Earth Day, recognized annually on April 22, is an occasion to show our love for the planet and demonstrate our dedication to protecting it. Each year, Patrick McDonnell calls attention to this important day through his MUTTS comic strip, and advocates for earth-friendly living through the MUTTS Manifesto.

We at Team MUTTS share these values and are committed to making the MUTTS Shop as eco-friendly as possible. This means being deliberate when searching for product partners, selecting materials, and packaging items for shipping. It means challenging ourselves and seeking feedback to ensure our products are both kind and desirable.

Interested in a behind-the-scenes look at our process? Read on to see how our core values influence our decision-making when creating new items for the MUTTS Shop.

Love for the Earth

It is important that our products reflect our passion for environmental protection. When creating apparel, we look for organic fabrics (which are made from plants grown without pesticides and other toxins) and soy-based inks (which are cleaner than petroleum-based inks).

Eco-Friendly Animal Angel Tee
Our “Animal Angel” Short Sleeve Tee is made in the USA with 100% organic cotton.

We use recycled or reforested paper when creating stationery, art prints, books, calendars, and other paper goods. We strive to avoid plastics and also encourage others to reduce plastic pollution by purchasing items like reusable bottles (instead of disposable ones).

Eco-friendly Reusable Bottles from MUTTS
These vacuum-insulated reusable bottles are made with double-walled 18/8 stainless steel.

When packaging MUTTS shtuff for shipping, we use recycled paper stuffing. (We do use bubble wrap sparingly, and only when necessary to protect your purchases.) We also vacuum-seal some items to reduce the amount of shipping materials required.

Saving the world one kitty at a time throw pillow
Our “Saving the World One Kitty at a Time” Throw Pillow includes a washable cotton cover and is vacuum-sealed prior to shipping.

Kindness to Animals

We never want our products (or the methods used to make them) to harm animals in any way. That’s why all items on the MUTTS Shop are cruelty-free and made with animals in mind.

Eco-Friendly MUTTS Journal
The Anything Journal is made with reforested paper and an embossed, faux vegan “leather”cover.

Support for Small Businesses

Although we dream up and design all MUTTS merch ourselves, we do need help turning those ideas into real, tangible goods. To make this happen, we work with outside vendors who share our animal- and earth-friendly values. Many of our vendors are based in the USA, but when we do seek help from companies in other countries, we choose small or family-owned businesses and often travel to see their operations in person.

Eco-friendly MUTTS puzzles
Our MUTTS Puzzles are made in the USA by a small, woman-owned business using recycled fiber and soy-based inks.

Kindness to One Another

Our commitment to the MUTTS Manifesto extends beyond the items we create for our online shop. For example, we work remotely, in a distributed team (which eliminates the need for daily commutes). And as often as possible, we support and partner with other animal- and eco-friendly organizations to spread awareness about the issues we care about.

We’re not perfect. However, we do strive to continually improve and to make sure our values drive every choice we make.

We also welcome input from other members of the MUTTS community. Do you have ideas you’d like to share? Write to us at blog@mutts.com. We’d love to hear from you.

Comments (2)

Thank you for all you do for all the animals in the world. You are truly an inspiration.
It would be so excited to see a watch with Mooch and Earl.
My dad was named Earl so that would be the bomb. Many years ago I had a cat named Mooch
Thank you so much

Rebecca Cowan

I have been a Patrick McDonnell fan for many years, and admire the work that the Mutts community does. The Daily Mutts Strip is the treat with which I start my day. Unfortunately I live in South Africa and cannot purchase any of the earth friendly products you make. I support a number of pro-life animal welfare organisations in South Africa – these organisations operate on donations only, and do day-to-day rescue and foster work. The need is always greater than these brave volunteers can meet – we are faced daily with shocking cases of abuse and neglect. If it is at all possible for Mutts to become involved in supporting animal welfare in South Africa, I would gladly provide you with more information about the organisations I support, and many others as well.

Hannelie Carstens