Daddy's Bees - Jim Hogg

My tenant called to tell me a bunch of bees started appearing in the garage. After a few quick google searches, it was clear a colony had moved into my rental property so my tenant and I both started calling around to find someone who could remove them for us. We found our way to Round Rock Honey's web site which had a section page of people they referred for bee removal. Our tenant called DJ Schmalz of BeesAreUs who said he could be out there to do the work 4 days later and it would cost $250. After reading on the internet that time was of the essence, we thought we should keep searching to see if we can find someone who could do it quicker. We ended up calling the other people listed on Round Rock Honey's referral page and called Jim Hogg of Daddy's Bees. He said he could be out there 3 days later. Since that was a full day earlier than DJ Schmalz, we thought that was important (more on the whole timing issue below). When I asked Jim Hogg what his rate would be, he said "$350". I asked if that was the best he could do and he said he could probably go to $325. Then I mentioned that I had gotten a quote from DJ Schmalz at BeesAreUs and it was only $250. His response was, and this is a direct quote: "Oh, I know those guys, they're a take-the-honey-and-run group out of Dallas. I've had to come in after them and clean up their mess more than once.". He went on to say he has to charge what he charges because "unless it's a textbook extraction", he would have to go out there twice. He explained that the first time he goes out there, he would start cutting into the drywall to try and locate the colony and that noise usually scares off the queen for a day, so he'd have to come back the next day after she's returned so he could get her. Trusting everything that he said, we went ahead and confirmed a 1pm time 3 days later. Fast forward 3 days and 1pm comes and goes. I call him to find out where he is and he admits that he forgot but that he would start heading that way. Since I had to leave to pick up my kids at daycare, my tenant agreed to wait for him and meet with him. It turns out he didn't even begin the extraction that day. He took a look around, said he thought he saw how they were getting into the garage, and said he would come back on Saturday (3 more days later! Hence, later than DJ Schmalz was going to do it after all!) to begin the work. In the mean time, I was curious why Round Rock Honey would have a referral on their web site for a "take-the-honey-and-run" outfit out of Dallas, so I called them to ask about it. The person I spoke with told me that they have worked with DJ Schmalz for years and he is reputable and does good work, and is most definitely not a "take-the-honey-and-run" outfit and definitely not out of Dallas. They added that they have also worked with Jim Hogg for years and were surprised to hear that he would say that about a reputable vendor like DJ Schmalz. So Saturday comes, my tenant again agrees to be there to meet Jim Hogg so I leave a check with the tenant, and Jim Hogg arrives to do the work. He calls me an hour or two after he got there and says "well, that was textbook! I got the queen and the colony so it's all done!". (I can confirm that he did appear to get the queen and the colony because we haven't seen any more bees aside from a few stragglers who appeared not to have gotten the memo.) So I had to ask him, since it did end up being textbook after all and it only took him one trip, would he agree to a lower rate. To my surprise, he said, "well, no, I mean I charge based on not knowing whether it will take me one trip or two - some cases require one trip, but most require two, so I charge a rate that covers all bases". ??? What? Why not just charge the higher rate for the typical two-visit case, but then only charge a lower rate for cases where it only requires one-visit? I then reminded him that DJ Schmalz was only going to charge me $250 and he must have also assumed it was going to take two visits, so that seemed like the going rate for a colony extraction, even if it takes two trips. To that, he replied with his "well, they're a take-the-honey-and-run outfit out of Dallas". I told him that I called Round Rock Honey and they disputed that, saying they had worked with him for years and he is reputable. To that, Jim Hogg only replied "oh? Well, I must have them mixed up with someone else then, I guess." So I pointed out to him that I made the decision to go with him in large part based on his negative comments about the other provider which turned out to be false. I also decided to go with him for the rate he quoted based on his prediction that it would take multiple trips, which also turned out to be false. Based on all that, I really thought it was fair to charge us a lower rate since the extraction went, in his words, so well and since he misled us about DJ Schmalz. All he agreed to do was to "think about it". That was back in June and I have never heard back from him and have not been able to reach him in any of my 6 attempts to call him. So, sadly, I cannot recommend Jim Hogg of Daddy's Bees for your colony extraction needs.

It went very well and was fascinating. Jim knows EVERYTHING there is to know about bees. He rescues them and places the hives with folks who want and need bees and take care of them. He came on a holiday to rescue these bees because he cares so much. Jim was efficient and answered all our questions. His rates are extremely reasonable and he left our house in good shape. Our rate was determined by how large the hive was and that it would take all day being on the 2nd floor of our house. Rates vary. Jim's main mission is to rescue bees. Please - if bees move in, don't kill them, have Jim rescue them and put them in a good home. We are very pleased with his work.

We spotted honeybees swarming around our 2nd floor roof. We realized we had bees getting in under the siding and under the shingles and inside the walls. After doing research, we realized that just spraying the outside wouldn't get rid of the honey bees. We had to get inside there and have ALL the honey bees removed including the queen. Also, we had to get rid of the hives (honeycomb) that honey bees produce. Animals (raccoons and such) were chewing though the siding to get at the honeycomb and eat it. We needed everything out, so that the bees wouldn't come back. Also, we were aware that there is a national problem with pesticides killing honey bees in the agricultural business that are needed for pollinating agricultural crops. We wanted these bees removed in an ecologically sensitive "green" manner. So we found a bee keeper that would remove the bees for a fee that was competitive with what a pesticide company would charge. Mr. Jim Hogg, owner of Daddy's Bees, did a great job. He came out on one day and looked at our problem and gave us an estimate, then came back a week later when he said he would and worked over two days to open up the wood and remove the bees using equipment to remove the bees alive. He also removed all the honeycomb, being careful to not make a big mess. His cleanliness was amazing. He really was careful.