Do you remember as a child being told to "Go and clean up your room.  It looks like a Rat's Nest."  (I hope I'm not the only one....)  Well, did you ever wonder what a Rat's Nest actually looked like?  I often did, and today I saw one - a real Rat's Nest!  There were no rats at home and I suspect there hadn't been any at home for a long time, as there was no smell around the nest, as you might expect.

Pulling out a 25 year old kitchen today, in preparation for floor sanding next week, we uncovered this beautiful specimen of (what we presume) is a Rat's Nest.  Lovely and warm, and dry, and cosy, with a ready food source nearby!  They're not silly. 

So not only are there termites, spiders, ants, cockroaches fleas and wasps to keep out of our living spaces, there are also rats to keep at bay!

To avoid rat problems, put all food and food scraps away in the fridge or in the bin outside, close off any possible entry points (keeping in mind that vermin only need very small holes to squeeze through if they want to access a warm, dry and cosy home...) and pick up any windfalls (fallen fruit from trees) in the garden.  There are DIY solutions, from rat traps loaded with tempting, tasty morsels, to poison to owning a cat.  And if all else fails, pest extermination companies will be only too happy to help.  Do you have any best remedies to share?  Comment below, if so!