Bill Dowd, founder of Hamilton-based Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control, holding a racoon saved from one of his client’s homes. Alongside its growth, the company has embraced a tech-forward approach, using Salesforce to manage work orders and infrared cameras to pinpoint wildlife in attics.Supplied
When Bill Dowd was drafted to the New York Islanders in the 1980s, it felt like a lifetime of hard work and discipline had paid off. But after a few years travelling around in training camps with the minor leagues and waiting for his shot to play in the big show, he decided it was time to pivot.
“Being a pro hockey player, you’re at the mercy of the general manager and the coaches,” Mr. Dowd says. “I wanted to control my own destiny.”
He went to Brock University and tried to get into teacher’s college, but after finding himself on another wait list, he funnelled all that discipline, strategy and determination into launching a humane wildlife control business in Hamilton in 1989. Within four years, he had expanded to Ottawa and Montreal and, in 2014, opened the first franchised location in Halifax.
Today, Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control is a sprawling business with 25 corporate-owned and 38 franchise locations across Canada and the United States that employs 225 people. The company focuses on ethically removing animals without harming them, then sealing entry points and implementing measures to prevent future infestations, backed by a lifetime guarantee.
“In the early days, I stumbled across a research paper from the Ministry of Natural Resources that said in Ontario, 70 per cent of relocated animals die,” he says. “You’re trapping an animal and taking it from an area where it knows where den sites are and knows where food sources are… so we never relocate, we always focus on the problem.”
Skedaddle emphasizes animal-proofing structures. “That’s where we make the brunt of our revenue,” Mr. Dowd says.
In addition to humane wildlife control, Skedaddle also offers environmentally friendly pest removal, mosquito control, attic restoration post-pest and wildlife removal. It also offers Christmas light decorating to hedge against the seasonality of the business, Mr. Dowd says.
“We have the vehicles, we have the ladders, we have the labour, it’s just changing out the wildlife material to Christmas decorations,” he says. Demand for its services is growing, the Skedaddle founder says. In metropolitan cities, urban expansion is pushing wildlife into residential areas. Raccoons are taking up residence in attics while beavers alter urban waterways, fuelling demand for humane wildlife control services that manage risks, repair damage and prevent repeat incidents.
Using technology to control wildlife
Alongside its growth, the company has embraced a tech-forward approach, using Salesforce to manage work orders and infrared cameras to pinpoint wildlife in attics. Drones allow roofs to be assessed safely, while wearable devices monitor staff well-being, helping the team operate more efficiently in the field.
However, one of the most important assets to the company is its market data, Mr. Dowd says.
The company can use information from its customer relationship platforms to track seasonal trends and wildlife activity, tailoring marketing campaigns to local conditions, including warmer southern markets such as Atlanta, which slows in summer, while Ontario and Quebec experience lulls in winter. It also analyzes job types by area code to inform targeted outreach and franchise planning. Meanwhile, website traffic and Google Analytics provide insight into latent demand in untapped markets, helping the company identify opportunities for expansion before franchise doors even open. Mr. Dowd points to a recent franchise the company opened this year in Pittsburgh. While the franchisee was in Canada training, they started the marketing campaign for the new business.
“He was in Hamilton for a week, and by the time he went back to Pittsburgh, his entire next week had 12 appointments already scheduled for him from his first day of operation,” Mr. Dowd explains.
Andrew Wheelock launched Skedaddle’s first franchise in Halifax in 2014 and has since expanded his market in Atlantic Canada to include New Brunswick.
He recalls an early conversation with Mr. Dowd about how to animal-proof a house against smaller rodents such as mice.
“I said, ‘What if I can’t find where it’s getting in?’ And he looked at me kind of perplexed. He said, ‘Andrew, you always find out how it’s getting in,’” Mr. Wheelock recalls. “It takes a lot to say that… It’s hard, and Bill’s not scared of hard. It intimidated me and gave me confidence all at the same time.”
Mr. Wheelock credits that sense of determination and strategy for Skedaddle’s growth.
“Bill and his group have developed the systems to do this over a number of years in a very thoughtful and effective way,” he says.
Gary Prenevost, a franchise consultant and author of The Unstoppable Franchisee, notes that weak systems or inadequate market intelligence can be a barrier to scaling. “Unfortunately, a lot of franchisors do regional or national intelligence, but they don’t take it to the specific market, and leave that to the franchisee to do,” Mr. Prenevost says. “The more they leave the prospective franchisee to do the work, the more likely they’re going to go somewhere else with another brand that has done that kind of work – even if it’s a different sector.”
Mr. Prenevost says scaling ultimately comes down to adding and attracting strong franchisees.
“They’re not competing against all the other wildlife franchisees; they’re competing against every franchise that’s looking for a new franchisee,” he says. “They’re competing for the investment dollar.” Skedaddle launched its first U.S. franchise in Milwaukee in 2018 and has since expanded to 35 franchises across eight American cities and hired a franchise development company in Denver to help expand its U.S. operations. Looking back on his career and the trajectory his life has taken, Mr. Dowd says he’d choose the business he’d built over realizing his NHL dreams.
“That’s a tough decision... it’d be good to have my name on the [Stanley] Cup,” he says. “But I’m gonna stick with my legacy.”