diff --git a/zebra-network/Cargo.toml b/zebra-network/Cargo.toml
index 24fced64..d5d68a8a 100644
--- a/zebra-network/Cargo.toml
+++ b/zebra-network/Cargo.toml
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ edition = "2018"
 # See more keys and their definitions at https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/manifest.html
 
 [dependencies]
+rand = "0.7"
 byteorder = "1.3"
 chrono = "0.4"
 failure = "0.1"
diff --git a/zebra-network/src/types.rs b/zebra-network/src/types.rs
index d4d98ae7..881a6e7e 100644
--- a/zebra-network/src/types.rs
+++ b/zebra-network/src/types.rs
@@ -17,3 +17,10 @@ pub struct Services(pub u64);
 /// A nonce used in the networking layer to identify messages.
 #[derive(Copy, Clone, Debug, Eq, PartialEq)]
 pub struct Nonce(pub u64);
+
+impl Default for Nonce {
+    fn default() -> Self {
+        use rand::{thread_rng, Rng};
+        Self(thread_rng().gen())
+    }
+}