Pet food & Ants !!
 

Hi Everyone - We are just getting settled in out new house (Yea !!) and I have a question...We have 2 cats and I leave water and dry food out for them all day. I have placed them on a plastic tray, and have even placed the food bowl inside a flat bowl with water in it - I heard that this keeps the ants from getting to the dry food. Well...this trick doesn't seem to be working too well as I still see tiny ants on the floor around the tray. Does anyone have any other suggestions? Also is there an insecticide that is animal-friendly that I can use in the house? Thanks for any help...

Anne

Anne.

We have two ;) cats; Mikey, Harry and Hershey and leave their food down too but haven't had any ants in this new home.

When we lived in Hadley, after a lot of rain we would see little pith anth in the bathrooms, but not around the cat food. We would call Massey or was it Deans, and they would come and spray and put down tiny little ant traps. That would work for about six months.

We love our two cats and are very protective but Deans and Massey and the other big pest people know how to get rid of ants without endangering your pets.

You may have to temporarily move their bowls while they are spraying.

I think the rain is sending them indoors.

Kind wishes,
Gracie

First choice would be your pest control company. Second choice would be talcum powder. Don't know how it works, but ants definitely die when they walk in it.

Pour a few drops of dish detergent into the plastic tray. This prevents the ants from swimming across to the dish, and also stops them from leaving a chemical trail which leads other ants to the bowl

I put baby powder, don't know why it works, but it does.

Food grade diatamaceous earth will get rid of pests but not harm the animal. It can also be used as a holistic type of wormer. They have it at the pet store in Spanish Plains.

We also had these little ants around our cat's food dish but they were easily treatable with "Ortho Home Defense". It is a 'ready to use' liquid available at Home Depot or Lowes. Once it dries, it is harmless to animals but remains active for several months. Spray it around the periphery of the room and wherever the ants could come from. Read the label before use.

Just my opinion, but I wouldn't spray insecticides by their food.

Call your exterminator. That's what you pay them for. They'll get rid of those little critters without harming your pets.

We also had that happen. There is an entry point, possibly a small break in the caulk or wherever they are coming from. Seal that with caulk. We also use Massey. They spray about every three months because we could not control the ants on our own.

We are limited at our house in what we can use indoors due to asthma. So what we do is watch where the ants are coming from. If you can track down their entry/exit point, you can seal up that spot. I asked a pest guy once and he told me that was the most important thing. We had a problem where they would come in around a light switch or behind the stove where there was no baseboard. There was a product with no odor that we found at Lowe's that comes in a syringe. It is made for squirting the product into cracks and crevices. Also, have had them come in above the doors. We sealed those areas with caulk. Have also used Borax in cracks when I didn't have the syringe of stuff available. Did not have to put anything around where the dogs' dishes were because that is not where the ants were coming from. Also, we don't leave food out, so as not to attract the ants. And if you can spray with something around the exterior of the house that would help or use. You could also use Food Grade Diatomacious Earth (not sure about the spelling).

Food Grade Diatomacious Earth (often referred to as "DE") is an off white talc-like powder that is the fossilized remains of marine phytoplankton. When sprinkled on a bug that has an exoskeleton (such as bed bugs, ants or fleas) it gets caught between their little exoskeleton joints. As they move, the diatomaceous earth acts like razor blades. But it isn't supposed to hurt animals. We can eat it. We do eat it! It's in lots of grain based foods because lots of grains are stored with diatomaceous earth to keep the bugs from eating the grain!

No need to spray chemicals inside. Spray the outside foundation with a chemical barrier product. Unless the ants have established a nest inside the walls, they will not be able to cross the barrier. Back up plan would be to use Terro ant bait. Ants carry it back to their nest and it kills the whole colony. I have been known to follow the ant trail back to their nest with a flash light. One little squirt of ant spray at their point of entry solves the problem.

I too have kitties, and have found the product Terro is the best ever. I keep them around the perimeter of my home and no longer see any pesty ants inside or outside.
Ant Problem? Terro = Ant Control Solutions

Thanks everyone for all the good ideas !!!

Anne