We just purchased a four-year-old house in Bonnington. A few days ago I noticed several holes in the wood siding. The holes are oval and vary in size from about two to five inches. They are located up under the gables and at two of the building corners and look like an animal has been chewing on the siding. Have you any suggestions?

Because the holes are located high on the siding it is unlikely that a rodent has been chewing at your siding. One likely suspect, especially at the corners of a wood sided building, may be a woodpecker. If there is any rotting or wet siding that is near decay they will explore it for insects. Woodpeckers are usually active from spring through to late fall. You can often hear a woodpecker drilling away on your home early in the morning before daily activities begin inside the house. They will even attempt to drill holes in metal flashings and siding if they sense wet wood under the metal.

Another likely candidate is a bird called a Flicker. They are smaller relatives of the woodpecker, and often winter over in the Kootenays. They are also looking for insects in wet or rotting wood. You should therefore remove and replace the damaged siding. But more importantly, try to determine why the siding was rotting in the first place.  If the original siding contained no rot when it was installed then look for a likely source of water at that height. Often you will find leaking gutter seams or a leaking joint between the gutter and a downspout. These leaks are readily sealed with a good quality exterior grade caulking compound. If your home is not equipped with gutters and downspouts look for areas near the holes where water may be finding a path of travel from the roof to the siding. Although hanging a plastic model owl from the eave or gable may effectively scare a woodpecker or flicker away, finding the cause of the rot and then replacing the damaged siding is a more permanent solution.