OSES were twitching in Farnham this week as residents puzzled over the origins of a strange manure-type smell.
The cause of the unpleasant odour has yet to be identified as, so far, everyone asked has vehemently denied responsibility.
One resident complained: "It's appalling and it's been going on all week. I have rung up the council pollution department who are looking into it, but they have got the wrong end of the stick. It is coming from a farm, not from sewage pipes."
The Herald rang some farms to see if any unusual muck-spreading had been taking place.
"We're not doing anything other than what we normally do, which only causes a slight farming smell, nothing like what's in town at the moment," the owner of Potts Farm said.
The owner of Lower Old Park Farm said: "It's not us, but I wish someone could find out where it's coming from because we've been getting a lot of stick about it from people."
A spokesman for Thames Water said: "We are puzzled by where the smell is coming from. We have had nine phone calls about it since October 22, when it seems to have started,
"The complaints have come from a range of different areas from right across the town. We are not sure what to make of it."
Not everyone was offended by the smell, however. One resident commented: "Farmers use natural fertilisers these days to cut down the use of artificial fertilisers which damage the environment. I do not consider it to be a bad smell, it is just part of living in the country."