DoodyCalls: Litter Box Cleaning Service

I could hardly stop laughing the other day when I first read an email sent to me by my friend Steve, a staunch New England Cat lover. Now you have to understand that Steve has a wickedly outrageous sense of humor, so whenever I hear from him I am always prepared to giggle for awhile. But this particular item struck me as so bizarre and unusual that after I gained my composure and gave it some thought, I was compelled to do some follow-up.

And even though at first glance the item was truly comical, as I delved more deeply into what some folks might consider the "Cat-illac" of feline services , I was so intrigued that I placed a phone call to the company named DoodyCalls to learn more precisely what they had to offer cats and kitty servants around the United States. After all, we all know that cleaning litter boxes isn't the most popular chore associated with being owned by cats, but at the same time in order to keep our cats happy, providing them with pristine litter boxes is a necessity.

I was greeted on the phone by the friendly voice of Jacob D'Aniello, the founder and president of the company with whom I had a delightful chat about cat litter, litter boxes, and many of the reasons that some cat owners would choose to subscribe to a cat litter box cleaning service.

Since keeping an eye on our kitty's output is so important, I was a little skeptical about having a stranger handle our cats' sanitary facilities. But after talking with Jacob, I started realizing that the products he was providing would be of great service to many folks living with cats.

Started in 2000, Charlottesville, Virginia-based DoodyCalls was recognized in the past "Franchise 500" issue of Entrepreneur Magazine as the number one pet waste removal franchise in the United States, jumping up 100 positions higher than the previous year.

Starting their business with clean-up services for canines, they recognized that cats numbered more than 82 million, according to U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook (2007 Edition), rivaling the pet dog population by 10 million.

And now, you never to buy litter again.

The company provides all litter and litter boxes. They offer both clay and environmentally-friendly wheat litter. The litter boxes are uncovered 32 quart boxes, with an optional cover available. All the subscriber has to do is to leave the dirty litter box at the front door, and it will be replaced with a litter box filled 3 ½ to 4 inches with fresh litter, generally on a once-a-week schedule.

Alternate schedules and with multiple boxes are available. The cost is $15.00 a week, with a charge of $5-6.00 a week per additional box. Of course the subscriber may still wish to scoop their boxes regularly, so topping off litter is provided.

I think DoodyCalls makes available a valuable service for many folks such as expectant mothers who don't want to handle litter boxes, folks with disabilities and seniors who may physically have difficulty washing and sanitizing litter boxes.

For more information about DoodyCalls, visit their website.

What are your thoughts about giving over litter box chores to a commercial company? Leave a comment and share them.