go together.  More on Hormone disruption in our next entry.

For additional and more specific info on plastics and your pets see (http://www.purrfectplay.com/newsletter-06-11.php) The links at the end are useful and... depressing. 

Plastics 1: A Primer

Ikea Toys
Originally uploaded by stellar678

Have you ever wondered about those bright plastic toys your pets love?  What are they actually made of?  What difference could a little toy make in their lives, anyway?  

The next blog posts will review  basic information about  “Plastic”. It is a dense subject so… dive right in!

Plastics are used widely. In fact, the use of plastic is so common we often don’t think about its presence. This commonness has rendered it nearly invisible. So—plastics are effectively everywhere, but what makes a plastic, a plastic?

Simply put, a plastic is a polymer. (poly= many & mer=units) Plastic= many units stuck together. This process is called polymerization.  Some think polymerization creates stable chains that are not biologically active. While this may be true when a plastic is actually made, this is definitely not true as time and use impacts its structure. To understand this degradation process a bit more information is needed.

Almost all polymers (plastic) also contain independent units called monomers. Sometimes these individual units have simply escaped the polymerization process. They might also be residue from techniques used to give the plastic a unique functional characteristic. Destructive processes such as chewing, grinding, aging, heating, and micro waving can also release monomers from the polymer chain. Monomers are biologically active, easily passing from the plastic surface to anything they come in contact with.

For our purposes you might think of degradation processes as: puppy teeth, a hot car, toys laying in the sun, an old favorite squeaky toy, kitties sucking on a brightly colored plastic fleece toy, etc.

But still, why should we care, there are sooo many things to worry about after all! It is just a really little monomer—what harm could it do? In mice, these little units have been shown to cause birth defects, fetal death and damage to liver, kidneys, lungs, and reproductive organs. Hormone disruption is a huge issue as well—especially for puppies.

Plastics 2 coming up!