Fire Ants!

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trinityoaks

trinityoaks

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Just when I was beginning to think that perhaps we might be able to avoid this issue altogether, we found fire ants in one of the poo pans underneath a bottom-level cage. :evil: I've lived in fire ant territory before, but that was before we started raising rabbits.

We'll put some Amdro down around the outside of the rabbitry tomorrow and reapply it once a month or so. Will that be enough, or do we need to do more? I want to start breeding soon, and I do NOT want to be losing kits (or adult rabbits, either) to fire ants!!
 
Personally, I love diatomaceous earth- it works by scratching the waxy coating of insect's exoskeletons, which causes them to dehydrate. It works great! Best of all, it is safe around animals, and beneficial to the soil as well, so it makes a great addition to your compost pile. It wont kill earthworms (they don't have an exoskeleton) so it is safe for that application as well. I have also used it to kill the flies that roost in the rafters of the bunnybarn.
 
Stay AWAY from the Amdro!!!!Better off pouring boiling water on the mounds, especially if one of the reasons you are raising rabbits is for the fertilizer...
 
Borax is a safe deterrant, diatomaceous earth works OK so long as it does not get damp or wet. Neither of these will destroy the nest. Fire ants are such a terrible insect that I would personally use a stronger ant bait, the kind they take back to the nest and does its damage from within. Once you have one mound show up there will be more as the ant colony goes through its life cycle and new queens are born and migrate to start their own mounds. If you can not successfully get rid of the mound you have, it is money well spent to have a professional do the job for you.
 
Another removal remedy is to pour 1 or 2 liters of carbonated water down the hole ... the carbon dioxide outgasses from the water and settles in the lowest portions of the colony and kills. It doesn't contaminate the ground, is not hazardous to other animals, and kills the queen.
 
When I lived in Florida, we found that if one treated the single mound in their yard, two more popped up next door!!! Some neighborhoods actually had 'fire ant days' where everyone treated the mounds the same day-- slowed down the rate of re-appearance!
 
I love AnnClaire's suggestion, and that is a great idea to use baking soda and vinegar! I bet it would work as well with gophers!

Before I started using diatomaceous earth, we had "The Great Oak Ant Invasion" a couple of years running. Since I abhor pesticides, especially around my home, I had to vacuum the beams and cabinetry in my kitchen several times a day to try to limit their numbers. I even tried a bucket brigade with boiling water and poured it into the hollow trunk of the oak tree that was their nest. It didn't kill the nest, but it kept the ants out of the house for a couple of days as they collected their dead. :twisted:

Some types of ants will tunnel down 10 feet or more, so the carbon dioxide settling to the bottom would be much more effective than my attempt.
 
Another idea I have heard of for ordinary ants is to put equal amounts of baking soda and icing sugar in a jar and lay it one its side near the ant hill. The ants find it, eat it, carry it home and then "blow up" from the soda. I don't know if it works for sure - it was some kid's science project - but I tried it one year when the ants were bad and it seemed to reduce their numbers considerably.
 
Cornmeal supposedly makes them "explode" also- supposedly they eat it and it expands in their gut. That may be akin to the belief that feeding dry beet pulp to horses or rice to wild birds will rupture their stomachs though.
 
MaggieJ":2b8x404i said:
AnnClaire's post about carbonated water made me think about the chemical reaction of baking soda and vinegar. I'd be tempted to try using a funnel to get a box of baking soda into the tunnel and then pouring down a jug of white vinegar.

http://www.chemicalformula.org/baking-soda
Click to expand...

I don't know that you could accomplish this before the ants were all over you eating you up! Whatever you do, you must act fast and be able to make a quick get away.
 
MamaSheepdog":8ki7fchk said:
Personally, I love diatomaceous earth- it works by scratching the waxy coating of insect's exoskeletons, which causes them to dehydrate. It works great! Best of all, it is safe around animals, and beneficial to the soil as well, so it makes a great addition to your compost pile. It wont kill earthworms (they don't have an exoskeleton) so it is safe for that application as well. I have also used it to kill the flies that roost in the rafters of the bunnybarn.
Click to expand...


It scratches the exoskeleton and also sucks up the moisture. Very obvious if you've ever handled the stuff with bare hands, soooo drying!


Does not work for fleas, unless you literally have only 5-10 and place the fleas into the powder box...

Could kill a worm or two if you sprinkle too much on top and they crawl over it.

Ants are annoying, luckily no evil fire ants here. But the other day, I placed a crate on the ground after using it to gather grass. Very next day, I pick it up to gather more grass and ants just pour out of it! Hate how fast they move in!
 
I dont have fire ants luckly, butttttt have other ants Im going to try the baking soda and vinegar on them

Love the ideas thank you
 
I have never dealt with fire ants. Why are they a worry to be in the rabbit's trays? Will they bite the rabbits? Or just carry off their food?
 
Jessykah":1z02fgrv said:
I have never dealt with fire ants. Why are they a worry to be in the rabbit's trays? Will they bite the rabbits? Or just carry off their food?
Click to expand...

Fire ants will swarm anything and kill it if given the chance. Their sting injects a toxin that produces pain and itching.

Here is a website devoted solely to Fire Ant research....

http://fireant.tamu.edu/


OF COURSE....it is in Texas, Fire Ant Capitol of the World! LOL
 
But that may attract predators right? And so many bugs will get stuck to it, ewww.
 
Jessykah":2ldpp7lp said:
But that may attract predators right?
Click to expand...

Not if it's a petroleum based grease.

How about that sticky goo sold to put around tree trunks to keep ants out of them?
 
We don't have fire ants this far north, Jessykah. We're lucky. From all I have heard about them they have a very nasty bite that stings like fire. Some people down south have lost kits to them.
 

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