Service Policies

1. Services provided

Standard service includes locating, collecting and bagging visible dog waste from the designated, safely accessible outdoor service area.

Standard service does not include indoor areas, human waste, dead animals, needles, hazardous materials, trash, vomit, diapers, waste frozen into the ground, moving heavy objects, yard repair, or guaranteed removal of bacteria, parasites or disease.

Patios, decks, kennels, dog runs, deodorizing, sanitizing and other special services must be requested and may cost extra.

2. Service plans

Recurring service continues until canceled. Weekly service is the recommended plan and normally offers the lowest per-visit rate. Every-other-week, seasonal and one-time service cost more per visit because more waste accumulates between cleanups.

The phrase ‘every other week’ means one scheduled visit approximately every 14 days. Downriver Yard Guard does not use ‘biweekly’ because that term can also mean twice per week.

Customers must provide accurate dog count, yard size, service-area and access information. Pricing may be adjusted when these conditions change.

3. Initial and accumulated cleanups

The recurring price covers normal waste produced between scheduled visits. Initial, spring, seasonal, overdue, restart and heavily accumulated cleanups are priced separately according to labor, property condition and waste volume.

Initial, one-time, spring, seasonal and restart cleanups require full estimated prepayment to reserve the appointment. Work will not begin until the quote is accepted and payment is confirmed.

Online quotes and photographs are estimates. If the actual yard condition, service area or waste volume would materially increase the approved price, work will pause and customer approval will be requested before the additional charge is completed. No substantial overage will be charged without approval.

A discounted initial cleanup requires three completed recurring visits. Canceling earlier may result in the difference between the discount and normal one-time price being charged.

4. Scheduling

Customers receive a regular route day based on location; exact arrival times are not guaranteed. Route order may change because of traffic, weather, emergencies or operating needs.

Service may occur one business day before or after the usual route day. Customers normally receive arrival and completion notifications. Special-day, exact-time and return-trip requests are subject to availability and additional charges.

5. Customer presence and access

Customers do not need to be home. Scheduling service authorizes Downriver Yard Guard to enter the agreed outdoor service area through the approved access point.

Gates must be unlocked, functional, safe and clear of snow, ice and obstructions. Employees will not climb fences, force gates or use unsafe entrances.

A visit prevented by a locked, blocked, frozen, broken or unsafe gate will be skipped and remains billable. Return trips and accumulated waste may incur additional charges.

6. Gate security

After service, the employee will close and physically check the gate latch. A completion message and gate photograph may document that it was secured.

Customers must maintain fencing, hinges, locks and latches. Downriver Yard Guard is not responsible for an escape caused by a pre-existing defective or unsecured fence or gate.

7. Dog safety

All dogs must be securely indoors during service unless prior written approval has been given for a specific dog. Invisible fences, tie-outs and verbal commands are not secure containment.

Employees will not enter with an unfamiliar, threatening, territorial or aggressive loose dog. An unsafe dog results in an immediately stopped, billable visit.

Employees may not feed, leash, move, transport, medicate or otherwise handle a customer’s animal. Customers are responsible for injuries or damage caused by their animals.

8. Yard conditions

Customers must keep the service area reasonably maintained and safe. Long grass, weeds, leaves, mud, standing water, snow, ice, toys, trash and debris may conceal waste or prevent complete service.

Only visible, safely accessible waste can be removed. The satisfaction guarantee does not cover concealed waste.

Employees are not required to move furniture, pools, play structures, construction materials, heavy objects or hazards. Dangerous or severely neglected properties may be partially serviced, skipped, repriced or discontinued.

9. Weather, winter and holidays

Service normally continues during light rain, cold and light snowfall when safe. Downriver Yard Guard decides whether roads, lightning, wind, temperature, snow or ice make service unsafe.

Employees will not chip waste from ice, dig through deep snow or risk damaging frozen grass. Customers must maintain a safe path to the gate.

A company-canceled paid visit that cannot be made up receives an account credit. Customer-caused inaccessibility remains billable. A spring-cleanup fee applies after a winter pause.

Holiday service may be moved to another day. Observed holidays may include New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

10. Cancellations, skips and vacations

Recurring visits require at least 24 hours’ notice to skip or cancel. Initial, one-time, spring, seasonal and restart cleanups require at least 48 hours’ notice.

A prepaid cleanup canceled with at least 48 hours’ notice may be refunded or left as an account credit. Late cancellations, same-day cancellations, no-shows and appointments blocked by customer-caused access problems may forfeit some or all of the prepayment to cover the reserved route time.

Recurring service may be canceled at any time and becomes effective after confirmation. Completed services and earned charges remain due.

Accumulated waste following a skip may cost extra. Long or repeated pauses may cause loss of route position or promotional pricing, repricing, or a restart-cleanup fee.

11. Billing and failed payments

Initial, one-time, spring, seasonal and restart cleanups require full estimated prepayment when the appointment is scheduled. The prepayment is applied to the approved service total.

Recurring service is priced per completed visit rather than as a flat calendar-month package. The number of visits and monthly total may vary with the calendar. For example, a weekly customer starting at $20 pays $80 for four completed visits or $100 for five completed visits.

Recurring customers must maintain an approved payment method on file and authorize automatic billing after each completed visit. Completed add-ons are charged with that visit. Company-canceled visits are not charged; customer-caused late cancellations, blocked access and unsafe-dog visits remain subject to the applicable cancellation and access policies.

Customers must keep billing and contact information current. Recurring prices may change with at least 30 days’ notice. Any material charge outside the approved quote or published service price will be explained before it is added.

A declined payment may be retried. Service may be suspended until the account and any restart-cleanup charge are paid. Repeated failed payments, unpaid balances or fraudulent disputes may result in termination.

12. Satisfaction promise

Missed visible waste must be reported within 24 hours, with photographs when practical. A verified issue will normally be corrected within 48 hours or receive an account credit.

The normal remedy is corrective service or credit rather than a cash refund. The promise excludes new waste, concealed or frozen waste, inaccessible or unsafe areas, and incorrect customer information.

13. Waste disposal and sanitation

Waste will be securely bagged and placed in the customer’s designated outdoor trash container unless off-site hauling is purchased. It will not be placed in recycling, compost, drains, sewers or another person’s container.

If the trash container is unavailable or full, the sealed bag may be left at the agreed outdoor location.

Appropriate tools and footwear are cleaned and disinfected between properties. Customers must disclose known parvovirus, giardia, worms or other contagious illness. Service may be delayed, modified or declined for unusual infection risks.

Pet-waste removal improves cleanliness but cannot guarantee elimination of bacteria, parasites, viruses or disease.

14. Property damage and hazards

Customers must disclose broken gates, invisible fences, irrigation equipment, unstable stairs, construction, holes, chemicals, sharp objects and unsafe structures.

Downriver Yard Guard is not responsible for pre-existing damage, deterioration, hidden conditions, improperly installed equipment or animal-caused damage. Damage claims must be reported within 48 hours.

Nothing in these policies removes responsibility for damage directly caused by Downriver Yard Guard’s proven negligence or intentional misconduct.

15. Photographs and privacy

Photographs may be taken for service confirmation, security, quality control, estimates and dispute documentation. People, children, house numbers and unrelated private information will be avoided when practical.

Customer-property photographs will not be used in advertising without separate permission. Contact, payment and access information will be protected and limited to legitimate business use.

16. Communications

Customers authorize service-related texts and emails concerning arrival, completion, access, billing, weather, route changes and account status. Marketing messages require separate permission.

Customers must keep contact information current. Cancellations and schedule changes are not final until confirmed. After-hours messages may be answered the next business day.

17. Dogs, service areas, estimates and promotions

Pricing is based on registered dogs and the agreed service area. Added dogs must be reported before the next visit. Unreported dogs, secondary yards, larger areas or unusual volume may be charged retroactively or repriced.

Quotes expire after 30 days. Published prices are starting rates affected by location, route availability, yard size, dog count, frequency, access and accumulation. Minimum-service and travel charges may apply.

Promotions cannot be combined unless stated. A discount may be denied or recovered when its requirements are not completed. Service outside the normal territory may require a travel charge, different day, minimum purchase or waiting list.

18. Cameras, refusal and emergencies

Employees will not interfere with lawful exterior security cameras and should assume outdoor service areas may be recorded. Customers should disclose cameras where privacy could reasonably be expected.

Service may be refused, suspended or terminated for nonpayment, unsafe animals, threats, harassment, discrimination, illegal or dangerous conditions, repeated blocked access, biohazards, fraudulent disputes, unreasonable conduct or repeated policy violations.

Severe weather, illness, vehicle failure, road closures, government orders, disasters or other events outside reasonable control may delay or cancel service. A paid company-canceled visit that cannot be made up receives a credit.

19. Customer acceptance

Scheduling service, accepting an estimate, submitting payment or allowing work to begin constitutes acceptance of these policies.

Policies may be updated when necessary. Current customers will receive reasonable notice of material changes.