News Photos by Darby Hinkley Billy and Shelby Petrucci stand by their Alpena Poop Patrol van.
ALPENA — If you think your job stinks, just ask Alpena Poop Patrol about theirs.
It’s their duty, and they do it well. In business since January, the crew consists of Shelby and Billy Petrucci, who drive around the Alpena area and scoop your pet’s excrement so you don’t have to do it.
As much as we love our furry friends, does anybody really want to clean up their turds? Especially in the spring after the snow melts, when what’s left can most accurately be described as “The Poopocalypse.”
For homeowner Bobby Barrigar, calling the Alpena Poop Patrol was high on his list this spring.
“I don’t like to pick up poop,” Barrigar said.
Above is the logo on the front of the Alpena Poop Patrol T-shirts.
He was enthused when he heard of the business.
“It’s awesome, if you’re hosting barbecues and stuff like that, it’s one thing off your plate,” Barrigar said. “Or if you have unexpected guests pop by, you don’t have to run out in the backyard, especially with having a 4-year-old and the kids want go out in the backyard to play, you don’t have to worry about running out there to clean up. It’s already done.”
He and his wife Jessica have a 4-year-old daughter, Trinley, and two small dogs, Jax and Emma, both cockapoos, which is a mix between a poodle and a cocker spaniel. Jax is a 9-year-old apricot cockapoo, and Emma is a 5-year-old blue merle, which looks black and gray.
“They’re hypoallergenic, so they don’t shed anywhere, and they’re full-grown,” he said. “They’re pretty friendly.”
But like all dogs, they still have to take care of business in the backyard, and Barrigar, like most working adults, doesn’t have the time or desire to pick up after them.
Alpena Poop Patrol customer Bobby Barrigar poses with his two cockapoos, Emma on the left, and Jax on the right.
“For the cost to get rid of a bother, and a hassle, it’s so handy,” he said. “He comes by every other week. Just because little dogs don’t produce a ton.”
In the spring, Alpena Poop Patrol even soaped up the deck for Barrigar, since the dogs got confused as to where their “bathroom” was located and left some piles on the deck when it was covered in snow.
“So he cleaned everything up, he put soap on the deck where all the stuff was, so when I came home I could just spray it with the hose,” Barrigar said. “And he left two little poop stuffed animals” as dog toys. “He goes above and beyond with customer service. And it’s nice to support a local business that, honestly, nobody’s thought of before. It’s very innovative.”
Shelby Petrucci owns the company, but she and her husband Billy Petrucci share the brunt of the work.
After they scoop the poop into a trash can, they dump it into trash bags and load up their minivan, which is adorned with the Alpena Poop Patrol logo and number. On Tuesday, Billy said they had 11 pickups to do. So they were driving around in a van full of feces on a 90-degree day. But don’t worry, they have one of those pine tree air fresheners hanging from the rearview mirror.
Billy Petrucci dumps a trash can full of “you know what” into a trash bag that goes into the van and eventually to the dump. “We do do some composting,” Billy said.
“We have six of them,” Billy said.
Before launching their current venture, the Petruccis brainstormed business ideas, and settled on Alpena Poop Patrol.
“Poop Patrol was the one that took off,” Billy said. “That was the one that had the most momentum, so we ran with it, full force. So, we take everything that we’ve made with Poop Patrol, and we dump it right back into Poop Patrol, because we believe in it. We think it’s something cool.”
Why pick up poop, though?
“Because nobody else wants to do it,” Billy said. “It’s one of those things. We have four dogs of our own. I’ve worked since I was 15, well, younger than that, 13. So I’ve always had a job. It’s one of those things where you work all week, you deal with the bump and thump of activities, then Friday comes, or Saturday comes, and it’s like, ‘Oh crap.'”
Alpena Poop Patrol owner Shelby Petrucci holds up a stuffed poop emoji next to the Poop Patrol van.
That’s not exactly what you want to do on the weekend after a long workweek.
“We just wanted to find a way that made sense for other people, and gave them a little bit more free time,” Billy continued. “When you’ve got kids and a busy life, who wants go pick up crap? Nobody does. Because it sucks.”
Shelby added that it’s helpful for elderly or disabled pet owners as well.
“If an elderly person is fragile and can’t really get outside to go do that thing because it’s kind of hard for them,” she said. “Or newer moms that have two 3-year-olds running around, and they can’t have the kids touching stuff inside and breaking stuff while they’re outside cleaning up.”
Billy said business is “crappy” but, in this case, that’s a good thing.
Shelby Petrucci greets cockapoos Jax and Emma while scooping their doo-doo.
“A lot of people don’t have the time to do it,” Shelby said.
“We’ve got about 45 monthly customers, which is fantastic,” he said. “It’s not a bad start, especially for a couple people that turned a shovel into some money. So we’re excited about that.”
Shelby enjoys leaving the stuffed poop emojis as dog toys for customers.
“These are our little gifts we leave for our friends,” she said, holding one up.
“But we do do seasonal toys,” Billy added. “Like, she just put in an order for some mix-and-match toys. So, every time we come by, we like to leave a little gift.”
“Always different things, too,” Shelby said.
“I think we ran through about 200 poop toys,” Billy recalled.
The couple lives in Herron but does most of their business in Alpena. Their dogs are Bug the pug, Spike, a pug/chihuahua mix, Bonesy, a pitbull, and Lucy, a pitbull/boxer. They also have chickens and ducks.
They also clean up chicken coops and horse stalls. For more information, call 989-255-6696.
“We do bunny hutches, goat pens, you name it,” Billy said. “If the poop needs scoopin’ just give us a call.”
- News Photos by Darby Hinkley Billy and Shelby Petrucci stand by their Alpena Poop Patrol van.
- Alpena Poop Patrol customer Bobby Barrigar poses with his two cockapoos, Emma on the left, and Jax on the right.
- Above is the logo on the front of the Alpena Poop Patrol T-shirts.
- Billy Petrucci dumps a trash can full of “you know what” into a trash bag that goes into the van and eventually to the dump. “We do do some composting,” Billy said.
- Alpena Poop Patrol owner Shelby Petrucci holds up a stuffed poop emoji next to the Poop Patrol van.
- Shelby Petrucci greets cockapoos Jax and Emma while scooping their doo-doo.
"do it" - Google News
June 12, 2021 at 12:34PM
https://ift.tt/3iBLRJq
Somebody's got to do it… | News, Sports, Jobs - Alpena News
"do it" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2zLpFrJ
https://ift.tt/3feNbO7
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Somebody's got to do it… | News, Sports, Jobs - Alpena News"
Post a Comment