Shambles, you still haven't answered the rodent question. Is Chez Shambles an open house for rats and mice? Or would a slow death from Rentokil-administered poison be preferable to a lead pellet or a terrier?

Not sure that our dog and cats are very effective at actually killing anything - but they do seem to act as enough of a deterrent to keep the house free from the obvious signs of rats and mice.

Just as we found that adequate fencing of our poultry was enough of a deterrent to avoid predators.