Ants + poision = ?? + Cat poop

[bellasmom]

Seems like a kind of dumb question, but being that it's almost spring and we are having abnormally warm weather, our yearly springtime ant infestation is happening early. In the past i would put out Terro traps and spray the corners with bug repellant, but this year i only put 2 traps out, both out of the dogs reach and sprayed all the cracks and corners making sure it's DRY before letting Bella back through the house.

Something crossed my mind though, the ants eat the poision in the Terro traps, but continue to live for a short while, if an infected ant gets into Bella food or water bowl un-noticed, dies, and she ends up comsuming the ant with her normal meal, will it make her sick?

Another seemingly dumb question, Bella seems to think the cat boxes are full of "cookies" and constantly eats the cat feces if I don't get it scooped out before she gets at it, or if she hears one of the cats in the box she races to remove it immediately. Can this cause harm? I scoop every day, sometimes twice a day, but i honestly don't have the time to patiently wait at the box for one of the cats to poo, who really does? ... Unforuntately there is no other location option for the boxes, and they door can not be kept closed.

Ok, I'm finished with my overthought concerns and questions

[Curly_07]

This is for the cat issue, I don't know about the ant situation

When I had a house cat, curly would also eat the poop. The problem is that cats carry parasites and such that are not good for the dog to ingest. My solution was one of those enclosed cat Genie type things. It had a top on it with a flap. If that's not doable, could you put it in a room with a baby gate in the doorway so the door isn't actually closed? My cat could come and go thru the baby gates, but the dogs couldn't/wouldn't.

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[HappyPuppy]

I'm sure you can find another place to put it - I wouldn't tolerate that. I have chased Ruby around the yard with a broom for eating outdoor cat crap and she will still do it but we finally put a fence up around the garden/dirt area. She learned to spit things out of her mouth by me yelling 'don't eat that' over cat poop < the secondary response of oral-ejection on command was a great side effect.

[bellasmom]

I hate to say it, but we really don't have any other place to put 2 liter boxes.
The bedroom has a dog gate at the door, but she can still even squeeze through thr cat door at times to get in. And it's really not fair to keep the bathroom door shut while she is out roaming and making the cats hold it for such a length of time. And cat boxes do not belong in the bedroom in my mind, i refuse to put them there.

I thought about an additional dog gate until she listens and learns more because she has figured out she can just jump at a regular baby gate and it will tumble down. I know they make suppliments for dogs so they don't eat their own feces, curious if something is made for cats as well, something to research I guess.

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

bellasmom, what we do for our litter boxes is put up a baby gate high enough so the cats can go underneath, but so the dogs can't, and since it's raised, they also can't jump over it. Is this an option? Otherwise, a friend of mine modified a baby gate to make a hole in the screen that the cat can go through.

It wont neccessarily hurt Bella (unless she eats a TON of clumping litter, in theory she could get a blockage) just make sure you warn people so she doesn't give face kisses.

[jamielvsaustin]

I heard if you mix equal parts of water and dish soap and spray it on the ants, they loose their sense of smell and won't return to the food source. I assume it's meant to be used when you see a train/trail of ants. And I also assume that you'd have to kill the ants in addition to disorienting them. I've never tried it though...we've never had an issue with ants. (knocks on wood)

[bellasmom]

I heard if you mix equal parts of water and dish soap and spray it on the ants, they loose their sense of smell and won't return to the food source. I assume it's meant to be used when you see a train/trail of ants. And I also assume that you'd have to kill the ants in addition to disorienting them. I've never tried it though...we've never had an issue with ants. (knocks on wood)

Knock on a HUGE piece of wood
We used to just get them here and there for a few weeks in the spring and fall, but ever since my neighbors abandoned their house, left it trashed with the yard covered in year old dog feces and a large pool that has not been cleaned in years, it seems to last longer and sometimes turns into a bad episode of Animal Planets "Infested". PLUS, we live in a house that is well over 200 years old and everything has been remodeled BUT the basement, which parts of are still dirt, so I'm sure it's not hard for them to find a way in.

I can keep it pretty well under control with spraying monthy around the inside and outside perimeter because sometimes we can't find a trail either, i swear they come out of nowhere sometimes. I was just concerned more with the traps I use than the spray since it's no longer toxic to animals and humans once it's dry. The traps I believe are a mixture of bait and borox.

[jamielvsaustin]

We get a lot of bugs in our house (sounds gross) but very rarely an ant. Usually spiders (after it rains), gnats, mosquitoes, love bugs and other annoying Florida bugs. There's a bug truck that comes around our neighborhood every once in a while and sprays this nasty smelling stuff...it's meant to keep the bugs at bay, but I wonder if it's increasing our risk of cancer! (only half kidding)

I'd think so long as your dog wasn't slurping up mounds of ants that have eaten from the traps she'll be okay. I understand your concern with one or two in the water bowl or something, but that's a rare occasion right? If not, could you raise her bowl off the floor and spray the legs of whatever's holding it up so the ants don't want to crawl up it?

[bellasmom]

[quote="jamielvsaustin"]We get a lot of bugs in our house (sounds gross) but very rarely an ant. Usually spiders (after it rains), gnats, mosquitoes, love bugs and other annoying Florida bugs. There's a bug truck that comes around our neighborhood every once in a while and sprays this nasty smelling stuff...it's meant to keep the bugs at bay, but I wonder if it's increasing our risk of cancer! (only half kidding)

I'd think so long as your dog wasn't slurping up mounds of ants that have eaten from the traps she'll be okay. I understand your concern with one or two in the water bowl or something, but that's a rare occasion right?[b] If not, could you raise her bowl off the floor and spray the legs of whatever's holding it up so the ants don't want to crawl up it?[/[/b]quote]
I thought about that, getting one of those dog food stands or even having my fiance make one. I'll give that a shot! My biggest concern is the food, she never eats her meals all in 1 sitting, picks at it here and there, and lastnight i happened to fill her water bowl and notice her food was "moving", but she didn't really seem to care and munched away. But I'm sure they carry such microscopic amounts after ingestion that it shouldn't matter, or should it?