Ants, ants EVERYWHERE

[BakaRikki]

So, it's practically summer over here in Australia and as you may know, lorikeet foods contain a LOT of sugar. This of course attracts ants, LOTS OF THEM, and it's driving me crazy. Every time I give my lorikeet food, even if it's just enough for him to finish it all, any trace of it can attract ants. Every morning I wake up to ants in his cage. And every morning, I have to take his cage out and hose down the ants. Every night, after his dinner, I would notice ants in his cage. (I check on him and my other animal a before I go to sleep)

My lorikeet is afraid of me so he will not leave his cage, which means I have to bring his cage into my room in order to be with him and give him attention (he only allows me to leave my hand in his cage to lean/sleep on. Will add a picture to show what I mean).

Is there any way to limit or get rid of all the ants so that they'll never show up again? I don't know where their nest is and I heard that spreading cinnamon on the floor around the cage will deter them but I don't think my parents will be very happy with that.

It will be so much help to be able to get rid of all these annoying and gross ants!

PS: my lorikeet has beak and feather disease, which is the reason to why he is so naked

 

[Zara]

I was going to suggest a ring of cinnamon around his cage
Wiping down the cage regularly could help also.
Your bird is adorable

 

[Mybluebird]

Your bird is precious. The problem with ants is they leave a trail of pheromones so other ants can follow it to a source of food. You need to destroy that trail to get rid of the ants. Does anyone know of a bird-safe cleaner that might do the job? Glass cleaners such as Windex are effective but they have ammonia in them and I wouldn't expose a bird to that. Before I had my bird, I would spray Windex on the trail of ants - problem solved. Does anyone have any ideas? Could you remove the bird from the area, spray the ant trail and return the bird to the area after several hours and the ammonia smell has gone away? At any rate I wouldn't use glass cleaner on the cage or anywhere your bird might perch.

 

[Zara]

1 cup vinegar - 1 cup hot water

 

[Nikomania]

My absolute favorite go to is a concoction of solution of boric acid/sugar and water. Google it and you will find the correct measurements.
I soak a cotton ball or paper towel with the solution and place it where they congregate. They absolutely love to feast on it and take some back to the nest. You will then notice over the course of a few days that their numbers have dwindled until they're gone!

I then caulk up any cracks that they've used to enter our home.

Please make certain that you don't leave your boric acid mixture anywhere your birds or other pets will have access to.

 

[BakaRikki]

1 cup vinegar - 1 cup hot water

Is vinegar ok for birds? Can I use that to wipe down the cage when I want to disinfect it?

 

[Zara]

Is vinegar ok for birds? Can I use that to wipe down the cage when I want to disinfect it?

Yea, like Heinz distilled vinegar - the stuff we can eat and pickle onions in.
Remember to dilute it in water 1-1

(I hear in the US there is a ¨cleaning vinegar¨ but this has other ingredients mixed in and not good for cleaning near birds)

 

[BakaRikki]

My absolute favorite go to is a concoction of solution of boric acid/sugar and water. Google it and you will find the correct measurements.
I soak a cotton ball or paper towel with the solution and place it where they congregate. They absolutely love to feast on it and take some back to the nest. You will then notice over the course of a few days that their numbers have dwindled until they're gone!

I then caulk up any cracks that they've used to enter our home.

Please make certain that you don't leave your boric acid mixture anywhere your birds or other pets will have access to.

What if most, if not all, ants gather at the poop tray and food bowl? Would placing a cotton ball away from the cage lure the ants to the cotton ball automatically?

Also, I don't know if boric acid has a smell to it, but if it does, can I still leave it close enough to the cage where he can smell it or is that a horrible idea?

 

[BakaRikki]

Yea, like Heinz distilled vinegar - the stuff we can eat and pickle onions in.
Remember to dilute it in water 1-1

(I hear in the US there is a ¨cleaning vinegar¨ but this has other ingredients mixed in and not good for cleaning near birds)

Ok, thank you so much for the suggestion!

 

[Nikomania]

What if most, if not all, ants gather at the poop tray and food bowl? Would placing a cotton ball away from the cage lure the ants to the cotton ball automatically?

Also, I don't know if boric acid has a smell to it, but if it does, can I still leave it close enough to the cage where he can smell it or is that a horrible idea?

The key is to locate where they're coming in from. That's where you can place it. And no, Borax doesn't have any odor.

 

[Shezbug]

The cleaning vinegar I have is just a stronger acidity but nothing else is added to it. I have not used it for bird stuff though I only use normal vinegar (that we can consume) and water for any bird stuff.

 

[finchly]

Diatomaceous earth. It’s so safe that at least one bird food mfctr puts it in their bird food. It’s a powder, inexpensive, sprinkle around the edge of the room. We also sprinkle into the cage trays underneath, if there’s a grate so the birds can’t get to it. (I mean, it’s safe - but they don’t need to stomp around in it!)

 

[Rain Bow]

Diatomaceous earth. It’s so safe that at least one bird food mfctr puts it in their bird food. It’s a powder, inexpensive, sprinkle around the edge of the room. We also sprinkle into the cage trays underneath, if there’s a grate so the birds can’t get to it. (I mean, it’s safe - but they don’t need to stomp around in it!)

Yes, I've seen this used for everything from cactus (to add to dirt) when it has little black flies from the area or company you purchased them from to aquariums. I can't remember the aquarium reason @ the moment. I was going to suggest a contained chemical agent but these options are so much safer...

Great question!

 

[Rain Bow]

So, it's practically summer over here in Australia and as you may know, lorikeet foods contain a LOT of sugar. This of course attracts ants, LOTS OF THEM, and it's driving me crazy. Every time I give my lorikeet food, even if it's just enough for him to finish it all, any trace of it can attract ants. Every morning I wake up to ants in his cage. And every morning, I have to take his cage out and hose down the ants. Every night, after his dinner, I would notice ants in his cage. (I check on him and my other animal a before I go to sleep)

My lorikeet is afraid of me so he will not leave his cage, which means I have to bring his cage into my room in order to be with him and give him attention (he only allows me to leave my hand in his cage to lean/sleep on. Will add a picture to show what I mean).

Is there any way to limit or get rid of all the ants so that they'll never show up again? I don't know where their nest is and I heard that spreading cinnamon on the floor around the cage will deter them but I don't think my parents will be very happy with that.

It will be so much help to be able to get rid of all these annoying and gross ants!

PS: my lorikeet has beak and feather disease, which is the reason to why he is so naked

What a sweet little fid! Thank you for rescuing him.

 

[Nikomania]

diatomaceous earth never worked for me. yes, they shrink and die when they cross over it...but the nest where Mrs. Queen ant is laying a million eggs a minute is still
sitting pretty.

 

[finchly]

diatomaceous earth never worked for me. yes, they shrink and die when they cross over it...but the nest where Mrs. Queen ant is laying a million eggs a minute is still
sitting pretty.

They’re suppsed to take everything back to their queen, and share the goods. You must teach your ants, Nikomania!

 

[BertAllen]

diatomaceous earth gets into the joints of the exoskeleton on insects and wears them out and they basically bleed to death.
It is used in special aquarium filters as it removes microscopic particles.

 

[Rain Bow]

diatomaceous earth gets into the joints of the exoskeleton on insects and wears them out and they basically bleed to death.
It is used in special aquarium filters as it removes microscopic particles.

Thank you! That was why my hubby used it in the tanks!

 

[Les charlson]

I had the same problem, also in OZ. Ants love fruit and veg that my guys get as well. Try putting the legs/wheels of the cage in small bowls of water to stop them climbing the legs but first you need to watch their movements to work out where they are taking the food. This opening needs to be blocked. If its tiny you can use vaseline . They hate it on their feet.

When you know where they are coming from, clean the whole area with something like spray and wipe. They hate it. Only use it when you have removed the bird and cage totally away, into another room or covered outside. The floor and walls need to be cleaned along with wherever the ants go to get in and out. A windowsill for example. Also look outside the room and see where they are coming from and spray and wipe that as well.

Then before bringing the cage back you will need to wash it to remove their ant scent. If you don't they will rediscover the cage. As people have said, vinegar is good but not the cheap stuff. Lemon juice will deter for a day or two them if you squeeze it and leave slices around the entrance on the outside of the house. There must be a nest close to the room you use so you could put a couple of ant bait stations there. Not if you have dogs of course. Another way is to keep the outside area near their nest damp. They tend to move away as they don't like water.
Last get 2 cheap shower curtains and hang it around the cage also lay one on the floor, mainly where your guy eats, its easy to take down and clean and saves your walls.