Can You Find the Poo?

Find the poo, no bags needed. Hilarious new book challenges you to find the camouflaged dog poop! As any urban dog owner can attest, it can be incredibly challenging to locate the poop you know your pup just deposited, leading to awkward fake 'stoop and scoops' and withering glances from passersby. Lucky for us, author and former ad-man Joe Shylitt is here to help us hone our skills with his very funny and fun new book, Find the Poo. Think of it as the "Where's Waldo" of the dog world. We asked Joe about his inspiration, the path to publication, and the book’s reception thus far (hint: kids especially love it).

Q: What was your inspiration for Find the Poo?

A: There were many forms of inspiration, starting with the original photo of fall leaves which began the whole process. On one of our many daily walks, I couldn’t find my dog’s poo in the pile of fall leaves. I could have walked away but something in my mind said, “Take a photograph of this…surely its hidden in plain sight.” When I got home I saw the shot up on the computer and that’s when I noticed the poo was there, hidden as I thought it would be. I was inspired and humored by the thought of that…it is interesting and challenging looking for poo like this and I was sure I am not the only dog owner who has had this problem. I immediately thought of it as a “Where’s Waldo for dog poo.” Other forms of inspiration came along when I started collecting photos of these situations and I started to show the concept to other creative people, some dog owners, booksellers, and a few entrepreneurs. All of them loved the idea and encouraged me to keep going. As one well known photographer told me, “I think you have a big idea here…go for it.” And so, I did.

       Can you find the poo in this photo?       

Q: What reception has the book met with?

A: So far, the reception has been very favourable. Everyone gets the concept and many laugh-out-loud when they see it. The book seems to resonate with a few different audiences: Kids are fascinated with poo and love to look for it; Dog owners (especially owners of mid-size or small dogs) can identify with losing sight of the poo; People who like good nature photography (I tried to take each shot with good design in mind); and lastly, people who like visual quizzes and games. Yes some shots are easier than others, but I wanted the playability and the entertainment value of the book to be key.  The book has received national tv attention and reviews, but mostly I just hope it can bring a smile to people faces, which I see it has.

       Poop hidden here. Can you find it? 

Q: When you first pitched the idea to your publisher, did they get it or was your pitch met with confusion?

A: There was no confusion at all. Because my background is in the advertising industry, I’m used to putting a comprehensive pitch together. I should also mention that I started out as a self-published author just a few months earlier. I produced the book, was covered in the media, and already had a few bookstores selling Find the Poo before I decided to get a publisher onboard to help extend the reach for this project. I had put together various creative ads to help launch the brand, had a copy of the finished book ready to show, sales figures and stats, and I put it all together in a concise manner before I went out to a small group of book publishers. I got a response on the same day.

       Test your camoflauged poop finding expertise. Can you spot it?

Q: Can you share with us your most embarrassing real-life failure to locate the poop moment?

A: Over the course of having a dog for so many years there has been many embarrassing moments. I have experience looking for and not finding the poo, or looking for the poo and realizing it’s on the bottom of my running shoe. I think some of my greatest failures have happened at night time, in the dark. There have been situations in the rain when I’ve been holding my umbrella in the dark, trying to maneuver the doggy bag to grasp the tender little morsel then feeling something a little too damp and warm, quickly realizing that the bag is broken… What I was feeling wasn’t egg salad, if you catch my drift.

* Want to pick up a copy? Find the Poo is available at bookstores online and in-store. For more information you can visit www.findthepoo.com.