ants invading my kitchen

[mikhel]

I currently have a colony of ants invading my kitchen. I don't want them in my kitchen or in my cat's dinner, but I don't want to kill them either...Any suggestions?:confused:

[Erin Pavlina]

PETA suggests the following:

1. Ants are looking for food and water. Be sure all food is in sealed containers, and wipe up crumbs immediately.

2. Wash countertops, cabinets, and floors with a solution of equal parts vinegar and water. Ants will steer clear.

3. Put a line of cream of tartar at the spot wehre the ants are entering your house. They will not cross that line.

Good luck!!

[Beth B]

I also had an ant invasion. I hate killing anything, and any bug in my house gets carefully taken outside, but with the ants, they were in the cat food so we had to react.
We swept all the ants outside with a broom, as carefully as we could, then made a concoction of dishsoap, pepper and cream of tartar and put the goo in front of all the doors. all aropund the house, and along the baseboards. The ants have not returned.

[mikhel]

The Vinegar and water did not appear to work at first but combined with moving the cat food out of the kitchen it appears to have done the job. I still catch one or two ants from time to time, but in small numbers I really don't mind sharing the kitchen with them. A friend told me that placing cucumber peels out also works?!? Who knows---hopefully I will mot need to find other options at this point!

[Erin Pavlina]

Good, I'm glad something worked. I remember we had a lot of ant problems on the cat dish growing up. Our cats lived outside and we eventually had to put the dish on a table instead of the ground. The ants never attacked the dish when it was on a table.

[orangesky]

Wow, those are some great solutions! I am impressed. Thanks for posting those!

[Teejay]

I use a sheet of paper to lift as many at a time out, as gently as possible, then clean all surfaces.

I'm glad to hear your solution is working! We get a lot of ants and other insects here in W. Australia because of the hot climate, so how-the-vegan-deals-with-insects is very relevant to me. We have a big mosquito problem too and have to catch them in cups and let them outside. Usually not before getting a few bites. :(

[sophie]

for repelling ants I put crushed bayleaves around where they emerge from, and also sprinkle peppermint oil around. You have to keep sprinkling the oil to keep it smelling strong.

[Robin]

How do you all deal with mosquitoes? I read one post in this thread saying that you carry them outside in cups, but not without getting a few bites. I think that the discomfort of mosquito bites is not enough to justify killing them, but with things like West Nile virus and other potential health threats (for the safety of myself, my family, and my companion animals- a dog and two doves) I do kill mosquitoes by smashing them. I feel badly, but I don't believe that they suffer any through this. I find it hard to believe that insects have emotional lives, but do not use insect products (like bee products or insect dye in personal care products) because I don't think that pointlessly killing or harming insects is at all respectful of nature and the other species on Earth. I do not support pesticide sprays, sticky tape, or insect catchers that the bugs can get in but not get out and slowly starve to death. Is it hypocritical or unvegan to kill mosquitos? Any input appreciated.

[HimuraLain]

Hi, Robin, by the way, how was your trip?

Anyway, the mosquito thing is a tough issue for me too. You should find out if there are any reports of mosquitos infected with the west nile virus in your area. If not, I would definitely say not to kill them. If there are, it's gonna be a judgement call for you; I still wouldn't kill them, but I wouldn't say you were not at least partially justified in doing it.

[alexis]

Hey Robin...i think you'll find it useful if you put a drop of eucalyptus oil or lavander oil in a diffuser and just let it burn...mosquitoes really hate that stuff and believe me...we have plenty of them here...
Does anyone know how to get rid of a house lizard without killing it or having to handle it? I have one hiding in my room and it's gotten a little close to my bed...i'll find myself screaming in pure terror if i wake up one morning and find it anywhere withing ten feet of me...all i want is to chase it out of my room and keep it OUT...

[Sylver]

What kind of ants are they? If they are little, light brown (the colour of this text) Pharoah ants, then you should not move them or disturb them, or try to take a bunch of them outside. If you do, they will break up and start many small colonies. Then they will be all over your house!! I found this out the hard way, and after small research, confirmed that disturbing them will make them start new colonies.
Here's a link to a little more info if these happen to be the ants...it suggests insecticides to get rid of them, but otherwise offers information about the ants.
http://ag.arizona.edu/urbanipm/insects/ants/pharaohants.html

[Christa]

Re the mosquitos, I don't know if this is of any help, but wolf spiders eat mosquitos. We have quite a few wolf spiders in our basement & around the house & they must be doing their job b/c we rarely have mosquitos. I don't know how you would go about getting your hands on wolf spiders, though :)!

[Katharina]

Great advice re. ants!

We don't kill any mosquis either. They ARE animals and we don't believe in killing any animals.

If you are worried about diseases it is much more effective to protect yourself from being bitten by burn essential oils, applying natural mosquito repellent (citrus or the like) on your skin etc.

We have lived in the tropics and survived without too many bites this way.

Good luck!

[duckie1978]

I am mixed on mosquitos b/c of the whole carrying diseasesand such, but I found that putting up bat houses cut down on the mosquitos at my parents house. They eat several times their body weight in the bugs and the houses also provide a place for them to live. I just can't get enough of bats and love to watch them flying around at night.

While we are on the subject of pest removal, as many of you are aware I have three kitties who are avid mouse hunters. We though that the mice were gone after we found a few in the fall, but with the spring we have found two more that our cats have gotten. Does anyone have any advice on what to do to get rid of them humanely? If we tell our landlord he will spray and put down chemicals which we DO NOT want b/c of our cats (primarily) and ourselves. We live on the second floor of the house/apartment building (we have the whole top floor) and do not leave out food for our cats. I am not sure about where they enter the apartment as we only find them after the cats have mauled them to near death. Any suggestions?

[duckie1978]

Oh lots of birds also eat mosquitos like blue jays so maybe if you start feeding them or putting up bird houses they might come around and become a natural way to control the bugs.

[alexis]

i found an ant repellent...you peel the yellow part off the lemon rind and put it in a jar and cover with grain alcohol. Let it stand an hour then when you need it, mix one part alcohol soluton to nine parts water and spray where ever you see ants...only dilute as you need cos the diluted form loses potency...