Insect Question

[MaggieJ]

For those plagued with fire ants... I wonder if one laced some bait with doggie heartworm preventative if it would get rid of them? One would have to be very careful but it might be worth a try.

 

[JT_Hunter]

Sounds like a business opportunity to me ....poison laced doggie doo for sale to rid you of your fire ants....I bet the EPA would not let me get away with that one... :lol:

 

[arachyd]

You could get around that by just renting your dogs out a few hours after they get their heartworm meds and a big meal. That way you aren't dealing with either food or legally controlled chemicals. You're just letting your dog poop in your customer's yards for a fee. What agency could regulate that except as a small business-you might need a license for renting dogs out if you receive money for it. You can even get around that by using the barter system - various greenand leafy weeds for your rabbits, garden vegetables, etc. in exchange for a visit from your dogs.

 

[SatinsRule]

I think you guys are all onto something (or just ON something)! :secret:

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

A neighbor told me something some of the old Amish people in her former area did-- they took three pennies, glued them edge to edge(Overlapping), placed them in ziploc bags, and hung them in windows and doorways of the areas they wished to keep flies from-- seems the idea was to make smaller flies and insects think there was a larger predator in the area.. breezes against the baggie made the linked pennies 'fly!" Sort of like using yellow discs to keep small birds and rodents out of an area--

I am not havng a problem with flies-- but with BEES!!!

 

[MaggieJ]

Bees... As in honey bees? Bumblebees? Wasps?

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

Bees... As in honey bees? Bumblebees? Wasps?

Some Bumblebees-- some that are not Yellow jackets, but a bit heftier variety. I am thinking the horse feed I use as a supplement is probably attracting them. Then, to top things off, I did hang a hummingbird feeder a few days ago--no hummers yet,-- but who knows...looks like a lot of my neighbors like the attractive flowing plants and bird feeders are popping up on fences all along the building---

 

[MaggieJ]

Bumblebees are pretty mellow, but you might want to hang a wasp trap.

 

[SatinsRule]

but you might want to hang a wasp trap.

Or just douse the nest with some rubbing alcohol. Instant, long-lasting results.

 

[MaggieJ]

Rubbing alcohol works? Cool! I could just put it in a squirt bottle and spray into those cracks they inhabit.

 

[tailwagging]

I was just kidding, FYI... :lol: That is what I get for trying to make a joke when I am exhausted!

I am sorry that your doggies have passed on...interesting theory about the Heartworm meds, though.

The offending dogs are both passed on now.

To this day, the only thing I can attribute it to was the heartworm preventative I gave the offending golden retrievers. Whatever it was, it sure beat the heck out of stepping into an active colony and getting tons of ant bites.

I didn't figure you were being serious, as was evidenced by the :lol: you posted up at the time!

It's just a theory, but it's the only explanation I can come up with, as their heartworm preventative was the only thing we ever fed them outside the ordinary food, and their food would be unlikely to ever cause it. I'm left to assume that some trace amounts of the preventative we gave them every month somehow wound up in their stools and the ants were wiped out when they consumed it.

As you know, fire ants will devour anything in rather short order and the colony will thrive on it. When the same thing wipes out colony after colony, there's something involved which is effective at wiping it out.

And the dogs lived very long lives, too. One lived to the age of 13, and the other lived to almost 15. :icecream:

Adult fire ants can not eat "food".
they have to feed the solids to their instars who then vomit the food back for the adults to eat.
this is why fire ant bait has to be slow working to not kill the instar before it vomits.

 

[SatinsRule]

Adult fire ants can not eat "food".
they have to feed the solids to their instars who then vomit the food back for the adults to eat.
this is why fire ant bait has to be slow working to not kill the instar before it vomits.

Thanks for the clarification, but the fact still remains that those fire ant mounds were consuming everything in sight until I started dumping dog crap on them. Regardless of who vomits what or how it's consumed, it matters not, so long as my feet aren't covered in fire ant bites for weeks on end.<br /><br />__________ Mon Jun 06, 2011 11:01 pm __________<br /><br />

Rubbing alcohol works? Cool! I could just put it in a squirt bottle and spray into those cracks they inhabit.

Rubbing alcohol kills wasps on contact. Just be careful to get enough into the cracks they inhabit to where they will get in contact with it before they exit and try flying away from the nest. I always used a plastic cup, and it worked like a champ on everything from red wasps to yellow wasps.

 

[MaggieJ]

Thanks, Billy! I'll have to give that a try.