Dog’s best friend

LOUISVILLE – Looks like Spot – the dog – is going to be in less trouble these days for leaving those brown ugly spots in the backyard.

Good ole Spot – well, now he could be renamed Spotless – can thank a company in Louisville for creating a product that apparently takes care of those eyesores.

Global Environmental Technologies Microsolutions, which focuses on products to handle animal waste, has unveiled Guard Dog Lawn Protectant – designed to eliminate lawn spots caused by dog urine.

The idea behind Guard Dog arose this spring when Justin Eisenach and Scott Dyer were sipping coffee on Eisenach’s deck overlooking his backyard.

The two got to talking about the urine spots on Eisenach’s yard. Eisenach, who owns two Brittany spaniels and one standard white poodle and lives next to the Coal Creek golf course – hole No. 10 with lots of traffic, was a little embarrassed by the splotches.

Dyer, who used to work for Monsanto and knows a few things about agricultural products, mentioned that he knew the science existed that just might cure the problem.

Within days, the two started testing various recipes to solve the spotty puzzle.

“We tested formulations and performance with every friend, relative and acquaintance we could find who had a dog and who had spots in their lawn,” Eisenach says.

The work paid off. “We were very pleased with all the tests, pleased enough to move full steam ahead,” Eisenach says.

Full steam ahead included creating Global Environmental Technologies, which opened in April. Today Dyer is president, and Eisenach is vice president of operations. The company also has products that increase the value of swine waste and decrease the solid buildup and odor found in pits and lagoons.

Guard Dog, they claim, is nontoxic to the lawn, to the pet owner and to the dog. “Nontoxic and all natural,” Eisenach says.

Eisenach explains that dog urine is basically salt and ammonia. Grass roots withdraw when exposed to urine, and that causes the discoloration.

Guard Dog, Eisenach says, consumes the ammonia and ties up the salt, which reduces the toxicity of the urine.

Guard Dog is a liquid, distributed like a fertilizer over lawns. It contains micro-organisms and another agent that collects the salts from the urine and disperses them throughout the rest of the lawn, which takes care of the brown spots.

Users spray two to five squirts of Guard Dog on the spot. Eisenach says the earlier the spraying, the better the results. Guard Dog needs moisture to work, and moderate rainfall or a sprinkler helps.

A 32-ounce, trigger-spray bottle retails for $13. The company sells a 32-ounce bottle of concentrate for $18 that can be connected to a hose.

Eisenach wouldn’t disclose revenue projections, but he said he feels confident about the potential. “We’ve researched it, and we know that there are 70 million dogs in the United States and 40 million dog owners,” he says.

He adds that the company’s market research has indicated a need for two formulations: “Guard Dog Ready to Use” was selected as a way to treat spots from a spray bottle, and “Guard Dog Concentrate” formula is sprayed on the lawn via a hose. They say Guard Dog Concentrate will provide up to two months of protection.

The company plans to sell the Guard Dog in retail stores nationwide, and it’s now selling product wholesale to lawn-care companies.

“If this thing works, I’m going to have my dogs bronzed,” Eisenach says with a laugh.

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