Pet Pro Profile:
Simone Skovron, The Pet Loo

How many times have you taken the dog out for bathroom break–and worried they wouldn't make it out in time? Necessity was the mother of invention when it came to The Pet Loo, first developed in Australia by Simone Skovron who invented the handy "backyard in a box." Today Simone and her husband Tobi Skovron are the co-founders of Pup-Pee Solutions, a company that's expanded globally and product-wise as well, now offering enzyme cleaners. We caught up with Simone to learn more about the couple's fast-growing business.

Can you tell us about your background, especially your experience with pets?

I am a qualified social worker with a special interest in, and appreciation for, Animal Assisted Therapy. I strongly believe in the benefits of animal companionship both on a physical and emotional level. While I’ve spent the better part of the last few years working as a social worker in an aged care facility, over the years I’ve accumulated experience working with domestic animals both in the capacity as a vet nurse, animal assisted therapist (I studied this) and in pet retail.

How did you come to invent The Pet Loo?

The Pet Loo was invented out of pure need. As an apartment dwellers with dogs, I became frustrated with having to toilet my dogs at inconvenient times, worry they wouldn’t be able to hold on if I was late getting home, and pray they make it down the flights of stairs in time. I found myself saying that I needed “a backyard in a box” for my balcony and my husband decided we should go ahead and create it.

What tips do you have for pet parents who want to train their dog to use the Pet Loo?

The beauty of the Pet Loo is that is replicates the outdoors so if a dog is grass trained, they actually will require very little or no training. If training a puppy, it’s matter of applying simple toilet training principles and if a dog is needed some encouragement there are way to do so which is usually specific to the dog’s situation.  Detailed information on training pets to use the Pet Loo can be found on our website www.thepetloo.com
 

Pup-Pee Soutions has expanded its product offerings to include enzyme products for pet stains and smells. Can you tell us about these and how they work? What makes them different from traditional pet stain removers?

Although The Pet Loo is our flagship product, more recently we have responded to consumer need to develop a chemical free, biodegradable range of cleaning products called the “NO Range.” The funky packaging on all the bottles explain their individual purpose, ranging from odor removers, to stain removers and cleaning products specifically for pet areas. Our products don’t mask the problems, they get to the root of the problem and that’s why they are proving to be so effective.

What else would you like the readers of DogTipper.com to know about your work?

As a company, Pup-Pee Solutions is motivated by the want to break down the barriers to pet ownership. More often than not, people will opt out of owning a pet or surrender a pet as a result of a toileting issue. As a Pet Waste Management company, we seek to solve these problems so that more people can enjoy the privilege that comes with owning a pet!

For More Information:

• Website: www.thepetloo.com
• Email: usa@thepetloo.com | info@thepetloo.com
• BLOG: www.thepetloo.com/blog
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/PetLoo

 

Wilson & Associates is an Independent MFG Representative Firm, which has been serving the Pet & Animal Health Industries since 1993.  Their combined team of nine Sales Associates are strategically located throughout the Western United States and cover: 

• California,
• Arizona,
• Nevada,
• New Mexico,
• Colorado,
• Utah,
• Montana,
• Wyoming,
• Idaho,
• Washington,
• Oregon,
• Alaska  
• Hawaii

Wilson and Associates have over 180 years of combined "Industry" experience in Retail, which is something Pup-Pee’s CEO Tobi Skovron is very excited about. 

“To have a firm like Wilson and Associates as part of our team is very exciting for our young and innovative company. The wealth of experience and a great opportunity to learn from the best in the west is a journey I’m very excited to go on” said Skovron. 

“Wilson & Associates represent some of the Top MFG's in the pet industry and so we are proud to be amongst that group" Skovron added.

 For direct contact with Wilson & Associates for any of the above territories please use the following email westusa@thepetloo.com

Alternatively contact head office in New York on:

+1 646-383-8886 | usa@thepetloo.com

Photo by: The-Environmentalist  

Janene Nadolny has taken on the sales role for Pup-Pee Solutions based in New York USA.  

After initially coming into contact with Pup-Pee’s US General Manager, Nicole Iglicki at Global Pet Expo, Nadonly instantly recognized the opportunity and acted swiftly securing the sales representative position for the local New York market. 

fter initially coming into contact with Pup-Pee’s US General Manager, Nicole Iglicki at Global Pet Expo, Nadonly instantly recognized the opportunity and acted swiftly securing the sales representative position for the local New York market. 

Nadolny is very excited to have the opportunity to be representing the newest innovation in The Pet Loo (AKA – Potty) in a very long time. Her first thoughts were, “WOW, no more running out of wee wee pads!” 

She continued on to say “Pets naturally make outside and housebreaking has to be that much easier with The Pet Loo. What’s even better, the pet having to step up onto The Pet Loo will prevent new pup from mistaking the bath mat for a wee wee pad”.  

“This is GENIUS! It is perfect for apartments or on a terrace where you can ultimately bring a "natural" potty area inside.  It’s even perfect for backyards, where one can centralize where their dog is going to go! And it certainly won’t have to take all afternoon on Poop patrol in a backyard!” I

t's a "no-brainer" The Pet Loo is the way to Go, when a pet "has to go!"

Nadolny’s enthusiasm is infectious and US General Manager Nicole Iglicki is thrilled to have her as part of the team. 

Local retailers in New York can contact Janene to arrange a visit by emailing nyc@thepetloo.com and if you don’t get around to contacting her it’ll only be a matter of time before she visits you! 

More sales positions are available at Pup-Pee Solutions nationwide – click here to find out more!

The puppy, a Portuguese water dog, as anticipated, is 6 months old and black and white. It was named Bo by Obama's daughters, Malia and Sasha, apparently in honor of their maternal grandfather, who went by the nickname Diddley.

The Washington Post claimed credit for the name scoop in its Sunday editions while also reporting that it had been itself scooped, upsetting a deal the newspaper worked out with the White House to get "the puppy exclusive."

Naturally, for this day and age, two websites got there first: the celebrity news site TMZ.com and a heretofore unknown site called FirstDogCharlie.com, which posted a picture Saturday of Bo wearing a colorful Hawaiian lei around his neck.

On Friday, Katie McCormick Lelyveld, press secretary to first lady Michelle Obama, denied there would be any puppy news over the weekend. After the leaks, she released few other details except that Bo will be introduced formally on Tuesday.

Where is Bo now? Was he a gift from U.S. Sen. (and Portie promoter) Ted Kennedy, who has three of the bushy-haired dogs? Lelyveld wouldn't say, but Kennedy released a statement. "We couldn't be happier to see the joy that Bo is bringing to Malia and Sasha," Kennedy said.

Meanwhile, TMZ said it had lots of detail about the dog by late Friday, but Lelyveld declined to confirm or deny any of it on Sunday. It was not known who is behind FirstDogCharlie.com or where its information came from.

If Washington is fixated on the White House puppy, it's fair to say the obsession was stoked by President Obama, who has repeatedly teased the media with tidbits. As recently as Friday, after Obama made a statement on the economy, a reporter asked about the puppy, again.

"Oh, man, now, that's top-secret," Obama said with a laugh.

A secret not so tightly held, as it turned out

Crocmedia America client and Australian Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2008, Tobi Skovron, attended the Global Pet Expo in Florida in February.

Tobi’s award-winning product The Pet Loo caused quite a stir, garnering attention from the Orlando Sentinel, Pet Age, Pet Product News, ZooToo TV and Jay Leno’s “Pitch to America”.

www.thepetloo.com
For further information & media opportunities contact Brooke George brooke@crocmedia.com

Yoo-Hoo, Loo Loo!

Whether you live in an apartment or a house, take your dog to work or simply want to avoid toilet training headaches, spend evenings painting the town or just like to sleep in, the Pet Loo is a hygienic dog potty, convenient and environmentally friendly. Best of all, it lets your pet to do its business without relying on you for the need to go outside.

Fits anyone anywhere: apartments, condos, balconies, patios, laundry rooms, bathrooms, boats, elderly shut-ins, gardens, decks or treks cross country and to the office. Say goodbye to concerns about rain, sleet, ice and snow.

Fits anywhere, easy to clean, durable and requires no assembly.

We love it!

thepetloo.com

For More "daily kibble" click here

Put to the Test,

U.S. Pet Market Vindicates Purported Recession-Resistant

NEW YORK, NY - While other industries crumble, the U.S. pet market continues to prove its much-touted recession-resistance as several pet specialty retail chains, top pet food marketers, veterinary hospitals, and pet pharmacies have in recent months reported strong financial performance during the latter portion of 2008. According to market research publisher Packaged Facts in the brand-new report, "U.S. Pet Market Outlook 2009-2010: Surviving and Thriving in Challenging Economic Times," the pet market's foreseeable future is encouraging with the expected slow-down of 2009 ultimately being recouped as the economy begins to recover in 2010 and 2011.

The report is based partly on February 2009 pet owner survey data polling 2,600 U.S. adults. Packaged Facts forecasts that the pet market, which was a $51 billion business as of 2008, will eventually reach $57 billion by 2010, an improvement on the relatively meager projected total market growth of 6% for 2009 when the market is expected to finish at about $53 billion. Hardest hit by the 2009 recession will likely be the market's two most discretionary categories — non-food pet supplies and pet services other than veterinary.

Health-related pet products, from high-grade foods to preventative veterinary care, are likely to emerge among the most recession-resistant because consumers typically view them as nondiscretionary expenditures that can be far less costly than the kinds of long-term health conditions that potentially result from poor nutrition or inadequate medical care. Packaged Facts identifies the resiliency of health-related pet products as a testament to one of the true enduring factors influencing the strength of the U.S. pet market overall: pet humanization and the human/animal bond facet associated with the trend.

"Packaged Facts views pet humanization as a dynamic, multifaceted shift that virtually guarantees steady pet market sales not just in 2009 and 2010, but well beyond," says Tatjana Meerman, publisher of Packaged Facts. "Many pet owners view their pets as full-fledged members of the family, and would take no more lightly any serious cutbacks on spending for non-discretionary products and services than they would for their kids. In most cases, such cutbacks would only seriously be considered after owners have reduced spending on their own less essential needs." "U.S. Pet Market Outlook 2009-2010: Surviving and Thriving in Challenging Economic Times" brings readers up to the minute regarding the four core market categories — veterinary services, pet food, non-food pet supplies, and other pet services (grooming, boarding, training, etc.) — projecting sales and analyzing key growth drivers and competitive opportunities for each.

For further information visit: http://www.packagedfacts.com/Pet-Outlook-Surviving-2154192/.

About Packaged Facts - Packaged Facts, a division of Market Research Group, publishes market intelligence on a wide range of consumer industries, including consumer goods and retailing, foods and beverages, demographics, pet, and financial products. Packaged Facts also offers a full range of custom research services.

For more information contact Don Montuori at (240) 747-3028 or dmontuori@marketresearch.com .

A Pet Loo Check a Day, Keeps the VET Bills Away

Your pet’s urine is one of best indicators of their health. It should be a clear yellow, never cloudy. As pet owners we need to know what is ‘regular’ for our pets. If you find that your dog or cat is suddenly urinating more than normal (outside of summer that is, because we all know how much more we drink when the weather heats up) or noticeably less, then this could be a sign of a urinary tract infection (UTI) and should be immediately followed up with your vet.

Urinary tract infections in pets are more common than what most people think. They can cause your pet great discomfort, and without treatment, can lead to death.

This is one of the great benefits of The Pet Loo. The easy to clean catchment jug, allows the pet owner to monitor their dog/cat’s urination levels when the jug is emptied daily. There’s no need to chase your dog or cat around the house, trying in vain to catch a sample. This will only leave both you and your pet feeling embarrassed. 

It certainly helped satisfied Pet Loo customer, Anne Gillen, who found struvite crystals in one of her dog’s urine, the same problem which had sadly taken the life of another of her dogs. However, with a sample in hand she was able to have her vet thorough asses her dogs and eventually save their lives. 

Faeces are also a good gauge of your dog’s health. They should be firm and moist, not runny. If you find that you are constantly cleaning up runny poop then you need to review your dog’s diet. If you are finding blood in your dog’s number two’s, then this could be a sign of gastrointestinal problems and veterinary advice should be sought as soon as possible. Sadly our pets cannot tell us when they are feeling ill. We need to know what is normal for our pets and what isn’t, and the best way of doing this is to monitor them daily.  

The Pet Loo offers both dog and cat owners this benefit in an already efficient product. So if your pet’s health is concerning you, or you want to benefit from an efficient product!

Why not pick up a Pet Loo from you local pet store today?