Kangaroo poo

Dear Matthew:

I recently saw a documentary about kangaroos. When they're first born, they're very tiny and they crawl into the mother's pouch to drink milk and grow. They said the baby spends about six months there. So what happens to the baby's excrement?

-- SJ, San Diego

Kangaroo poo. A new category for us. And it does seem like things could get a little ripe in there after a while. But think back to when you were a tad. When you spilled your milk or crunched your crayons or smashed cookies into the rug, who came along to make things tidy again? Good old mom. And mom kangaroo, two or three times a day, sticks her nose into the pouch and cleans the place out. But unlike your mom, kangaroo mom isn't stuck doing this until the kid is 18.