WARNING! This book is full of stories of gross things animals do in daily life.

You only have to get as far as the contents page and read some of the chapter headings like ‘Animal Grossness’, ‘You Ate What?’, ‘Home, Stinky Home’ and ‘Poo Detectives’ to know that you really want to keep reading this book.

There are eight chapters in this book, each with eight pages of fascinating information like how animals, like frogs and honey bees, use other animals’ poo for home building and decoration. There’s also a Scientist Profile in each chapter, like Dr Kate Fraser, Marine Ecologist, or Dr Ben Moore, Koala Ecologist, and a very interesting one about Dr Jenny Scott, a Sub-Antarctic Field Ecologist.

There are many fun bits that the children will definitely want to share. Like ‘Who Farted?’ We’re told that elephants and zebras do it but birds don’t. Cows do it constantly and even fish like to do it to keep in touch with their friends! But the best are the sea cows who use their farts to help them float or sink!

How could you resist a book like this? The whole family will love it. We are told we’ll laugh, we’ll cry. We may even throw up!

Reviewed by Merle Morcom
Age Guide 8

READ AN EXTRACT FROM THE BOOK

POO, SPEW AND OTHER GROSS THINGS ANIMALS DO!

MAYA, THE KOALA-POO SNIFFER DOG

Maya the border collie is part of the Detection Dogs for Conservation Program at the University of the Sunshine Coast. She is trained to run around the bush with her handler (author Romane Cristescu!), sniffing for koala poo. When Maya finds a eucalyptus-scented pellet, she drops to the ground, and points to the poo with her nose. Her reward for finding this valuable object? Playtime with her favourite toy – a tennis ball!

The ecologists who work with Maya use the pellet’s location to help them map koala habitat. As animals that move around a surprising amount, it’s handy that they leave these smelly business cards for detection dogs to find. The scientists can also learn other things from the scats – including whether or not the koalas are ill.

Other dogs on Maya’s team are trained for different koala targets. Some look for koalas that might need to be rescued for treatment, either because they’re sick or have been injured in bushfires. Koalas have been having a hard time lately – a lot of their habitat has been lost to land clearing to build houses, or in huge bushfires. Luckily for these endangered animals, Maya and her poo-sniffing friends are on the job!