How DoodyCalls Became a Pet Waste Removal Leader

Meet Larry Amos, the president of DoodyCalls, a pioneering pet waste removal company dedicated to making pet ownership cleaner and easier. Founded in 1999 by Jacob and Susan D’Aniello, DoodyCalls has grown from a small start-up to a nationwide franchise, renowned for its reliable and efficient service. With a mission to create a happier and healthier environment for both pets and their owners, DoodyCalls now proudly operates in 27 states and over 100 territories. In this interview, Larry shares insights into the company’s history, innovative strategies, and the impactful community they have built through their unique business model.

History and Founding Vision of DoodyCalls

SBS – Can you share a brief overview of the history of DoodyCalls and its founding vision? 

Larry – With every beloved dog, there is the unavoidable task of cleaning up their waste. That’s where DoodyCalls comes in. DoodyCalls is a pet waste removal company that offers a variety of solutions for pet owners, commercial properties, and community managers. DoodyCalls proudly scoops over 10 million doggie deposits every year and is the leading provider of pooper scooper services in the country.

DoodyCalls is also the first pet waste management company and franchise of its kind. With franchise opportunities across the country, the pet waste leader allows owners the chance at scalable success while honing customer service skills, building a team, and carving out a niche with a low overhead franchise investment. The business model is affordable and simple to start. Franchise owners ramp up quickly and have the ability to earn recurring revenue. 

DoodyCalls was founded on the idea of making pet ownership easier, and we are making the world a cleaner and happier place — one poop pile at a time. In 1999, Jacob D’Aniello and his future wife, Susan, were fresh out of school with student loans to pay and only $50 between them. Commuting home from work one evening, Jacob was listening to a radio talk show when an interview segment came on about a man’s career as a pet pooper-scooper. Jacob almost changed the channel, but then it clicked — this man loved his job!

Jacob’s wheels started turning. The pair slowly grew the business, and the client base expanded. In 2004, Jacob and Susan took a leap of faith and quit their day jobs to focus on DoodyCalls full-time. The company headquarters was established in the Washington DC area, and DoodyCalls began franchising nationwide. DoodyCalls has since grown to have independently owned and operated locations in over 45 territories in 15 states and has been the subject of news stories in hundreds of publications. This includes two recognitions as the number one pet waste removal franchise in the United States by Entrepreneur Magazine’s annual Franchise 500 list. To put it plainly, DoodyCalls is cleaning up!

Building a Strong Franchise Community

SBS – What are some key strategies DoodyCalls employs to build a strong community among its franchise owners?

Larry – We are passionate about relationships and fostering a cadence of communication. Each franchisee has a business coach upon joining the system, a dedicated marketing manager, and an internal call center for both inbound and outbound calls. We conduct monthly town hall meetings and weekly education webinars (to include technology, commercial sales development, marketing platforms, brainstorming by region, and staffing). We also have an active Franchise Advisory Council, Commercial Sales Advisory Council, monthly digital newsletter, and an annual convention to celebrate success — set into motion the vision. 

Commercial vs. Residential Services

SBS – Can you elaborate on the types of commercial clients DoodyCalls serves and how these services differ from residential ones?  

Larry – Commercial is a business that serves clients and their dogs in the hospitality industry, restaurants, wineries, breweries, shopping centers, airport authorities, national/local park associations, homeowners associations, property management companies, and beyond. We work with our commercial clients to be an “extension” to their team, not replace them. We work together to build clean picnic areas, walking paths, eateries, green spaces, and clean waterways. Doody also recognizes that the number one source of contention in a public space is litter & dog waste left on the grounds. We tackle this head-on. We offer stations, we install them, replace the bags, and provide regular cleaning services and deodorizers, too. Residential clients are specifically “yards.”

Revenue Impact from Commercial Clients

SBS – How does serving commercial clients impact the revenue potential for franchise owners compared to residential services? 

Larry – Commercial acts as the biggest game changer for our franchisees. A single contract with a commercial client can shift the trajectory of revenue. While residential clients are extremely important to our franchisees, they are at a lower price point, and mathematically, it takes many residential services to equate to a commercial client. Commercial clients take a longer time to move from lead to customer, the period of time is much longer due to decision making, budget constraints, board involvement, etc. However, the acquisition is incredible for an immediate shift in top-line business.   

Partnerships with National Brands

SBS – Can you discuss the importance of partnerships with national brands like The CAI Home, The Farmer’s Dog, and Associa? 

Larry – We value our relationships and work to foster continued networking opportunities with each team. The partnerships open doors for local business owners. As a Doody franchisee, our network leads to local marketing opportunities, cross-branding materials, and promotional collaborations with well-known brand names. We share the vision and mission of cleaner environments for all. The partnership also validates the DoodyCalls brand. Having the partners drives immediate business opportunities, but it also displays our brand value to potential franchisees who may be validating and considering joining our system — it shows we are the real deal!   

Innovative Service Offerings

SBS – What innovative approaches has DoodyCalls taken to diversify its service offerings in the pet waste management industry?

Larry – Our mission is clear and underscores the importance of franchisee feedback. We continue to work with our franchisees to explore additional revenue sources but are always mindful of their input: “Stay in the lane of pet waste management, do not get derailed, and lose sight of the fundamental business model.”

We offer our own branded stations, bags, deodorizer treatment, enzyme (brown spot) cover-up, rental stations for special events, one-time cleaning for events, goose poop, horse, and deer too. We are currently in the process of rolling out (in Q4) a few more pilot programs that our franchisees have requested to beta test and review the results of. We are consistently looking for and evaluating opportunities that align with our model.    

Training and Ongoing Support for Franchise Owners

SBS – What kind of training and ongoing support does DoodyCalls provide to its franchise owners?  

Larry – In addition to the items I’ve mentioned above — the webinars, councils, and town halls — we offer Poop School for new owners — a week of owner/operator education. We also provide ongoing technology, financial planning, human resources, marketing strategies, and business scaling training. All these items are covered quarterly, tracked, recorded, and shared with our system.  

Effective Marketing Strategies

SBS – What marketing strategies have been most effective in promoting DoodyCalls’ services to potential commercial clients? What are your short-term and long-term goals for DoodyCalls in terms of growth and service expansion?  

Larry – Our grassroots efforts seem to have the most impact on our local franchisees. Our clients want to support local businesses, see the face of their local community, and interact with trust — as they allow us access to their personal properties and, in many cases, to interact with their furry family members. Grassroots, local events, festivals, parades, sponsorships, etc., all seem to have an effect on our brand. We offer an entire toolbox of items, materials, and customized (for the local owner) collateral online for franchisees to access — quick, simple, and easy.   

Sustainability and Environmental Responsibility

SBS – How does DoodyCalls approach sustainability and environmental responsibility in its operations?

Larry – Our mission is clear. We aim to make the world happier and healthier for people & pets. We are grounded in our simplicity and work daily with franchisees to differentiate ourselves from others and keep things simple and clean. 

Role of Technology in Operations

SBS – What role does technology play in DoodyCalls’ operations and service delivery?

Larry – Our proprietary system offers online sign-up for customer journeys, integrates with our national call center, and provides scheduling, routing, two-way communication with clients (text/email), invoicing, collections, batch communication, and marketing functionality. Technology is key and one of our many differentiators. 

Advice for Prospective Franchise Owners

SBS – What advice would you give to someone considering becoming a DoodyCalls franchise owner?

Larry – Our low cost of entry, no need for bricks/mortar, flexibility on schedule (we do not offer appointments), company culture, and support make a great fit for a business owner who has a desire to build their future while balancing another career and family obligations. If you have grit and drive, the model works. You are surrounded by a community of franchisees that share a common goal: be the best!

Each franchisee and our leadership team embody our Doody Values: humility, drive, bound together, integrity, passion, communication — and some humor, too!  We genuinely enjoy helping franchisees be successful, and it motivates us. Our team is diverse, open, honest, and unique. However, we share a common goal to be strong business leaders, connected to our local communities, remain the industry leader in pet waste management, and celebrate our 24 years of consecutive growth!