You won't believe how much
money there is in poo!



OK, I know this isn't for everyone. It sure isn't for me, but for the right person, there is money to be made cleaning up pet poo.  True, this isn't exactly a hobby- or maybe it is- but the point is, if you are looking for an additional income and you have a strong stomach, this is worth considering.

Here's the story:  People have pets.  Pets make poo.  The pet poo must be cleaned up.  If given the option, some people are happy to pay someone else to clean up the poo.  That someone could be you!

Our local paper ran a story about a very imaginative man who is making a good living (think $50,000 + ) cleaning up after other people's pets.  He charges $29.00 to clean the waste of one pet, with an additional $9.00 for each additional pet.  He also cleans litter boxes for $15.00.  He works 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, and averages a bit less than $40.00 from each client.  Do the math and you can see that he has tapped into a very lucrative market.

Of course, success depends upon your community.  You may live in an area where people would not dream of paying for this service.  You won't know until you advertise a bit.  Flyers left at veterinarians or pet stores, notices on bulletin boards, perhaps a cleverly worded classified ad- for a modest initial cost, you could be in business.

The gentleman in our story approaches his work in a business-like manner.  He wears long sleeved shirts, long pants and sturdy shoes.  His work supplies include small rakes and shovels, plastic bags, paper towels, and a concentrated pet spot cleaner.  He also provides the liners for cat boxes, although he does not provide clean litter.  He schedules his work route to minimize driving as much as possible, and it takes him an average of less than an hour to do a clean-up and travel to his next client.  He did a  little advertising at first but his client list grew mainly by word of mouth.

Do you see the potential here?  I live in an area with a large community of retired folks, many of whom are delighted to pay for this particular service.  You may not live near a retirement community, but consider working families with tight schedules.  They might jump at the chance to trade dollars for a regularly cleaned yard and more free time.  Apartment dwellers with cats?  How about cleaning bird cages?

Like I said before, this particular "hobby" is not for everyone.  But for the right person, there's money in pet poo.