Necessity is the mother of invention, and when it comes to pets, many people have been very resourceful in coming up with products that have made life with pets easier, and mutually beneficial for human and companion animal.

A New Jersey student, fifth grader, Arjun Nagendran - who is 10 — had an epiphany one day when he was cleaning up his pooches' muddy paw prints: Why not have dogs wear booties on their feet? Dog booties are no new idea, really. They have been around for a while and are useful tools if you have a dog, especially in the winter. Booties offer protection from ice melter and salt and can help protect a dog's sensitive paws from injury on walks. They can also help protect against aggravating an existing injury. Traditional booties are made from neoprene or rubber.

However, the idea that Nagendran — who is 10 — had in mind, has one aspect that is very different from traditional booties in one significant way. Green Paws, as these nifty little paw protectors are so aptly called, are made from an eco-friendly bark, tree leaves and recycled rubber and are biodegradable.

Nagendran, who, along with others on "Team Green Paws" (also fellow young inventors) Samaya Pattim, Tara Kakkaramadam, Aytana Muschajew, Jeremy Thomas and Rishi Yagappan, worked on developing the booties and earned the group first place at the Student Inventors Day competition at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City. First place meant a $1,000 prize, two television appearances and a shot at being the next "As Seen on TV" hit product. The team are students at Littleton School in Parsippany, N.J. and were only one of 20 groups chosen to present an environmentally friendly consumer product before a panel of judges, including TeleBrands, (who sponsored the event) CEO and founder, A.J. Khubani.

Watch more details of the event, and the winners discuss their experience:

Lorrie Shaw is a regular pets contributor for AnnArbor.com and wrote the popular blog post, Storm treats: Help for dogs scared by storms, thunder and lightning. She is also owner of Professional Pet Sitting, providing pet sitting services and dog walking. She welcomes your contact by e-mail.