While flowers ,chocolates, saucy underwear and a romantic meal are the go-to gifts for most Valentine’s, a zoo in south Devon offered a quirky take on a dirty offering this year.

Shaldon Zoo Wildlife Trust suggested a framed photo of a flag featuring the name of a loved, or hated, one in a pile of poo would make the perfect romantic gesture.

Around 15 people bought the ‘Valentine’s Name in Poop’ to show their significant person that they were thinking of them on February 14.

There were options to let the keepers pick the animal excrement for £1 or you could pick your own for £5. Each photo was shared on Shaldon Zoo’s social media channels.

‘The majority of people have preferred picking their own animals, said Shaldon Zoo chief executive Zak Showell. ‘Binturong have definitely been the most popular,’ he added.

Binturong, also known as bear cats, from south and southeast Asia are classified as vulnerable due to a declining population.

While the Name in Poop offer was only offered for Valentine’s, the zoo said it is likely to run the offer again next year, due to its popularity.

The Shaldon Zoo team came up with the idea at an events meeting in the pub. They were inspired by other zoos who had run a Valentine’s promotion where you could pay to name a cockroach after an ex, which would then be fed to one of the animals. But the team decided that they quite like cockroaches and they wanted to do something different, so they came up with the name in poop idea instead.

Shaldon Zoo is gearing up for an exciting 2025 and the team is busy planning its 40th anniversary celebrations, which will take place in May.