Reference no: EM133901890

Assignment:

Geraldine Churchill had graduated from her business program and had accepted a job with an accounting firm. This meant she was leaving home and moving to another city where she would be living home and moving to another city where she would be living alone. For company and security, she planned to get a pet, most likely a dog adopted from an animal shelter.

She had given this more some thought and had done some research. Thirty-five percent of Candian households had a dog as a pet. Articles on pets identified some benefits of dog ownership. They enhanced the owner's health by increasing physical activity, for example, dog owners walked farther than others. There were psychological; benefits as a dog provided companionship and there was trend with young persons to have pets for this reason.

There were also challenges. There was a risk of the dog contracting an infection, so hand hygiene was important. The food would have to be carefully selected to insure the appropriate and adequate nutrition. Health care was critical and veterinary and drug expenses could run into thousands of dollars. Grooming was necessary and would have to be done by Geraldine or at a pet grooming shop. Dogs required some training and lessons would be necessary. It may be necessary to find a dog daycare, and if she traveled, it would be necessary to board the dog somewhere. It eas estimated that owning a dog could cost $2,500 and more per year. Owning a dog meant assuming responsibilities and considerable expenses.

A big surprise for Geraldine was the "eco-pawprint" of a dog on the environment. First of all, there was the amount of food a dog eats. The environment imprint for food was substantial including the land, fertilizers, pesticides, water, energy, production equipment, packaging, and transportation. Much of the dog food sold contains more protein than necessary and can be as much as humans consume. This adds a burden to the environment and takes resources that could be used to feed undernourished persons in the world. Also, she read that dogs in Canada produced over 600,000 tonnes of solid waste per year most of which goes to landfills. One article claimed that pwning a dog was more environmentally unfriendly than operating a vehicle.

Geraldine was rethinking her plans for a pet.

Questions

1. What are the issue(s) and stakeholders involved?

2. Are pets a burden on the environment?

3. What should Geraldine do?