You didn't start a argument with me Paul I'm fine with what ever people beleave in , I'm surly no one to judge anybody . If people don't wish to take there kids on the job that's fine and if they do that's fine , I do and it gets me alot of work because I do . Much more easy for a family man to sell jobs . That also goes for referrals as well . Your that guy that works with his kids right , im like that's me , ok I was just checking , I hear that a lot . You would be surprised how people react to a father son team or daughter . I'm also a single guy without even a girl friend so I tend to foces more on my kids then most men would . I'm also a single parent so if I don't take my kids along God only knows what they would be doing , I have never had anybody complain and almost every job nothing but praise . They don't go every day in the summer if they seem to be getting bored with it I give them a brake sometimes i need a brake from them as well .It does get old when people say oh your out learning the ropes A kid that gets old but expected . Yep don't let your kids around K9 my son got hit by a red fox it was not good , had to take him to the doctor to get stitched up , the county sherif got involed had to hand over the fox for testing , he new better , he was out with his friend trapping and they caught a fox and was so happy about it he stepped in the trap ring around it came and nailed him , of corse they just keep trapping all day ,never mind telling dad it's only a scratch ,ya right the thing got him good . They should let kids carry a pellet gun at least . Boys will get hurt at any thing they do that's just being a normal boy . So fare I've done a good job at keeping them safe when there with me but no K9 action on my watch . They can set for them that's fine but no hands on if you get my drift

I just wanted to weigh in here since like Pesky I too am and have been a single parent for the last three years. My kids have all spent many a day with Dad because I knew they would be safer with me then spending the day unsupervised with friends. I did not go the the NWCOA convention this year because I chose to stay home with the kids.

My 6 kids ( 4 and 2 steps -three at home and not long ago I had just my youngest) some more then others have learned lots of things like snake identification, how to trap, capture and catch most any nuisance critter here in Florida, and beekeeping and bee removal. They have also learned to be polite and respectful of our customers property and all of them have learned salesmanship skills and how to engage the customer in conversation and gain there trust. Three of the four boys have ever been on a roof and none of them before they were 18. They have all been left waiting for me in my truck while I worked at a customers home too or helped me depending on the customer climate. There were are also plenty of days Dad stayed home and did not work because one or more of them were sick and they were always my 1st job.

All of my kids are pretty good at driving with me into a subdivision and point out homes with that need exclusion work, mole or gopher mounds in yards and other animal sign which is pretty cool because I know it was me that taught them that!

Robb that is one of my favorite things. I love driving around with the kids in winter and they compete who can point out the most houses with squirrels.

All three of my daughters and my two nephews work with me from time to time. It usually ends up being when they want some extra money for something. Each has a different level of confidence and none are asked to do anything beyond their comfort level.

My oldest just likes going along for the release and chooses to stay in the car at customers houses. My middle daughter likes to get into the middle of it and on a few occasions she wrestled squirrels out from under a fridge or out of a fireplace (yes gloves are used). And my youngest chooses to supervise and tell me how to do the job.

I never take all three together on a job its always just one of them and I find the days they are with me the best days of the season.

Yep, those were the good old days when my son worked for me. ( He paid his college tuition that way ) Now I work for him. How did that happen?

Oh you love it Paul it was your master plan from the start . I can't wait to someday step out my front door and hear comes the kid in his or her truck pulling his or her boat yelling out hop in dad let's fish , I already taught them to catch,clean and cook the fish they just hand me a plate with some big wedge French fries on the side now .

Well Pesky, if I thought for a moment that my son would be even faintly interested in my line of work, I would agree with you. My son was the ultimate athlete in a family filled with them. The only reason he decided on this business is all the free tickets from wealthy customers. ( He sits with the player's wives. ) This did not prevent him from becoming far more cutting edge than I could ever be.

My son can barely catch a fish, much less clean or cook it. If you think that I feel bad about not teaching him, you would be wrong!
I let my son make his own decisions about what he was going to do with his life and following in his father's footsteps was not even on the board. The fact that he is now the president of our company is not something I can brag about. I didn't see it coming. Am I happy? I'm overjoyed! But I think there is some sort of lesson to be learned here. Each of us are individuals. We need the freedom to do what we choose to. If it means failure, so be it. All three of my children are college educated and are all successful. I would love to say that this is because of my wife and I, but the truth is, you can give your kids everything to succeed but they still have to do it themselves.

Thanks Paul. Working with kids is very enjoyable.

Sooo...you guys think we answered allplotts question? lol

Not really SGS!

allplotts

I worked my first 8 years part time. I had a good job made good money and had no motivation until I started doing a lot of bat exclusion work in 04 and my day job got in the way so much I finally quit and never looked back.

Maynard Stanley has done this work for the last 20 years or so and lives near Rockland and services the Augusta Rockland Camden Maine area from Searsport to Damascottas and North to Augusta. He is Stan58 on here and I am sure he can give you a good perspective of the industry in your state . His phone is 207-594-2112.

whAT QUESTION?

it looks like some of you do it full time. meaning that your adc trapping,exclusion and repair keeps you busy and you make money at it. i will continue with my process and see if i can do the same.

thanks

Isabella goes with me on occasion, especially if I have long series of cages strung out up and down the coulees, it's good exercise. I also take her along to run interference if the client has kids or nosy dogs. She plays with them while I'm tending traps, it works especially well if I'm doing skunks. No ladder work, no crawlspaces, no venomous snake work, no 330 handling, etc. just kid stuff. Make it fun, short and sweet so they don't get bored.