From web design to scooping poo

Pet Poo Skiddoo, a new small business in Asheville run by Stephanie Chow, offers services in pet poo cleanup. Whether it’s in your yard or in a litter box, Pet Poo Skiddoo will handle the job. The company also offers dog walking services in a pay-per-walk or package deal.

From Pet Poo Skiddoo

Press Release

A Real “Down in the Dumps” Job that Makes this Former Web Designer Happy

She’s down in the dumps alright, that of the dog and cat kind. Meet Stephanie Chow, owner of a newly found small business in Asheville called Pet Poo Skiddoo. Her company offers unusual services for local residents, which include scooping up dog waste in their yards and cleaning out their cat’s litter boxes. So how exactly do you go from web design to a poop scoopin’ biz?

Stephanie says, “I was tired of making websites for other startup businesses and watching them grow. I wanted to be one of them! Sitting in front of a computer screen all day just wasn’t enough. I wanted to be out there, getting my hands “dirty”, and helping pet owners and the environment alike. I saw a need in our town where we have a lot of pet owners here with busy schedules. Although our cats and dogs bring us so much joy, they also require a lot of work. I am a proud pet owner myself with 3 cats and 3 dogs so you better believe I know a thing or two about pet poo.”

Stephanie goes on to explain that pet waste is a much more serious issue than we think. There are over 73 million dogs in the U.S. now and the population is still growing. While this is a good thing that more and more dogs are being rescued and adopted, more systems need to be put in place to accommodate the increased “output” on our land.

The average dog alone discards approximately three quarters of a pound of waste per day, which adds up to 275 pounds per year! Just one gram of that can contain 23 million fecal coliform bacteria. Each dropping can contain many hazards including hookworms, ringworms, tapeworms and salmonella, any of which can be spread by contact. Although people would never think of being hands-on with their dog’s poo, much of it is spread without their knowledge. Lawnmowers will actually chop up the waste into smaller pieces and spread it further throughout your yard. Most likely you are stepping in those pieces and bringing it into your house. Others can come in contact with pieces in the soil while gardening. Even when it has visibly disappeared, the parasite eggs it contained can linger on for years in your soil – leaving your family and your pets vulnerable to serious infection.

“And any information you hear about using dog poop as fertilizer is false.” Unlike horse and cow manure, pet waste can be very acidic and contain large amounts of parasites and bacteria due to their high protein diet. “The stuff is toxic. In fact the EPA recently classified dog waste as a dangerous pollutant in the same category as toxic chemicals and oil.” This might just be a service that pet owners didn’t even know they needed. Her yard cleanup services start as low as $10/week.

Pet Poo Skiddoo offers a litter box cleaning service that comes out once a week to change out and deep clean your cat’s potty station. “Cat waste can contain Toxoplasma gondii, a protozoan parasite that can cause Toxoplasmosis. Although typically harmless to most adults, those with pregnant women, young children, or those with low immunity systems in the house should stay away. Then of course there are people who don’t have time or simply don’t want to deal with changing the litter.”

Pet Poo Skiddoo also offers dog walking for when loving pet owners are going to be out for more than a few hours. You can choose to pay-per-walk or purchase a dog walking package for extra savings.

If you are a pet owner in need of some extra help whether it is removing waste from your yard, cleaning out your cat’s litter box, or taking your dog out on a walk for some relief, contact Stephanie at Pet Poo Skiddoo!

When Stephanie is not cleaning up the town, she enjoys taking hula hooping and circus classes at Asheville’s local venue, Toy Boat Community Art Space . She also consults animal shelters with her website expertise and partakes in events that aide Asheville Humane Society.

For more information visit Pet Poo Skiddoo online.

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About Sarah Whelan
Avid news enthusiast. Photojournalist interested in community outreach. Freelancer for Mountain Xpress. Follow me @WhelanSarah_

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