The Turd Burglar: Ont. teen starts poop-scooping business
Heather Rivers, Postmedia Network
First posted: Wednesday, April 15, 2015 04:28 PM EDT
WOODSTOCK, Ont. - The job may stink, but business is picking up.
Tyler Irvine, 13, stumbled on the idea for a poop-scooping business earlier this year while helping friends clean up a yard.
“I thought this is easy work, good money,” he said. “I started brainstorming for a name, and The Turd Burglar came out and it stuck.”
Irvine knew finding the perfect name was essential.
“Turd Burglar is humorous. It’s not something you really have to think about,” he said.
Irvine only started the business a couple of weeks ago but, so far, it’s been booming.
Cleaning a yard costs between $25 and $40 — more if Irvine has to travel out of town.
“I have a pooper-scooper and I bring a couple of rakes,” Irvine said. “I rake it into bags and the customers dispose of it.”
It costs an extra $2.50 a bag if Irvine has to take the bags with him.
Irvine said he’s received nothing but positive feedback.
“From what I’ve heard, everybody loves the idea,” he said. “They are happy to see the younger generation take their own initiative.”
Irvine said he hopes to save up enough cash to buy a bike and possibly realize his longtime dream of owning a Fender guitar.
He said he enjoys his new after-school business and the extra cash.
“I’m not just sitting here on electronics killing brain cells,” he said.
But how will he sustain his business as spring winds its way into summer?
“Dogs don’t just crap in the winter,” he said.
Irvine say he may expand into other areas, such as grass cutting and gardening.
Tyler Irvine, founder of The Turd Burglar, shows off the tools of the trade at his Woodstock, Ont. home. (HEATHER RIVERS/Postmedia Network)
The Turd Burglar: Ont. teen starts poop-scooping business | Ontario | News | Tor
Heather Rivers, Postmedia Network
First posted: Wednesday, April 15, 2015 04:28 PM EDT
WOODSTOCK, Ont. - The job may stink, but business is picking up.
Tyler Irvine, 13, stumbled on the idea for a poop-scooping business earlier this year while helping friends clean up a yard.
“I thought this is easy work, good money,” he said. “I started brainstorming for a name, and The Turd Burglar came out and it stuck.”
Irvine knew finding the perfect name was essential.
“Turd Burglar is humorous. It’s not something you really have to think about,” he said.
Irvine only started the business a couple of weeks ago but, so far, it’s been booming.
Cleaning a yard costs between $25 and $40 — more if Irvine has to travel out of town.
“I have a pooper-scooper and I bring a couple of rakes,” Irvine said. “I rake it into bags and the customers dispose of it.”
It costs an extra $2.50 a bag if Irvine has to take the bags with him.
Irvine said he’s received nothing but positive feedback.
“From what I’ve heard, everybody loves the idea,” he said. “They are happy to see the younger generation take their own initiative.”
Irvine said he hopes to save up enough cash to buy a bike and possibly realize his longtime dream of owning a Fender guitar.
He said he enjoys his new after-school business and the extra cash.
“I’m not just sitting here on electronics killing brain cells,” he said.
But how will he sustain his business as spring winds its way into summer?
“Dogs don’t just crap in the winter,” he said.
Irvine say he may expand into other areas, such as grass cutting and gardening.
Tyler Irvine, founder of The Turd Burglar, shows off the tools of the trade at his Woodstock, Ont. home. (HEATHER RIVERS/Postmedia Network)
The Turd Burglar: Ont. teen starts poop-scooping business | Ontario | News | Tor