Dog urine is extremely acidic, and that acid isn't good for the trees and plants that dogs urinate on. In many cities, you will notice barriers like small fences placed around trees so that dogs cannot get close enough to urinate on them. Dawg Tree, a company that just launched in March, is now making the Dawg Tree Pee Guard so dog owners can protect the trees in their own yards as well.
Jonathan Stewart, a former Marine, college professor, father and husband, can also add entrepreneur to his impressive list of accomplishments. As a homeowner, he got the idea to put up a barrier to keep his dogs from ruining the trees in his yard. Unfortunately, there were no such products on the market.
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Stewart decided to take matters into his own hands, and began Dawg Tree LLC. The company recently released its flagship product, the Pee Guard, which forces dogs to point their leg away from the base of the tree before urinating. The cone shaped device provides 360˚ protection for the tree.
The Pee Guard is made of sturdy plastic rods that are 20 inches long and secure around the tree with a weatherproof bungee that still allows for the tree to grow without any interference from the device. The Pee Guard will work with any tree up to 17 inches in circumference.
Stewart says that when he first developed a need for a product like this nothing similar existed. All he found were chemical sprays and expensive fences to keep his dogs from urinating on the trees in his yard.
He ended up cutting some old branches and forming them around the tree to keep his dogs away. That’s when he realized he could manufacture something to help dog owners in his same situation.
Before settling on plastic, he used fiberglass, metal, and wood. Then he spent about six months completing the legal work involved in developing an invention. Now Stewart has a utility patent pending on the Pee Guard.
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Currently, he is only selling the Pee Guard on his website, but he’s had multiple investors approach him and is deciding on whether or not to partner with a big retailer. He’s hoping that his product will fit into two markets; the pet product industry and the horticulture industry. Retail distribution is his biggest focus right now.
Fortunately, Stewart didn’t have to take any bank loans out to develop his product, and right now he is the 100% owner of his company. Although partnering with a major retailer would greatly expand his business in a short amount of time, he’s not sure if he wants to give up his 100% ownership status just yet.
