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Well, a new wrinkle in our world... Ants, ants, ants showing up all over the place. I'm not certain what is bringing them into our apartment buildings; we've had a lot of rain; but this is becoming a real nasty mess. When some ants showed up two summers ago, I used cloves and cinnamon under throw rugs in the one bathroom where they appeared... and yeah! gone! But this time they leave one area and show up somewhere else. The apartment manager wants to use those ant traps (?), but they say toxic to pets and children, so I've said, "No, thanks." Crinkle's well being is my number one priority, but the ants have to go. Any suggestions? Thanks...
I've used some of the typical baits here at the house before. I put them in spots where the cat absolutely can't reach. You should have at least a few spots under furniture or inside closets or such where that would be the case. Under the fridge perhaps. Things like that.
Of course I'm vigilant about closing closets where the cat is not supposed to be. If you are not and often find the cat in there, you may have to be a bit more cautious with that angle. But you still should have a couple of places where this would work.
i use the terro ant traps - they are not safe, per say, but my cats leave them alone, as i tuck them out of reach. My ant problems come from the dog food bowl being by the back door, so i place one under the cabinet there. the cats food area is problem free.
nothing ive used works as well as terro.
If you are in an apartment building, you may constantly fight the ants, as you cant control what your neighbors do...
cleaning with vinegar is supposed to help too, but might be useless, again, as you are in an apartment. I would use traps and place them where the cat cant get them.
I believe Borax works for ants. Last Fall, I made a BIG mistake. I brought my Jasmine plant from outside and placed it in one of my spare bedrooms. I didn't know it, but the soil was filled with ants.
OMG! Never have I ever seen anything like this! They literally poured out of that soil, and not only were they crawling in that room and on the furniture, but somehow managed to get into the next bedroom as well, which has a staircase in between them!
I researched and came up with Borax and yes, removed the plant pronto. I sprinkled the Borax where I saw the ant trails, and also got out my vacuum cleaner and went to work, sucking up ants. Just thinking about this, makes me shudder. Ants. They are just about unstoppable!
But, Borax did the trick. Either that or my persistent vacuuming!
And as for my cats, they never went near the Borax. I did take precautions by closing off the rooms as I was getting rid of the ants, because in all seriousness, I was not 100% sure how safe Borax is for cats. But, I wasn't about to do the traps and I wasn't about to allow ants in this house. That is where I draw the line.
A 50-50 solution of vinegar and water is probably the safest thing to use; spray it over the ant trails and let it evaporate. Ground cinnamon also works.
GOE, I know borax works, but don't know about its toxicity to cats, either. We used it to rid our carpeting of the Great Flea Invasion of 2007 and saw no ill effects on the cats, but I probably wouldn't use it again. Or if I did, I'd do what you did and isolate the cats away from the treated area.
A 50-50 solution of vinegar and water is probably the safest thing to use; spray it over the ant trails and let it evaporate. Ground cinnamon also works.
GOE, I know borax works, but don't know about its toxicity to cats, either. We used it to rid our carpeting of the Great Flea Invasion of 2007 and saw no ill effects on the cats, but I probably wouldn't use it again. Or if I did, I'd do what you did and isolate the cats away from the treated area.
Hmmmm.......Good to know about the vinegar and water and ground cinnamon. What with this global warming, the insects have been on the rise, and who knows when ants will again invade this house? THANK YOU!
.......I am procrastinating......I really have to start scrubbing.......
We tried the borax also - it seemed to help a little. We used small disposable glad containers with small holes poked in them. Holes small enough for ants to fit in. Put in some honey and a very little bit of borax. The honey attract the ants, the borax dehydrates them.
I put the containers in the cupboards and other areas away from the cats. I did have one in the bathroom that the cats would push around, but the borax sticks to the goo and didn't come out.
Now we have an immune deficient cat, so we just wait for ant season to end or for the neighbors to put out better grub than us.
Thanks All for the suggestions...
I had used cloves the one time I had them in the past, but there were just a few, and they vacated fairly fast.
This time seems to be another story. They just keep moving from one area to another, and then back again. My apartment manager bought over four ant traps. I have one in the kitchen under a piece of furniture that Crink can not get under (or reach under with her paw)... one in each bathroom (which are currently closed off)... and one in laundry area under dryer... also closed off by closet doors. I used white vinegar on all the non carpeted floors, but the ants really don't seem to care about that, so think that I will not try that again. Manager also did some light spraying with Raid, and I'm really concerned about Crinkle... If the situation doesn't improve soon, will take Crink and myself to a friend's house, and have professionals come in and treat the place, I guess.
Darn, I would be concerned about Crinkle with Raid being sprayed too! Please be careful with the chemicals. Our cats' noses are so sensitive. It sounds to me you are doing everything you can, and boy, do I wish you luck. Ants. Having ants is like having an endless army that never stops pouring in.
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