The North Bay Bay

From: Larry Tinkle, thenorthbaybay.ca intern

A local woman has found resounding success with her ‘almost’ completely self-created brand of dog food.

“It started one morning last year – I walked to work and I stepped in so much dog poop on the way there,” explains local Kathy Clarke. “After I had returned home I put the sullied footwear out back and then I noticed my little dog, Rosie, was unabashedly goin’ to town on my shoes and licking them right up.”

“That’s when inspiration struck.”

Great Picking and Droppings

Seconds Brand Dog Food is a sustainably sourced dog food company that uses locally sourced dog poo from the streets of North Bay as their main ingredient.

“Spring is our busiest collection time of the year,” says Clarke. “This city really just gives and gives. Certain areas of town seem like never-ending geysers of raw material.”

“There is a bush outside the adult learning center on First Avenue East that is one of our best spots. The dog owners are so kind, they always leave their bags hanging on it, almost as if they know we need it.”

“It’s great to see community members doing their part to help out a local business.”

A Mixed Bag of the Bay

Clarke says that Main St. is a great place to collect as well.

“Sometimes you find piles so big that you could swear they are human feces,” beams a triumphant Clarke. “We usually save those for our extra premium brand ‘Thirds.’ It’s pricier, but we mix plenty of Airport area dog poo in there to make it worth the price.”

“They’re feeding those Shit-zsu’s some premium stuff up on that hill. Lotta table scraps by the looks of it.”

Solid Future

When asked if she had any worries when about whether or not North Bay’s residents would buy the brand knowing what’s in it, Kathy was unfazed.

“I sure was [worried] when I started because it’s a risky idea to sell something to people that they’ve already bought and used up over and over. But I attended a few City Council meetings and quickly realized that the people of North Bay don’t seem to mind being sold shit.”