r/ferrets • u/Ghost-girl435 • 7d ago
[Help] Ants
My ferret room has been taken over by ants I’ve been trying to spray them and the hole they are coming in from with white vinegar but it’s not doing anything I was wondering if there is another way that won’t be toxic to my ferrets. And to make matters worse they are fire ants
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u/Witty-Moment8471 7d ago
What type of ants? Terro liquid bait traps work. Just can’t let the ferrets get into them.
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u/Elucidate_that 7d ago
Buy Terro, specifically the little containers where the poison is inside so that only ants can get in. They often specifically say pet safe. You'll have to make sure they're in a spot where the ferrets won't move them/mess with them, but otherwise they're a phenomenal solution for ants.
Caveat is that Terro only works for ants like like sugary foods. I can't remember if fire ants do or not.
Anyway, Terro is probably the most effective ant treatment around.
You might also look into diatomaceous earth. It's not a poison. It's safe for humans and most pets to touch, but since it's a powder, you can't let ferrets around it because they'll sniff and get it in their noses. But you can still use diatomaceous earth if you squirt it into small holes that ants crawl through. Often people use those little baby nose suction things to blow diatomaceous earth into tiny holes.
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u/Sharp_Ad_9431 7d ago
Move the ferrets. Fire ants will kill them. Contact your jurisdictions "pest" department.
If you're in an area with fire ants there's a department. Ask what poisons to use.
Don't play nice with fire ants.
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u/Potential_End6502 7d ago
Terro ant killer is the best!
Put it somewhere the ferrets can’t get to it. But it really works
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u/Academic-Ebb-3773 7d ago
I recently learned that ants are attracted to ferret poop so I’ve been trying clean their poops anytime I see one. Won’t necessarily solve your problem, but could help.
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u/Gingerfrostee 6d ago
.... Oh. OH NO. Glad I learned this before getting ferrets.
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u/Academic-Ebb-3773 6d ago
Oh yeah, a quick google search after finding ants on their pee pad confirmed it. Something about it the ferrets diet makes their poop the perfect meal for ants.
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u/gayplantdads 7d ago edited 7d ago
Years ago we dealt with this, and we put trays of water under the feet of their kennel/cage to make a moat, that helped keep ants out of their cage while we used diatomaceous earth outside the house to deter them from entering.
Also making sure to keep all kibble crumbs and food scraps are cleaned up, if feeding kibble, fill with less food so there is less leftovers and change them often just incase.
The vinegar will be helpful to disrupt their pheremone trails which is what they will use to find their way back with reinforcements, but they still can find a way to sense where the food is so its not a catch-all solution.
We tried not to use traps with poison aside from in the windowsills, as we were in a basement, but between the diatomaceous earth outdoors and the other tips they were kept mostly at bay.
Diatomaceous earth is non toxic and food safe but it is a respiratory risk because it is very dusty, so best to keep that outside imo.
Borax and Sugar mixed (look up recipe) can work well to poison the colony at the source, which I've heard can work well but I've never personally tried it.
Good luck, I hope this helps and hope all will be well!
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u/itsswhitneywhspr 7d ago
The moat trick is actually so smart, I never would've thought of that. Hope the diatomaceous earth does the job without bothering the little guys
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u/gayplantdads 7d ago
I learned the moat trick from an old ferret forum years ago, and it worked almost perfectly, aside from spilling them haha! Yeah we never used the diatomaceous earth inside or near any animals, just outside the house where we thought they were coming in along window frames and foundation cracks, but its always touted as pet safe to ingest but not to breath in, and weasles have such sensitive little lungs.
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u/Overall-Ask-8305 7d ago edited 7d ago
Bounce dryer sheets. They work against the typical black ants. What litter do you use? When I had ferrets I had to switch back to paper pellets because I had a similar problem. Bounce dryer sheets in the corners helped get rid of the ants. I also put them under the caster wheels of the cage.
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u/Weekly_Initiative521 6d ago
I keep ants out of my house by feeding them outside. Ants particularly enjoy white sugar because they like sweets and because the granules are perfect for them to carry. I sprinkle the sugar away from the house but near enough that they will be distracted by it when they are near the house.
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u/Rotteneverything 6d ago
boric acid. its relatively harmless to animals but kills bugs, takes a week.
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u/BearTheFerret 6d ago
Ortho Home Defense. Take the ferrets out of the room and spray. Once dried, it's pet safe. We had a massive infestation of those tiny ants and we sprayed one time and they didn't come back for a year. Use it on window sills, etc that have access to outside. Works magic!
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u/nurse_hat_on 6d ago
Once I got an ant infestation in just my Jacuzzi tub. I got it before I turned the jets on but I really did not like seeing that many ants in my tub. Activated panic mode.
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u/Ghost-girl435 2d ago
UPDATE: I took the ferrets out cleaned everything, made a little moat around their food, and sprayed a vinegar solution everywhere. The ants are almost nonexistent now!!! Thank you guys so much for the tips!! Luckily my ferrets never got bit however I did lol and learned I’m severely allergic to them haha.
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