The Yard Blog

How to Choose a Pet Waste Removal Service: Questions to Ask Before You Sign Up

You're letting someone into your backyard every week, often when you're not home, sometimes with your dog out there. That deserves more scrutiny than most people give it.

Ask about insurance

Are they insured, and will they show you proof? This matters if someone's injured on your property or if something is damaged. A legitimate business will have an answer immediately and won't be offended you asked.

Ask what happens if your dog is out

Every company should have a clear policy. Ours: if there's any note on file about your dog's temperament, we text before every visit to confirm it's safe to enter. We don't enter a yard we can't safely access, ever.

Vague answers here are a red flag, both for your dog's safety and for whether they'll actually show up consistently.

Ask how they confirm the visit happened

You're usually not home. How do you know they came? We send a photo of the closed gate after every visit. Some companies text. Some do nothing at all, which means you're paying on trust with no verification.

Ask about the gate

Specifically: what's their process for confirming it's latched? This is the single highest-stakes part of the job. A dog getting out because someone was careless is the worst outcome in this business, and any company that hasn't thought carefully about it should worry you.

Ask about contracts and cancellation

Month-to-month with no cancellation fee is the customer-friendly standard. If they need a contract to keep you, ask yourself why.

Ask what happens to the waste

Bagged in your bin, or hauled away? Both are legitimate, they're just different, and one may cost more.

Ask about consistency

Same day every week, or a rotating window? Consistency is most of what you're paying for. If they can't commit to a day, that's worth knowing before you sign up.

Ask us all of these — we like the questions. Serving Baton Rouge and Ascension Parish.