ANTS!!! OMG the ants!

[rizq]

This afternoon I scrubbed and bleached the chicken waterers. As has happened the last few times I have done this, I felt a burning/biting sensation on my right leg that got worse when I scratched and lingered for hours afterward. Sometimes I would see nothing in the area for a few days, other times a mild swelling. I never could figure out what was causing it. This time though, instead of only in one spot, it was all up and down my leg ... INTENSE piercing then burning feeling.

I ran in the house, convinced my bum covers were filled with spiders (it felt like spider bites). What I found was little black ants (which is actually what they are called). Horrible, ill-tempered, nasty, biting little

.

I don't know if I am developing an allergy or what, but this time I have red welts all over my leg and if I touch them, they hurt and burn all over again. Evil things.

I must have a nest right where I stand to clean waterers. I am going to have to find them and erradicate them any way possible

I think I need a blowtorch ... fried ants anyone??

 

[RickiHupp]

omg OUCH that sounds horrible!!! Take some benadryl (sp) and an oatmeal bath!!!

 

[English Chick]

OUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and

sounds really painful.......squish em!!! (The ants that is............)

 

[Andora]

Ouch!!!

I have found DE is a great ant killer. You can make a paste with water and smear it all along the wall of the house, or wherever they have their trail, then bomb their ant hills with hand fulls of the powder. They never come back!

 

[Preservation Acres]

In what part of Tennessee are you? I'm in Rutherford County, and I'm starting to see fire ants coming into our area. they're rare, but they're starting to pop up. I grew up with those little nightmares in Louisiana, and if they're coming into Tennessee, it's going to be all out war.

 

[rizq]

I wonder if stall dry would work ... I can't find straight DE. I supposed the blow torch would be a bit extreme

Preservation acres: I am in East Tennessee, near Knoxville. My brother insists he saw fire ants out at the old place (I think he doesn't really know what a fire ant is), but I have never seen any here. I had the pleasure of making their acquaintance when I was in Texas. Was bitten by one and it left a pretty little blister. It hurt enough, but I swear these are worse, though I don't know why. They are just the plain little black ants that you see everywhere as far as I can tell. I wish the chickens would eat them!

RickiHupp, the Benadryl has been tempting me ... but I have to work all night and it makes my head funny. Doesn't usually make me sleepy, but makes me weird and have trouble concentrating. Might take some before I finally get to bed if the bites are still bothering me though. I might wipe them with alcohol and put a bit of topical Benadryl or calamine on them.

 

[shelleyd2008]

Oh!! Fire ants!! Nasty little buggers!! We had red ants in Florida that did that, oh my goodness, they are nasty!! Put some benadryl on the bites, and don't touch them!! Just like a mosquito bite, the more you scratch it, the more they itch (or burn in this case). I'll see if I can find a good remedy for the ants, they sure are mean little suckers!

ETA: Of course, there were also 'fire ants' in Florida, luckily I never got bitten by one of those!

 

[Preservation Acres]

Geez! Worse that fire ants. Keep those things on the east side of the state!

 

[rizq]

I am just glad they weren't red velvet ants ... those things are HUGE and I pray that I never get bitten by one of those!

 

[Preservation Acres]

I see lots of those here. Red Velvet ants are actually wingless wasps, and yes, they sting like the dickens.