speaker-0: Well, hi, Tricia Thank you so much for being on the She Spark podcast. We're recording here at the Ignite Sparked by BBB podcast studio in Prescott, and I'm so happy to have you.

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speaker-1: thank you so much for having me, Bree I'm so excited to be on the show.

speaker-0: Tricia, for listeners who may not be familiar, what exactly does Scoopin' Skedaddle provide and who do you serve?

speaker-1: Okay, so Scoopin's Gadaddle is a professional pet waste removal company. We've been in business for six years. We serve all the Quad Cities. Our main clients are probably seniors, ⁓ anybody been injured, maybe just had a recent hip surgery. ⁓ We a lot of blind clients, actually, a lot of military vets that are in wheelchairs. So they would be more like our residential clients. And then for our commercial side of it, we serve HOAs. dog parks, we do senior living facilities, anything on that side of it.

speaker-0: that's amazing. Yeah, and it's nice to be able to have that kind of clean environment wherever you are. And I'm sure, you know, especially seniors or anybody that can't really bend over very well to pick up, you know, their dog's waste. It's very but then also for HOAs and like dog parks, because nobody wants to go into a public space and see ⁓ poo.

speaker-1: Exactly. Yeah, and honestly just anybody that has a dog like you can love your dog and hate their dog poop And that's perfectly fine. There's there's zero judgment doesn't make you lazy because you hire a pooper scooper

speaker-0: I think it makes you smart. a win-win for everybody here. So business started with helping a neighbor. Can you share how that small act evolved into a full-scale company?

speaker-1: Yeah, I know, it is kind of crazy. So we had a neighbor right next door to us. He had broken his hip and had to go get hip surgery done. He had three dogs and had a ton of dog poop in the backyard. And we were like, hey, what if we clean up the dog poop for you while you're recovering? And he loved that idea. And so we were doing that. And then the neighbor across the street saw and he was like, hey, I'm going into town. Can you clean up my dog poop for me? And my husband and I were talking about it and we're like, this is like actually a real need in this community. And we looked it up and there was no- business like that in the area and we were like what if we start doing this we both had 50 hour a week jobs that we hated so we just came up with the plan where I would quit my job and I would do it and then he's like if we get 50 clients it'll be a real thing he'll quit his job and then we'll do it together so we just started with our little red truck and we put some little graphic designs on it and then a year later we got our 50 clients and you know here we are

speaker-0: Here you are, six years later, which is amazing. But I think that was smart too, where you're like, one of us will quit and see what happens. then hit those goals and then actually be able for both of you to grow and thrive in this business together, which is pretty amazing as a husband and wife team too. To be able to thrive and grow and work together. ⁓

speaker-1: Yeah, it is it is really nice doing it with him I we definitely wouldn't been able to do it without each other because Completely on my own it would have been hard. So it is nice doing it with him. Yeah

speaker-0: Yeah, especially when you grew so quickly, you would have been scooping for hours.

speaker-1: I know, I know, and then with having kids, and so it's like, he's a really good support for me, so it's like any idea I wanna do, he's just like full throttle, like let's do it, like let's make it happen for you, so. I love It's nice having that.

speaker-0: And now you don't just have the red truck. You have a very cool branded, I don't know how many vehicles you have, but I've seen one at least. ⁓

speaker-1: So we now have, we got rid of the red truck once we, cause we were originally PV Super Scoopers. And then when we rebranded and changed the name into Scoopin' Skedaddle, we got ⁓ Priuses cause we drive around so much and they're great on gas. So, and we fully graphic wrap them. So I feel like that's our biggest brand now and everyone kind of knows them and sees them around town. But yeah, so, and those are the ones we have. Just the three, no more red truck.

speaker-0: No more red trucker and you're onward and upward for sure. So what Scoop and Skedaddle different from other

speaker-1: Yeah.

speaker-0: pet waste removal services.

speaker-1: Yes, so we were the only company for the first three years, but then actually two years ago quite a few other ones have started to kind of pop up after we start putting road signs out and everything like that. What makes us stand out is we go the extra mile for our clients. So we're always communicating with our clients every step of the way. They get an on the way message and they get a completed message when the job is done. We make sure that because most of our clients aren't home. So when we leave, we'll also send a picture of the gate showing that it's securely shut. So they have that peace of mind and they're not worried about their dog getting out or anything like that. If they see anything like if the dog's acting kind of funny or not like he normally would, they would take a picture or send it to the client if maybe we've had a times where there's blood in the poop, same thing we'll take a picture and be like hey this looks concerning you know and just to help little catches like that so we really just try to give our clients peace of mind by doing those extra things. We also haul the waste away so it doesn't stink up your trash can and then we have a sanitizing disinfectant spray so it kills the urine smell and it kills any like bacteria the waste leaves behind so you're not tracking that back in your house.

speaker-0: Wow, that's above and beyond. That's definitely not all the things that I do when I clean up my dog. That's amazing. Okay, so I'm a technology nerd. Do you use some certain technology to do all of this or do you just do texting? Okay, you do.

speaker-1: So no, there's this new app out there and it's like the first one for pet waste removal companies. It's literally all it's for is dog poop removal. And so it's on all the phones and the work cars and it just click a button, it sends an on the way message, you know, and it has an option to do photos, to do notes to the client. It makes it really easy.

speaker-0: That's amazing. Yeah, it's amazing. And now I have another question. Are you is it just the two of you still or do you have a full team now?

speaker-1: Yeah, so after the first two years, we started to get busy and we have two employees now.

speaker-0: amazing. I love a good success story. Right. So you emphasized trust, you vetted staff it sounds like, ⁓ and professionalism. Why was that so important to build into your brand from day one?

speaker-1: Yes. So, when me and my husband were doing, we're doing the business on our own. was awesome. Cause we both, you know, kind of have the same like-minded on how we want to do things. But then we realized when we needed to hire people that nobody runs your business the way you do. And that was really hard to realize, you know, they just, they, they weren't us, know, but you need the help. So we wanted to make sure that clients were still getting that same level of trust with our employees as well. So we make sure that we do background checks on them. They do a full two weeks of training with either my husband or myself, where they come and do all the yards. with us because we don't just want someone that can clean up the dog but we want someone that loves animals. you know even if it's just throwing the ball for the dog or getting down and letting the dog lick you on the face because some of our clients work 12 hours a day and they really appreciate those little things where it's like hey you know the technician play with my dog you know where they lifted up my chairs that blew over in the wind like just little things like that so wanted to try to find people that were as close to the way we would do it as we could. ⁓

speaker-0: I think that's so important and what peace of mind individuals that, ⁓ you know, utilize your services have when they know that you're coming in and it's almost like a friend is there. Yeah. A friend with really good benefits. ⁓

speaker-1: Yes, a friend with good friends. It's a new tagline. It is, right?

speaker-0: Okay so what are some of the unique needs of your commercial clients compared to your residential clients?

speaker-1: Yes, so our commercial clients, operate on a completely different level because they're more about visibility, liability, so they can't have any type of odor. You have to be very consistent with them because people complain all the time. So you do not want complaints. So we just make sure that anytime that we go in that we document everything as well. So they'll say, hey, we want you to come out once a week. And then we'll send in a report to them and be like, hey, we can come out once a week, but these stations are really full. They're starting to smell. ⁓ recommend we come out twice a or this is a heavily trafficked area, we should add another petway station here. So we try to do things like that for them just to make sure that the community is really getting the most out of it. ⁓ Yeah, and same thing, and we sanitize the petway stations as well so that they don't smell. We'll clean 30 feet around the petway stations because even if there's a petway station right there, people will still not clean up their dog food sometimes.

speaker-0: definitely seen that hiking on trails sometimes where you think wow literally right there ⁓

speaker-1: Yeah, so we just, yeah, so we try to do that for the commercial clients, but that's probably the biggest difference with the residential and the commercial is just the consistency.

speaker-0: Yeah, that's amazing. So what have been some of the biggest challenges in growing a local service-based business?

speaker-1: So my ⁓ the good balance between my family and my work life. I totally took for granted when I had my regular nine to five job. ⁓ You out and you come home and ⁓ I think about work. ⁓ I stressed about it. ⁓ when there's no coming home from your job, you know, cause it's just, you're always on. So in the beginning I would answer the phone at eight o'clock. I would answer the phone on the weekends while I'm at my, you know, one of my daughter's soccer games or something. ⁓ And so, know, kind of having those boundaries now where you know I don't always answer the phone all weekends or I stop answering the phone after 6 o'clock p.m. that that's really helped just because you know because you got to have that family and work balance like because I have three kids and an amazing husband and it's like you know I got to kind of you know just not be at work 24-7.

speaker-0: No kidding, and I think that's such an important boundary when you're self-employed, because I know when I've been in that same boat before too, when you're trying to kind of hustle and you feel like that's what you're supposed to do is pick up the phone or answer texts later at night. you start to realize, well, nobody else is doing that. ⁓ else is in an office like we're sitting in and they're not here at 8 p.m. answering the phone. So everything can wait, you know, and it's so great. And I wonder, can people reserve stuff online too? Can they reserve, or can they just contact you online? How does that work?

speaker-1: So people can get quotes online. And if someone does call me, they can text me while I'm at home. I'm happy to do that after 6 PM. I don't have an online scheduling yet. But usually if someone calls me, ⁓ sometimes get them in same day or next day. So I don't make people wait very long at all. So even if they do have to wait till the next day to talk to me, I can probably still get them in that very soon.

speaker-0: that's amazing. So, you know, that the pooh's not building up. ⁓

speaker-1: I know, that's our whole thing, keeping poos off your shoes is what we do.

speaker-0: I love that. See, I think that's a better tagline than we talked about earlier.

speaker-1: That other one could get, yeah, the difference has been.

speaker-0: People could get a little confused. I think that as women, we all have to find those boundaries too, where you're trying to succeed in business, but you're also a mom and a wife and a friend and you want to have all these things. So it's good to be able to say no to certain things so that you can say yes to all those other important things. And it's hard. I think it takes a while as a business owner to learn those lessons and you go, okay, I don't wanna burn out on this. This is my business for however long. I think that's so important. So a woman co-owner in what might view as a very unconventional industry, what mindset you step confidently into this space?

speaker-1: So for me, I just was more focused on like really like solving a real problem, you know, solving something for the community, just really being able to help and give people peace of mind. And once we saw like how much it helped people and especially like older people that can't go in their backyard and can't bend over, but now they're able to enjoy their backyards and enjoy their dogs. It was, just, it's just a really amazing job. I'm honestly really blessed to have it. And people all the time will be like, I can't believe you can, you know, make money cleaning up dog poop, you know? ⁓ really doesn't bother me ⁓ all. I love being outside. I love working with animals. Yeah, and it's it's just cleaning up poop. ⁓ isn't, ⁓ mean, I guess it is unconventional ⁓ the sense that it's kind of a...

speaker-0: is, yeah. different type of business, but it does serve such a big, you're filling such a need, which I think is so important and that's smart to think, wow, there is a business in this. Cause we're all doing it. If you have a dog, you're, you better be, or you're hiring somebody up their poop because that's just a part of it. Right. ⁓ so I think it's so great that that's something that you can kind of fill that need for, for anybody that maybe it's even a business a busy business professional that just says, do this all the time. Because I think I was reading on your website that you not only offer the cleanup services, but you also offer like, pet sitting. ⁓

speaker-1: Yes, so we do pet sitting, we do dog walking, we do horse stalls. So we'll clean out the horse stalls, clean the pastures, or just do horse sitting if you're going out of town. And then we even clean chicken coops.

speaker-0: So gosh, see out of all of those, because I have such a fear of chickens, out of all the things I'd be like, okay, that's the one. I don't want to do that. But that's amazing. So it's like you've taken this business and it started with just sort of this basic thing and then that everybody needed. And now you've grown it into these other aspects that are so also equally needed. And how smart because you're already in these individuals homes.

speaker-1: don't want to do that. They already trust us. Yeah.

speaker-0: Yeah, so that's amazing. And so tell me about that. Like, how long have you been offering all those services?

speaker-1: So the dog walking and the pet sitting we've been offering for about three years. We just kept having clients ask and then we were like, okay, we can make it work. And for the dog walking and the pet sitting, I'm the only one that does that. And then for ⁓ horse dolls, that's just been ⁓ ⁓ year. Yeah, because my husband was a ranch hand before, so he's really great with horses. So he does that side of it. Yeah, because we had a lot of clients like, please do our horses, please do our horses. And then they finally wore them down. ⁓

speaker-0: like that you kind of each found your niche in it too. Because you probably enjoy seeing the pets and you you've already got had a little bit of a bond with them and then he's a professional with the horses so I think that's really cool that you're able to find these little niches within something like this. Yeah. And have fun.

speaker-1: It is, and it's nice because I was able to step back a little bit from just doing the everyday dog poop. So now I do the marketing and the billing and I go to all the networking meetings and then I do the dog walking and the pet sitting versus, and then my husband stays available for any new clients and that's why we're able to get the new clients in right away. So if a new client calls, he just sticks to his horse clients and then he does all the new clients and the quotes. So they don't have to wait two or three days to get, like if they have a party coming up and they haven't cleaned their yard in three years, which we get those a lot, that's gonna take a few hours. So then he's able to go out same day and make that happen for him.

speaker-0: That's amazing. smart customer service to be able to offer that? Because I would imagine, I mean, that's hard for a lot of industries to offer same day service. ⁓

speaker-1: And that was what we struggled with in the beginning when we were both just doing it and so tied into it. So having the employees and being able to kind of pull ourselves back a little bit, that's really helped with being able to grow the business more really focusing on quality over quantity. That's it.

speaker-0: Yeah, I think that's huge. That's amazing. And it's so fun to see you at networking things. So for someone that's listening who sees a simple need in their community, what advice would you give about turning that into a real business?

speaker-1: Bye. Just don't ignore any small ideas even if they don't seem flashy. And just realizing that it's never gonna be the right time to start a business or to try something new or to stop your job and try to work for yourself. I feel like that's what everybody says. It's, well, I gotta save up more money or it's just not the right time or my kids are my this, but you're never gonna have that perfect time. And then it kind of passes you by. And we almost didn't go for it when my husband talked about it. We were like, you probably couldn't make money doing that. And know, it's nice to have someone, know, like with my husband where he's like, no, just go for it, do it. Like, you know, like you can do this. So you just need that friend or that someone just to kind of push you and be like, no, you can do this. Like, that's a great idea.

speaker-0: Yeah, I think that support system is always key. But also that drive, because it sounds like you have that drive, which I think a lot of women have. it's amazing to be able to listen to it, have that support system that says, I support you in this, let's try it. ⁓ then to be able to make it grow into such a successful business is just so huge. ⁓ I think that's, and it all started from helping a neighbor, which, ⁓ know. ⁓

speaker-1: No, it's incredible. And now we're doing like 80 houses a day. Whoa.

speaker-0: is amazing. Okay, so what's next for Scoop and Skedaddle? Is there any up-and-coming things ⁓ ⁓ new ideas that you would want to share?

speaker-1: know, ⁓ dream would be to get land and have almost like ⁓ own dog boarding kind of thing where we could bring animals and just kind of be there all the time. And and him would do that full time and Scoop and Scudatta would still keep going with our employees. yeah, ⁓ a dream. But just anything that involves animals and that kind of a thing we would love.

speaker-0: I love that too, I can see it. I can see it, because you made this so successful from one simple idea, that it's always good to have those dreams, even if it's not like, next year we're going to do this, but it's at some point. Because that's where ideas, they're not going to thrive unless there is that kind of inkling to do more at some point. And I could see where that would be filling a need too. Because there are boarding facilities, but probably not one as unique as what you guys would offer.

speaker-1: No, we want to have like 10 or 20 acres where the dogs can roam free and not have to be kenneled the whole time. Yeah. So I mean, I don't know. I feel like you really do have to dream big too, you know? You got to set your sights high and then just rise to meet it. I hope.

speaker-0: I love it. And I imagine you have dogs at home.

speaker-1: We did but one of them passed away. We're big Newfoundland fans. They don't live long which is so so sad but we haven't gotten a new one because we have twin four-year-old girls. And so my husband keeps bugging me for more puppies but I'm like I'm so busy with them and the business. Yes. So I'm like maybe when there's six.

speaker-0: Yeah, right when they're in first grade ⁓

speaker-1: Yeah, they just take up a lot of our time. ⁓ sure. With all the other, you know, we're focusing on everybody else's animals. I'm like, think we need to just wait to get more. But we do have chickens. OK. and a bunny.

speaker-0: You've got the animal love there, which is so great. like you said, you get to see animals all the time and your job and. Do you do litter boxes?

speaker-1: We get plenty of dog love, so. So we'll we do it if it's outside I guess that's the biggest thing is I don't want the employees going into people's houses Okay, so we have one cat client because I don't advertise it But she has an amazing setup and it's outside and she has it all fenced off So then that's super easy because we come and we empty them, you know spray her whole enclosure So if it's something like that, yes, but not like you know But I but I do get calls on that a lot like we come inside Now if I'm cat sitting for somebody 100 %

speaker-0: Right, okay, so with that part of the business, you would take care of that. But with the kind of scoop and skedaddle overall thing, it's outside only. Wonderful, well that's good. See, that's a good thing to know. another niche, which is great.

speaker-1: Yeah, outside waste, yeah. Yeah, I know. There needs to be someone for inside, because we get calls on that too. Like, hey, the dog pooped on my carpet.

speaker-0: ⁓ yeah. Yes. Yeah. That does happen. I have a little dog at home and he does really well, but there's every once in a while, maybe if it snows and he says, I'm not going out there. Exactly. Then how good. Good for me. Well, thank you so much, Tricia, for sharing your story and how you turned a simple act of kindness into a thriving local business. For the listeners, how would they reach out to you?

speaker-1: Exactly. Yes, so you guys can call us on ⁓ our number. It's 928-308-9621 or just go to scoopscadaddle.com. Thank you so much for having me.

speaker-0: back to the She Spark podcast where stories ignite action. Hosted in the heart of Arizona, this podcast celebrates women who lead with purpose, build bold lives, and spark lasting change in their communities and beyond. Today's guest is Tricia Fegelman, co-owner of Scoop and Skedaddle, a locally owned pet waste removal company serving Prescott Valley and the surrounding areas. What began as helping a neighbor in need grew into professional trusted service supporting both residential and commercial clients. With branded vehicles, vetted staff, and a deep love for animals, Scoop and Skedaddle has transformed an often avoided chore into a reliable high quality service that keeps properties clean and businesses welcoming. This episode is all about service, community, professionalism, and building something meaningful from the ground up. Let's dive in.