Breitbart reports, “A Swedish professor has called on people to adopt more ‘climate-friendly’ animals such as goats or rabbits as pets, rather than cats, in order to fight climate change.”
Sigrid Agenäs, professor at the Department of Animal Feeding and Care at the Swedish University of Agriculture, has called on those concerned about carbon emissions to reduce having animals like cats as pets due to the environmental effects of their carnivorous diets, newspaper Expressen reports.
Agenäs said that while some pet owners concerned about carbon emissions have put their dogs or cats on a vegan diet, such food is not good for the animals overall and should be avoided.
“It’s not good for cats, they need meat to get amino acids that are vital to them. Cats cannot use carbohydrates as an energy source, but also get their energy from amino acids. The carbohydrates go right through the body,” she said.
Instead, the professor recommends herbivorous animals for pets, saying, “If you want to eat vegan or vegetarian for ethical or environmental reasons, it is better to choose herbivorous animals such as aquarium fish, rabbits, chickens or goats than carnivorous pets.”
Soylent Green! Swedish Scientist Proposes Cannibalism to Fight Climate Change https://t.co/yfai9STciY
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) September 6, 2019
The professor suggested that individuals or households have fewer pets overall and consider smaller breeds when it comes to animals like dogs.
Agenäs added that pet owners should buy animal food made in Sweden, as it would likely have a smaller carbon footprint than food made overseas.
The advice comes just months after another Swedish academic, behavioural scientist Magnus Söderlund, floated the idea of cannibalism as a means to cut down greenhouse gas emissions at a Stockholm fair on the future of food, Brietbart reported in September.
Swedes voted climate change spending the biggest waste of taxpayer money in 2019 — partly due to the fact that emissions saw a slight increase regardless.