Toro Dingo: A Must Have

Toro Dingo removing tree from yard

Glenn Rieker
Mequon, WI

We purchased our first Dingo in the spring of 2002. The local Toro rep had been touching base with us for a year or two prior and we just couldn’t wrap our heads around the numbers, since we were such a small company and this seemed like a large investment for us. In 2000, I had successful back surgery, not from a landscaping injury, but from trapping three skunks in our crawl space, but that is another story.

Then, in the spring of 2002, we received one of our first big garden construction projects and thought we could justify the expense of the Four Paw Dingo. We invested in a new Dingo with a power head, 30″ and 16″ augers, a materials bucket and a set of forks. On this project with rocky soil, we were able to dig 27, 30″ holes in 2 1/2 hours with one person. The auger placed the rock and soil evenly around the hole, which made it easy for backfilling after removing the few large rocks. Then we used the forks to unload the 6′ and 7′ evergreens. We continued to use that Toro until 2008 when we decided to sell our company in Pennsylvania to move back to the Midwest.

After starting another company during the biggest financial challenge in recent history, we knew one of the first tools we would need besides a truck and trailer would be another Dingo – this time the more powerful tracked version. This would enable us to focus on the high-quality craftsmanship and customer service as we had before, and minimize the impact on our bodies. On a more recent project for a new home, we had concern driving across one-year-old sod with a lot of material. We even had sod repair in our client’s project budget, and we didn’t have to use a dime of it. The tracks and our careful driving resulted in no damage to the turf through three weeks of construction.
So here we are 12 years later, I have had no pain in my back since my surgery, a combination of a great neurosurgeon and our commitment to finding the easiest way to do everything. I tell people all the time that we would not be in this business if we did not have the Dingo. I even joke with my clients that I want to do this until I am in my 80’s. As long as I have the winters off and with the help of our Dingo, we may just be able to do this.

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