While we all agree that dogs are man’s best friend, their loyalty and love go beyond protecting their humans. They also have a heart for protecting the Planet Earth. This is the example set by Chipper, an 8 year old rescue dog from Arizona.
Chipper, together with his owner, Katie Pollak, is out to accomplish one mission – to help save the environment by recycling. Chipper and Pollak go around Mesa, Arizona and pick up garbage wherever they see it.
According to Today, Pollak realized that her furry friend had a fascination with plastic bottles shortly after he was adopted in 2011. This was when the mission all started. “He started picking them up immediately, so I encouraged it and rewarded it,” she said. “And he motivated me to do the same. I really started getting out and picking up more than I was before, so we created a team.” she added.
Chipper and Pollak love the great outdoors. They love to walk around, do paddleboarding, go hiking and do other outdoor adventures together. The pair is inseparable and have even become very popular on Instagram. Chipper has turned into an instant celebrity because of his amazing talent. The Dodo even featured his special skills which inspired more people, especially Pollak’s social media followers.
Pollak was delighted to share how Chipper has been such an inspiration. “He really has been an inspiration,” Pollak said. “I’ll go to group cleanups in the area, and when people see him they’re like, ‘Chipper’s here!’ So everyone gets to come meet him and see what he’s all about.”
When they’re out and about, they collect bags of garbage like plastic bottles, beer cans, old pieces of clothing and more! They always come prepared with bags for collecting all the garbage and waste they can gather. While Pollak and her friends see the value of what they do for the sake of the environment, it also breaks their heart to think how some people can leave their waste behind.
Pollak has another dog, Quinci, who also joins them in their clean up drives. They meet up with friends and are all part of the group called “Wild Keepers” which aims to collect a total of 1 million pounds of litter by 2023. Since they started in 2016, their collected garbage has already reached 200,000 pounds. They believe that it’s the tiny steps that matter, the little efforts just like picking up plastic bottles like the way Chipper does it.
This story of Chipper and Pollak is an excellent example of how people can make a difference in the world only if we want to. Our efforts do not have to be huge to make a change. We can start with a single step like throwing our waste in the right places and making sure we don’t leave any litter behind. No matter how small, each person in this world has the power to do something for the environment. It’s all a matter of action. After all, if Chipper the dog can do it, why can’t we?
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