Dog owners are likely familiar with the training basics of sit, roll over, poop outside. But for Keith Sanderson and his pet labrador, Max, they took it to the next level: recycling.

“I thought, ‘Gee maybe we could do something else?’” Sanderson said in an interview with Patch.com. “He’s wired to be a retriever, so why not make him be a retriever… There’s no pheasants or ducks around, so we did bottles.”

In order to train Max to pick up trash, Sanderson started off by Having the adopted lab chase a ball, then switched that out for a bottle. Now every morning the pair goes out for a walk, and cleans up stray trash.

“We have a 40-gallon trash can full of cans and bottles that it took us less than a week to fill,” he said.

We think that’s a pretty green trick! To watch the interview with Sanderson and Max, click below.