Ants don't light heat. Lay out a large sheet of plastic, spread the kibble on there and leave out under the hot sun for a few hours until the ants are gone.
Toss the bag of food immediately. Never feed pets contaminated food. When you replace, also purchase a container or two that has an airtight seal. Then find out where the ants are entering your home and take steps to prevent from a repeat performance.
you can pour it out onto concrete driveway or porch - AWAY from house - using a broom to move it around, sweeping ants away and also lure the ants away from it - with cornmeal -duhhh --
shake the dog food inside a mesh bag or thru a strainer etc. to knock off any remaining ants... no sense wasting money by tossing it !!
- you can also add DE (diatomaceous earth) - sprinkle@ 2 Tablespoons per pound of food and mix well - put the cleaned, dog food with DE on it into a sealed container to keep out any more ants, bugs.
The ants are there because they are finding food. You need to find where they are coming in. Cornmeal will kill any ant colony. Put the cornmeal where you find a trail of ants coming and going. You could also put the cornmeal in the dog food. It won't hurt the dogs if a little of it mixes in for your dogs to eat. We use Jiffy because it is sweet and the ants are attracted to anything sweet. They will take it back to the queen and other ants and it will kill the colony. Keep using until there are no ants getting in the food. Usually when I put out cornmeal for ants getting in our potted plants or building a new colony, it takes about 2 or 3 days until they stop coming. Reapply if needed. The colony may be very large if they have had access to abundant food like dog food.
Cornmeal plus a little bit of ant poison is another story entirely. Mix cornmeal with a slow-acting liquid insecticide or boric acid to make a paste. Slow-acting insecticides are the most effective way of controlling ants, according to the Colorado State University Extension. Choose one made specifically for ants for best results, and add it a little at a time to the cornmeal until you have a thick paste.
Why It Works
Worker ants only feed on liquids. They take solid food back to the nests, where it is given to larvae. Then, the larvae convert it to liquid and feed it back to the worker ants. Straight boric acid or insecticide will kill ants, but the worker ants will eat it rather than taking it back to the nest because it is in liquid form. Making a paste ensures the poison will get to the nest. You may also lay a trail of straight cornmeal to lure the ants to the poison.
Method of Killing
Spread the love -- and the poison. Dab the paste where you have seen ants. Protect your hands with gloves and wash them when you are done. Make sure the paste is not accessible to children or pets.
You may wish to enclose it in an ant trap just to make sure little hands or paws can't reach it. Also dab the paste around entrances to your home, windows or other cracks where you have seen ants. Be sure you clean up the poison once you notice that ants are no longer invading your home.
Get rid of the ants, but throw away the dog food. Dispose of it outdoors in a field or woods so it's not wasted. Someone will like it AND the ants in it!
This method also helps deter insects that may be infesting your pet's food supply (ants, weevils, beetles, flies).
Step 1:Take note of the number of servings in the bag of dog food.
Step 2:Multiply the appropriate DE dosage by the number of servings. Add that amount of DE to the bag of dog food and shake the bag to distribute it evenly.
The DE will absorb the scent of the dog food and be almost indistinguishable from it allowing your dog to enjoy their food.
Hi Diana, best to get rid of the ants completely, no doubt they will keep returning.
As Sandy suggested there may be other insects that can contaminate the food. DE is a great way to get rid of pests around the home. If you add a bit of DE to the food this will get rid of the ants and also clean the internal worms from your dog. What I also did was transfer my dogs food into a sealed container keeping it fresh, dry and safe from contamination. Hope this helps, good luck.
Yikes! We have a bat problem.
We have an older home with lots of large trees and about 3-4 times a year we have bats on the top floor.
What is the best way to get ri...
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I would like to know how to get rid those pesty little sink/drain flies. I've tried baking soda and vinegar, drain cleaners and put plastic over the drains.
Diatomaceous Earth Australia
Hi Diana, best to get rid of the ants completely, no doubt they will keep returning.
As Sandy suggested there may be other insects that can contaminate the food. DE is a great way to get rid of pests around the home. If you add a bit of DE to the food this will get rid of the ants and also clean the internal worms from your dog. What I also did was transfer my dogs food into a sealed container keeping it fresh, dry and safe from contamination. Hope this helps, good luck.
I wouldn't feed my dogs food that bugs have been crawling around in. Not worth saving a few dollars.