Entrepreneurial minds have taken inspiration from their time spent in the Lake District to come up with the number one dog walking companion - a portable dog poo bin.
Daniella Moorby and her business partner Daniel put their jobs and careers behind them as they spent a whole year drawing, designing, testing prototypes for what would become The Poocher - what Daniella says is the answer to the 'Poo-demic', an issue that troubles cities and rural areas alike.
The idea for the unique design came back in 2018, when a heart-breaking post circulated on social media about two horses dying from ingesting discarded dog poo.
Subsequently, the idea of some sort of portable receptacle to store and carry dog poo was born.
"We knew the product had to be hands-free, lightweight, durable, waterproof, eco-friendly, capacious, hygienic, washable, and convenient. But most importantly, it had to be stink free!
"We tested the Poocher by filling it with soiled dog poo bags and leaving it in a car for a whole week, throwing it down concrete stairs and out the window from the second floor.
"We worked with a design agency on the branding. We wanted the colours and packaging and colours to be earthy, contemporary and reflect the Lake District where the Poocher was born," she said.
The couple analysed dog walkers’ behaviours through a survey in Lancashire to try and understand the reason behind so many discarded dog poo bags.
Firstly, they found that 70 per cent of dog owners think that there aren’t enough dog poo bins available and find it very hard to carry stinky parcels for miles on end.
And also that there is a general lack of awareness on the dangers that discarded dog poo bags represents for dog walkers, their children, their pets, and other animals.
"You might think that your dog’s poo cannot do much harm," Daniella said.
"It can throw off the balance of an ecosystem especially in populated areas. An ecosystem can handle about two dogs per square mile.
"However, in many cities, there are close to 125 dogs per square mile! Which is plenty to throw off an ecosystem especially if some owners are not picking up pet waste on a regular basis,"
Through their research, the duo also found that most dog poo bags on the market were 'substandard', so they also decided to develop their own brand of biodegradable Poocher dog poo bags.
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