People.com Lifestyle Pets Clipping for a Cause! Groomer Donates Fur Dog groomer donates fur clippings to eco-friendly organization. By Kate Hogan Kate Hogan Instagram Twitter Kate Hogan is Director of Digital Specials and Features at PEOPLE. In her 14 years at the brand, she has covered everything from pets and babies to style and Sexiest Man Alive, interviewing celebrities including Céline Dion, Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson and Chris Evans. Currently, she oversees the creation of photo galleries that complement breaking news and major PEOPLE moments like The Beautiful Issue and 100 Reasons to Love America. She has offered expert celebrity commentary on Good Morning America and Access Hollywood. Before joining PEOPLE in 2008, Kate was an editorial assistant at Morris Visitor Publications. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Bachelor's degree in journalism and mass communication and resides outside of Chicago with her husband and three kids. People Editorial Guidelines Published on March 25, 2009 05:30 PM Share Tweet Pin Email After dumping more than 50 pounds of dog and cat hair per week into a local landfill, groomer and shop owner Linda Bruinsma wondered what she could do with the leftover hair that would help the environment, instead of harming it. At a grooming conference, she learned about the organization Matter of Trust, which works to change surplus materials into eco-friendly items. The non-profit began collecting leftover animal hair in 2000, stuffing it into nylon stockings to create booms to contain oil spills in bodies of water and weaving it into heavy mats to soak up oil leftover from spills, and now, once per month, Bruinsma – along with 7,000 other groomers – ships her clippings to the San Francisco-based organization. “It’s important to me to not abuse our landfill rights,” Bruinsma told the News Review. “Just because it’s there doesn’t mean we should be throwing everything in it when it could have another use.” Bruinsma uses all-natural soaps, shampoos and conditioners to wash pets, so hair clippings don’t transfer any chemicals into the water when they’re used as mats or booms. Though it costs her around $60 per month to ship her clippings, she says it’s worth it, and even collects clean nylons in her shop to send to Matter of Trust, as well. “I’m not a radical tree-hugger,” she says. “I just think we should protect our environment.”