In article ,
uriel13 wrote:

We have all eaten a spider or similar during our sleep. However when it
comes to water butts it is the flying rat better known as the pigeon
which is the most dangerous. They like nothing better than to perch on
guttering, they poo where they perch and are carriers of many diseases.
I would never think of using that water for anything other than the
garden!!!

While that is true, you are being a little too extreme. Pigeons
may carry a huge number of diseases, but are not at all rat-like
(except compared with a tree, for example) and the vast majority
of the diseases they carry are ubiquitous in the environment and
normally dealt with by our immune system.

Excessive numbers of pigeons ARE a health hazard, many of those
diseases are potentially serious, and not drinking untreated butt
water for that reason is a good idea, but it is important not to
get hysterical about the issue.

A far more serious cause of premature death is a nasty mammal,
often called the motorhead, Clarksonia insana, for example.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.