Re: Ants! Hold the phone do not do anything yet!!!!

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Posted by Brent on August 08, 2000 at 19:45:56:

In Reply to: Ants! posted by Eric T. on August 07, 2000 at 10:53:31:

Giovanni May be right. You could have pharoah Ants. If you do, the water trick wont work if they are already in your cage.The rest of the advise you have read is bad for pharoah ants.

This is why. Pharoah ants have multiple queens. If you disturb the nest in any way,they will split up(budding). You will end up with ten times more than you have now.

If you spread boric acid with sugar, how will such tinny ants pick up both the sugar and the boric acid?At the same time?Not likely.

If you spray your cage with lemon juice or any other strong solvent or odor they will bud.

Your options are few.Here they are.
1.Try to remove as many ants as you can with a crack and crevice vac. tool. empty bag as soon as you are done in a pail of hot soappy water to make sure these guys do not end up in other parts of your house or yard.
2.Mix up a bait"coctail" of 20 parts mint apple jelly to one part boric acid.Stir it real good so it is evenly mixed.Too much boric acid could repel them or worse yet cause budding.Place the bait mixture in two inch sections of drinking straws. Place these in the corners of the cage(with out the tortoise),inside light fixtures,inside plug outletts or any where else you have seen these ants.Replace these baits every three to five days. They do not like stale food. Go figure.Some times pharoah ants do not want sweets and will prefer protiens. Make the same ratio of peanut butter to boric acid.
3.you may not be dealing with p.ants but another ant.They could be the thief ant,gost ant,crazy ant,acrobatic ant etc... It is important you get these ants I.D. to find out where they came from in the first place.
4.You could also hire a pro who is fammiliar with using baits around animals.Check with your trusted pet shop and find out who they use.It is common to get P.ants from pet shops.

Do not spread boric acic around your foundation if you have plants in the area.Boric acid will kill plants overnight if you put out too much. The baits work better outside as well.

I own a pest control service in Wisconsin.We service 90% of the pet shops in our area.There are several pro baits that work real good. We do not sell the baits but some services will.

Good luck with the ants.

: My neighborhood has an ant problem-- little sugar ants and they are everywhere! They have just found my indoor tortoise habitat. Here's the problem-- my indoor habitat is very complex designed to resemble a desert. So, removing everything from inside the habitat is a last ditch effort. And I am not comfortable using insecticides too close to the habitat.
: If anyone has ideas or solutions please tell me.

: -Eric-

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: Giovanni May be right. You could have pharoah Ants. If you do, the water trick wont work if they are already in your cage.The rest of the advise you have read is bad for pharoah ants. : This is why. Pharoah ants have multiple queens. If you disturb the nest in any way,they will split up(budding). You will end up with ten times more than you have now. : If you spread boric acid with sugar, how will such tinny ants pick up both the sugar and the boric acid?At the same time?Not likely. : If you spray your cage with lemon juice or any other strong solvent or odor they will bud. : Your options are few.Here they are. : 1.Try to remove as many ants as you can with a crack and crevice vac. tool. empty bag as soon as you are done in a pail of hot soappy water to make sure these guys do not end up in other parts of your house or yard. : 2.Mix up a bait"coctail" of 20 parts mint apple jelly to one part boric acid.Stir it real good so it is evenly mixed.Too much boric acid could repel them or worse yet cause budding.Place the bait mixture in two inch sections of drinking straws. Place these in the corners of the cage(with out the tortoise),inside light fixtures,inside plug outletts or any where else you have seen these ants.Replace these baits every three to five days. They do not like stale food. Go figure.Some times pharoah ants do not want sweets and will prefer protiens. Make the same ratio of peanut butter to boric acid. : 3.you may not be dealing with p.ants but another ant.They could be the thief ant,gost ant,crazy ant,acrobatic ant etc... It is important you get these ants I.D. to find out where they came from in the first place. : 4.You could also hire a pro who is fammiliar with using baits around animals.Check with your trusted pet shop and find out who they use.It is common to get P.ants from pet shops. : Do not spread boric acic around your foundation if you have plants in the area.Boric acid will kill plants overnight if you put out too much. The baits work better outside as well. : I own a pest control service in Wisconsin.We service 90% of the pet shops in our area.There are several pro baits that work real good. We do not sell the baits but some services will. : Good luck with the ants. : : My neighborhood has an ant problem-- little sugar ants and they are everywhere! They have just found my indoor tortoise habitat. Here's the problem-- my indoor habitat is very complex designed to resemble a desert. So, removing everything from inside the habitat is a last ditch effort. And I am not comfortable using insecticides too close to the habitat. : : If anyone has ideas or solutions please tell me. : : -Eric-

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