Ant-killer safe to use around a cat

Psykoma

Hiya

I recently moved, but no matter where I put my cats food dish, it gets infested with super teeny ants. They don't seem to bug my cats ability to eat anyway, but I don't want them in the house and I'm not sure they'd be entirely safe for my cat to eat incidentally.

Is there anything I could use to get rid of them without also harming my cat?

Thanks

Tofystedeth

Hey that's good lean protein there!
Eating ants probably wouldn't hurt him other than maybe tickling his tummy or throat since I doubt he chews well enough to kill any of them.
Best advice is to find where the ants are coming from and take them out there, since it's likely inside a cabinet or door frame or something that your cat isn't going to be licking anyway.

wonderpug

One thing I've done at times is create a little moat around the food dish. Just put the dish on a low bowl or a tray or whatever fits, and put a wee bit of water for the moat. Thou shall not pass, ants!

Psykoma

Tofystedeth wrote: »

Hey that's good lean protein there!
Eating ants probably wouldn't hurt him other than maybe tickling his tummy or throat since I doubt he chews well enough to kill any of them.
Best advice is to find where the ants are coming from and take them out there, since it's likely inside a cabinet or door frame or something that your cat isn't going to be licking anyway.

They're coming up from under the floorboards

The Ender

Ants are tenacious bastards; there's not single treatment that's great for killing all species of them, and even the treatments specifically targeted towards certain species sometimes fail.


The moat's not a bad idea. Can you afford to call an exterminator?

Scosglen

I have used Diatomaceous earth as an ant killer in the past and found it pretty effective. It's made from a sedimentary rock (dead diatoms, algae), and the mechanism it uses to kill insects is mechanical rather than chemical. It basically sucks the water out of their bodies and dehydrates them.

I would do your own research to be sure, but I would imagine that it's probably very pet safe.

WiseManTobes

It's more of a deterrent than a solution, but cayenne pepper pisses ants off and they steer clear of it, and won't really harm pets ( they might be angry if they catch a good sniff of it, but otherwise safe for the animals)

hsu

Ants are attracted to water. Thus, an ant problem is really a water problem. Get a plumber or carpenter (you may need both) and deal with the source of the problem. This was one of the most useful things I ever learned while watching "This Old House" on PBS.

Have them pull up the floorboards and figure out why water is pooling there, attracting the ants.

mts

Our old coop used to sell a mint based and spray that was pet safe. Worked pretty well. Those sugar ants are a bit cheaper though. I would suggest trying to find the nest outside and killing it there. Alternatively, winded with ammonia will wipe out and trails

sys64738

With the pesticides generally available to homeowners odds are pretty good your cat would be ok if you used even basic common sense (don't spray it in his food bowl, etc). To be on the safe side, though, do your dosage elsewhere - if there's ants inside, odds are pretty good they came from the outside. Check around along nearby exterior walls for harborage sites (mulch, leaves, rocks, etc) and look for trailing ants or a full-on nest. Nest? Dose it good and proper. Trail? Follow it back to the nest and treat it.

There are species that will move inside a house (in places like wall voids, under baseboards / carpet, etc) but lots prefer to live outdoors and just use your home as a foraging site.

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

we get ants in the summer months, and use a liquid poison called Terro to keep them under control. What you want to do is figure out where the most accessible place they're coming from is (floor joint, under the fridge somewhere, etc) then set it out there so that they'll notice it before they wander off and eat any of your actual food. It's only slightly toxic to humans and most animals so you don't need to worry too much about housepets eating it (especially since the place you set the 'trap' will probably be inaccessible to them anyway.)

what I did was cut a whiffle ball in half to make a dome that our cat couldn't get through, for the couple areas it needs to be placed in the open.

ihmmy

seconding diatomaceous earth here - we have dogs and a cat and I use it along the perimeter of my house where I see ants running, and on their hills. I end up doing a few doses each summer because they are tenacious little bastards, but my critters are fine. I would try to keep your cat out of the area while you're putting it down, if you're doing any inside your house, but within 15 min the dusty stuff should be settled and fine for critters to be near (uh, unless your cat decides to start eating it, but I have yet to witness that with any of our animals)

Cabezone

Eat it You Nasty Pig. wrote: »

we get ants in the summer months, and use a liquid poison called Terro to keep them under control. What you want to do is figure out where the most accessible place they're coming from is (floor joint, under the fridge somewhere, etc) then set it out there so that they'll notice it before they wander off and eat any of your actual food. It's only slightly toxic to humans and most animals so you don't need to worry too much about housepets eating it (especially since the place you set the 'trap' will probably be inaccessible to them anyway.)

what I did was cut a whiffle ball in half to make a dome that our cat couldn't get through, for the couple areas it needs to be placed in the open.

Terro also kills off the entire colony, it's a really effective way to control ants. It also uses dehydration like the D earth.