Skedaddle has a full training centre in Hamilton that is in a converted house. Since there are not many jobs in the wildlife field, being their own boss can be a rewarding career for these recent grads, Dowd said. Skedaddle gets a lot of recent graduates with biology degrees or fish and wildlife management certification. Once the company and the franchisee have had some back and forth, they are on boarded with the help of webinars and sometimes the company even brings a potential franchisee on the road with them for the day. But, Dowd said, as up to 70% of animals relocated that way die, it wouldn’t fit with the company’s humane ethos. Company reps explain the process of animal extraction, which is an important step because the company often faces misconceptions that they trap animals and relocate them. It all starts with the initial conversation and most people who are enquiring have had a run-in with a wildlife issue in the past. They will also have to be real problem solvers, too, because each animal reacts differently and the construction of the various homes they’ll be servicing is vastly different from one to the next.
SKEDADDLE HUMANE WILDLIFE CONTROL HAMILTON PLUS
Being an outdoorsy type would help, plus the desire to not be chained to a desk for franchisees who want to be owner operators. To see this ambitious expansion, Dowd will need the right people and that means entrepreneurs who enjoy dealing with people as much as they enjoy a challenge. He pointed to Australia’s opossums as being another pest problem that may lead to expansion. Plus, raccoons are overtaking Europe, so there could be room for expansion there in the future. He added that people want a long-term and humane solution to urban wildlife in their homes.Īfter expanding throughout Canada, Dowd wants to expand into the US. Recent studies by a York University professor, have indicated that there may be as many as 100 raccoons in a square kilometre in some cities.ĭowd called raccoons the perfect urban critter and said typically it’s the house that’s more of the problem because any home has between 30-50 vulnerable areas that allow animals to get in.
In a square kilometre, the business owner said, there could be anywhere from 15 to 25 raccoons. “They’re damaging, in most cases, people’s biggest investments of their lives their homes.” And with the kinds of numbers Dowd quotes, it sounds like the company will remain busy. “Wildlife are in our urban centres, they’re here to stay. The company pioneered its methods and procedures and in every city it expanded into, they were successful. That’s our promise”Ĭurrently, Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control has 22 locations servicing over 75 different municipalities in Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia.īack in 1989 in Hamilton nobody was doing wildlife control, Dowd said, and he, fresh out of university, saw a niche to be filled. Our team has over 30 years of franchise experience and you’ll be generously supported by the best franchise management in Canada. Kernaghan states that “their partnership is the best of both worlds.īill Dowd is the pioneer and leading urban wildlife expert in Canada, with a proven business concept. To help with franchising, Dowd brought in long-time franchisor Mike Kernaghan, who has managed six franchise brands with over 400 franchise operators. While it’s been in operation for 26 years, the business has only been franchising for the past three years. Once the company has removed the animals and made sure the mother and babies stay together, they animal-proof the home to ensure the animals cannot re enter, plus they give homeowners a lifetime guarantee on their work. “We go right into the animal’s living space, whether it’s in an attic, a chimney, underneath a deck or a porch and humanely remove the animals, keeping family units together. “We provide hands-on removal so we don’t use traps,” Dowd said during a recent interview from the company’s headquarters in Hamilton.
For people who find critters in their homes, one Hamilton franchisor wants to them to think one word: Skedaddle.īill Dowd, owner of Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control, has been in the urban wildlife wrangling business since 1989, helping to move raccoons, squirrels, skunks, birds, bats and mice out of people’s homes.
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