Just down the street from Scotty's Hamburgers, where customers are most likely chowing down on those famous tartar burgers, Tosha Werner is preparing a meal that's just a little different.

That's because Werner's customers are a little different.

They walk into her shop on all fours, are much hairier, suffer from perpetual doggie breath and are often a little more aggressive around their meals. In fact, a sign on the front of the shop window warns to keep customers leashed if they have tendencies to get protective of their food.

They're dogs, all shapes, all sizes, whose conscientious owners are looking to feed them foods that are more natural and homemade.

Somewhere across town, Justin Sabo is most likely proudly looking over his handiwork: The pristine back yard of a pet owner who called him in to do the down-and-dirty work of cleaning up after the pets.

In fact, there are a couple of new businesses specializing in picking up pet poo across Bismarck and Mandan. Sabo - an entre-manure, as he calls himself - recently started offering his dog waste removal service in January. And waste removal team Weston and Jiselle Kirschmann are having a grand opening of their business coming up in March.

Truly, it seems as if business is going to the dogs, as several entrepreneurs in the area are hitting on a unique niche by catering to the city's canine residents and their owners.

Doggie delights

Werner started making homemade treats and meals for her 8-year-old dog, Mya, about six months ago, after noticing a dramatic change in her mother's dog, Lacey, which had undergone the same diet overhaul about two years ago.

"If you took the time to read the long verbages on the labels (of commercial dog food), you'd want to change their diet," Werner said. "The change was just incredible."

In the back of her shop, Gourmet Doggie Diner on 2206 E. Broadway Ave., Werner has a kitchen area much like any other casual diner: A refrigerator, a stove, large crockpot, sinks, and a meat grinder, among other things.

And out front, there's a large, dry-erase board full of menu items and specials, just like any other diner. And although her menu items may sound appealing _ buffalo and rice, turkey and rise, strawberry-frosted muffins _ they're definitely designed for the dogs.

Working with a canine nutritionist from Canada, Werner and her mother, chef Barb McMillan , create balanced meals to replace or supplement the grocery store dog food diets most canines are used to.

"(Mya) loves her homemade food," Werner said.

They use the "human food," then add the necessary nutrients for a balanced diet. Meals come in freezable containers with serving sizes printed on the label. McMillan added that soon the diner will offer meals with health food supplements, such as Syn-flex for arthritis.

Tricia Allen of Tricia's Barkery, a home-based venture which can be found at www.triciasbarkery.com, has a similar setup: She makes homemade dog and cat treats from her home, selling them wholesale to retailers across the state or on the internet to anyone who wants them. In fact, both businesses offer their products online, and have several out-of-state customers.

Allen, who specializes in treats, including "pupcakes" and muffins, said she has quite the range of clients, from excited children to grandparents, known to affectionally refer to their pets as "granddogs."

"It's people who want to give their dogs something that isn't manufactured, or doesn't have preservatives in them," she said.

Poo pros

Then there's the other end of doggie businesses: waste removal.

Sabo started up his new business, The PooPro, in January after deciding that he really didn't want to work for anybody, he said. His business is also home-based, and can be found at www.thepoopro.com.

"I tossed around some ideas, and my wife and I came up with this," Sabo said. "As soon as we thought about it, I knew it was perfect. It's what I wanted to do."

Which may sound a little strange when referring to cleaning up dog mess, but Sabo is excited.

"It's something that a lot of people don't want to do," he said. Sabo loves animals and knows that many people don't want to or even can't clean up after their dogs, but still want to keep the pets as part of the family.

"Some people are too busy. A lot of people feel that their dogs are part of the family," he said. "I especially feel this service is important for people with small children, with the risk of parasites and worms."

Especially after a cold, snowy winter, Sabo said. Many pet owners don't want to go outside and clean up in the snow, so the messes sit until spring, he said. He added that some seniors or people with disabilities may need or want the extra support so they can keep their pets.

The Kirschmanns with Dakota Dogs K-9 Waste Removal agreed, emphasizing that a clean yard is a safe yard for children and families and a waste removal service is particularly helpful for seniors or others who may difficulties maintaining their yards.

Dakota Dogs is having its grand opening of its service on March 12, Kirschmann said. The business is homebased, but they do have a Web site at www.dakdogs-waste-removal.com.

Jiselle Kirschmann also agreed that spring clean-up time is a big time for waste removal. But how is waste removal priced out?

"It's charged by how many dogs you have. It's hard. Every circumstance is different. Everybody's unique," she said. "If there's a yard that hasn't been cleaned up in 10 years, then it's going to be a little bit more expensive than just getting it ready from after the winter. "

So it's not necessarily by the size of the yard, or the size of the dog, although Sabo added that, for his business, larger yards might have an additional fee.

All in the family

The running theme in all of the new and old pet-centered businesses: Pets are part of the family.

"My dog is like my child," said Werner, owner of the Gourmet Doggie Diner. "She's my baby."

In fact, there are more than 30 pet-based businesses in the Bismarck-Mandan area, several homebased and perhaps just as many that are internet-based.

"It's rewarding to see how attached people are to their animals," Werner said

McMillan, her mother, added, "They're fur kids."

(Reach reporter Crystal Reid at 250-8261 or at crystal.reid@bismarcktribune.com)