It has to be admitted that my rescue dog Holly is not the biggest fan of vegan dog biscuit. Whereas the dear old girl has to be persuaded by mixing in mashed potato or some such, slugs love the stuff!

Every morning I would wake up to a silvery trail snaking across the kitchen from back door to dog bowl, into bowl, and out again. How the little beast achieved this was hard to fathom, as there didn’t appear to be a slug’s width between door and frame.

This was war! Of the most humane kind of course. The military objective was to deter, not annihilate.

First weapon in my armoury was coffee grounds – a bit messy spread over the doorstep, but surprisingly effective – that was, for a few nights.

Then the tell-tale silver trail reappeared. The little wretch must have conquered its fear of the bean. Or simply found a way round.

Next to be deployed was copper tape. I did a thorough job of reinforcing our defences taping all up the sides and across the bottom of the door frame. Hurray, I’d found the answer!

For two whole weeks we were slug-free. But then, blow me down, Mr Slug made a comeback. Silver trails ran right across the tape. Nothing was going to stop the creature getting at that tasty dog biscuit. Hmm, a bit of sideways thinking required.

Well, if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. How about if I fed the slug outside the door? That night I tried putting one piece of biscuit on the doorstep. The next morning, a few crumbs remained, surrounded by a crazy swirly whorl of silver slime.

Were these the terms the gastropod demanded for a ceasefire? Well, so be it.

I would love to know if anyone else’s nightly routine goes like this: draw curtains, let out dog, let in dog, feed the slug, lock the door!