I love poo poo

Paper, that is!

I doggy sat my next door neighbor family's new dog over the weekend. Her name is Shadow and they inherited her from a family friend who passed away. She looks like a little Toto dog with white paws and she is just about as cute as cute can be!



 

 

We didn't really have much interaction with her prior besides barking at her through the window when she's in the backyard. I didn't know how it was going to work out but their original sitter fell through so I wanted to help out.

 

 

I brought her over after dinner and walks and they all got along smashingly!

 

 

 

 

 

Nice to meet you...

 

 

Millie thought I brought Shadow's bed over for her to sleep in which didn't matter since Shadow decided to sleep in the bed with all of us anyway.

 

 

 

My neighbors took their kids to Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, West Virginia and as a thank you, they brought me back some Elephant Poo Poo Paper. Oh...so, that's what she meant by, I love poo poo.

 

I was intrigued so I went online to find out the background and then I realized that there was a whole history written on the ribbon binding the box.

 

Dino had to check to see if it smelled like poo poo.

There's this cool company called, Alternative Pulp and Paper Co, Ltd, and they believe that they can "balance their commercial pursuits and be good stewards of our shared environment."

LOVE them!

In a nutshell, no trees are destroyed to make their paper. They use alternative pulp sources and only natural soy inks and non-edible food coloring. To make the elephant poo poo paper, which was their first product, they initially gather the dung from elephant conservation parks. The process is pretty cool.

1. Collect the poo
2. Pre-rinse it with water, leaving only the fibrous materials from the grasses, bamboo and fruits they elephants have eaten.
3. Boil the fibers in water so they're super clean. At this point, colors can be added.
4. Natural fibers from banana trees and pineapples are added to make the paper thicker and stronger.
5. The fibers are then separated into small cakes and spread evenly over a mesh bottomed tray.
6. The tray is then leaned against a tree and angled toward the sun to dry.
7. Once dry, the sheet of paper is removed and, voila! Poo poo paper products can be made!

 

Love the texture. Who knew elephant dung could be so chic?

But, wait, this company rocks even more. A percentage of their profits go back to elephant and wildlife conservation efforts and to support organizations and schools in their focus on the environment.

AND...love this part.....Alternative Paper and Pulp Co. operates a flex-work cottage-based manufacturing production framework in Thailand where the crafts people that they employ (95% women) can work at home with a fair wage and benefits.

You can read more about them HERE and shop their Poo-tique.

I wonder if they can make paper out of dog poop yet.....