First one, sitting in my bedroom, I look up and see a tremendously large spider web. I think the spider is still active--there do appear to be some bugs caught in the web.

Second one, we have a large toukay that comes into our house on a regular basis. Sure he poops from time to time but he does eat cockroaches, beetles and the occasional small rodent.

Should I be bothered by the fact that I could care less there are cobwebs and toukay poop in my house? Or should I just enjoy the freebies on offer?

i dont mind geckos but i do draw the line at a rat or a mouse. when i lived on an island with a thatched roof, the bloody rats ripping the thatching off and making nests out of it drove me positively crazy.

relax. i think that too sterile is just....i dunno. not right.

(then again, im thinking of getting a maid)

spider and toukay are rather harmless to you - flies, mosquitos, mice, kroches are health hazard. Better them at home than overusing chemicals and poisoning yourself at the same time.

Heh heh Donna - I remember the wildlife in your room on the island

Thai maids seldom clean above their head height but are great at removing teflon from fry pans etc.

No maid, just my good self.

I like londonthai's answer best. And is, frankly, my own rather reasonable explanation for dealing with the life in my open-air house.

i dont mind geckos but i do draw the line at a rat or a mouse. when i lived on an island with a thatched roof, the bloody rats ripping the thatching off and making nests out of it drove me positively crazy.

relax. i think that too sterile is just....i dunno. not right.

(then again, im thinking of getting a maid)

I agree with this approach. Although, large toukays give me the creeps, but I have tolerated them. The bloody rats tearing up the thatch should be shot on site, though. I had to move one of my bungalows in the middle of the night because of one.

Depends on how much aircon you need. If you are all for it: release them into the wild, they will not feel comfortable. If you prefer natural aircon, let them stay. That's what I would do.

i let everything stay except snakes and cockroaches... and sometimes rats, depending on whether or not my dogs seem interested in eating them or not. it drives my bf crazy though... apparently the first thing he did when i left for south america was to clean all the various webs and tokays out of the house and destry all the other hidey-holes.

My general rule of thumb is that if it is poisonous or larger than my head (counting its wing span if any), it has to go, otherwise we can coexist.

By that criteria all of the spiders remain. Actually for all I know some might be poisonous, but I find them quite shy and retiring, they keep to themselves and avoid me so it's OK. (If I've been away for sometime with no-one staying in the house, they start to get brazen, but a few days after my return they go back to keeping a low profile).

I tolerated the toukays for a long time but eventually their numbers (and corresponding amount of droppings) got to be too much and I evicted them. Not an undertaking to be done solo or unarmed, I might add.

The one exception to the "poisonous or larger than my head" rule would have to be mice/rats, it is impossible to co-exist peacefully with them but thanks to the angel shown in my avatar this problem is quite solved...for a several kilometer radius in all directions.

I've never even considered evicting our geckos! They're such innocents and do so much good around the house that it balances out sweeping out their poo EVERY morning! Lots and lots of gecko poo! We don't have a spidy problem but unfortunately have a little mouse problem that I'm still pondering how to deal with without chemicals. The sound of their squabbling is just horrible!

My general rule of thumb is that if it is poisonous or larger than my head (counting its wing span if any), it has to go, otherwise we can coexist.

By that criteria all of the spiders remain. Actually for all I know some might be poisonous, but I find them quite shy and retiring, they keep to themselves and avoid me so it's OK. (If I've been away for sometime with no-one staying in the house, they start to get brazen, but a few days after my return they go back to keeping a low profile).

I tolerated the toukays for a long time but eventually their numbers (and corresponding amount of droppings) got to be too much and I evicted them. Not an undertaking to be done solo or unarmed, I might add.

The one exception to the "poisonous or larger than my head" rule would have to be mice/rats, it is impossible to co-exist peacefully with them but thanks to the angel shown in my avatar this problem is quite solved...for a several kilometer radius in all directions.

Yes, yes - your little angel; I call them little murderers or thugs *(with pretty faces), but the kind that I want working for me

Edited December 2, 200718 yr by kat

have a little mouse problem that I'm still pondering how to deal with without chemicals. The sound of their squabbling is just horrible!

Take it from bitter experience..this problem will not stay little....

And the sounds of their squabbling is the least of it. They excrete where they live and you will soon have nauseating smells to contend with.

They will eat your books and papers, with an unerring instinct for the most valuable/important ones. What they don't eat, they will tear up and use to build their nests.

They will chew electrical wires and short circuit your appliances, again with an unerring instinct for the ones most necessary to you or hardest to repair.

And this is just the start....................

Fortunately there is a completely organic, natural solution: the Cat.

Adopt one. Several ladies on this forum run shelters for abandoned cats and dogs and would I'm sure be happy to fix you up with one, or if in Bangkok call the Soi Dog/Cat rescue folks. Or just ask around.

A cat will make swift work of the invaders and once established in your home deter any new arrivals. And unlike the mice, he/she will use a litter box or go outside, as you prefer. And not chew electrical wires, nor (usually) eat your books and papers.

And be beautiful and purr, to boot.

not to forget:

they will also chew your most expensive leather shoes and leave the cheapies alone.

they will eat your favourite handbag and leave the other ones alone.

they will keep you up all night with their fighting and god knows what else they do.

they will eat your computer cables.

i hate those meeces to pieces.

Yes, they take over and then move in their entire tribe. Kitty kats only have it out with you when they are upset - like chewing on your favorite bra or pissing on your best piece of furniture, etc. But, with a little negotiation, you can work it out, and they get rid of any unwanted intruders into their kingdom

Our kitty died last year and we just haven't found it in ourselves to get another one yet.

However, we use a live trap, and release the mice on the beach in front of our house. One that can get away from the dogs can live. Most don't. Natural selection

Agree on that tho. No rodents in the house. We used to have a particularly large toukay that ate mice. Well done Mr Toukay

I think that there is a big difference between messy and dirty. I grew up in a house of organised chaos and a rather 'natural' attitude to food and hygiene lets say. Friends would be appalled at butter being kept outside the fridge in a butter dish, and even bread, veg and eggs being kept outside of a fridge. The same bread board was used without cleaning it for a whole day, as would the tea pot. There were times when I was young when I would get embarrassed and would think that people would think we were dirty. I have now realised that we were not dirty and that I was allowed to consume just the right amount of germs to keep my immune system strong. I think as a result of this I have never had food poisoning in my life and have the stomach of an oxe.

Since coming to Thailand I have felt much more at home with the Thai way of keeping a house than I do in England. Food is kept outside of the fridge (but covered and kept in a cool fridge), surfaces are not drowned in bleach after every food preparation and no one seems any the worse for it. Of course you do have to be more aware of the heat and flies etc but I follow the same kind of rules I grew up with here. I sweep a lot, try and dust and wipe surfaces frequently and generally make sure the house is clean, but piles of organsied chaos still reign if unchecked, cobwebs creep into corners and gecko poo is a frequent visitor.

What the hel_l, they say a messy house means a clean brain!

Time to sanitized, sterilized, etc.

I'm all for natural (and free) pest control, the minimal amount of poop scooping required is a small price to pay.

Gekkos and spiders of all sizes are welcome. Rats and mice don't seem to be an issue even though we don't have a cat.

I'll add "longer than my arm" to the unwelcome size definition. Khun waitress came running in one sunday "khun dave, snake snake". I thought it was going to be a python or something equally innocuous, turns out to be a bl00dy great cobra in the ladies loo. The door was rapidly closed and the local snake man called.

I can now state definitively that barbecued cobra tastes exactly like barbecued cobra

The ghekos eat mozzies. Heck how can you keep 'em out? Not sure about spiders, but it's the bloody ants.

I am wondering why this is in the "ladies" foum -- do gentlemen not clean ? or fear strange beasties ?

The ghekos eat mozzies. Heck how can you keep 'em out? Not sure about spiders, but it's the bloody ants.

Hi Mosha,

there is this plant (I don't know the name, will take a picture next time) that you just need to lay across your doorstep and all the ants will return on their heels. I use it mainly in the rainy season, when the ants are coming in billions and seek shelter just a day before a major rain.

Cheers

s.

Because I am a woman and after reading alot of mens's posts on this forum, the answer is no, they don't clean, they expect their wives too.

Hope that answers your question WaiWai

And I am not talking about geckos. I am talking about tokays. A much larger beastie