Doody calls

FAIRFAX, Virginia. -- Doug Barnhart was so repulsed by the notion of picking up dog poop that he hired a service to do it.

But he's gradually overcoming his revulsion now that he's planning to open his own scoop shop later this year in Virginia Beach.

Barnhart said he's been practicing in his neighbours' yards. Barnhart is starting a franchise of a company based in Palmyra, Va., called Doody Calls.

Doody Calls launched in 2000 with two University of Virginia graduates who picked up dog waste on weekends. Now it has more than $1 million in annual revenue and roughly 1,500 clients in seven states, including Maryland and the District of Columbia.

It used to be that only small, local companies bothered to pick up behind pets. But Doody Calls and Texas-based Pet Butler -- which operates in 14 states -- introduced the franchise concept to the industry in 2004 and are steadily adding new locations.