Any ideas how to get rid of fire ants? they won't let my chicks hatch!

[stephross]

Hi!!!
I am currently very desperate about this little situation I have been having with ants! Whenever my baby chicks start too hatch they seem to appear out of nowhere and they have killed two of my chickens in separate occasions.I have my hens nest mounted on a wall and it has wood shavings and also hay but ants eventually find their way up! The first baby usually hatches with out any issues but the second one seems to always attract the ants and I can't deal with another of these murder scenes! Any suggestions? I have tried ground coffee,dry mint and they seem to keep appearing when a weak baby is hatching!

 

[skylavaulter]

that's terrible! Poor chicks. Can you try traps or ant repellent around and in the coop? I'm sure there's something on the market safe to spray around chickens.

 

[Sonya9]

Can you move the nest to a stand alone brooder/dog crate and set the legs in dishes of water to keep the ants from crawling up into it? Better yet move it into the house or garage where no fireants exist? If they must stay in the coop I think you are going to need a physical barrier (like setting the brooder legs in dishes of water/oil, or even vaseline around the legs of a stand alone brooder) to keep the ants from crossing over.

I have been using boiling water to get fireant mounds out of the coop, I tried molassis and it didn't work at all, but boiling water gets them to move the mound a couple of days later. Course in this case you need to protect against individual ants.

Personally I say get those babies and their momma into a safe area away from the coop until they are strong enough OR think of a way to prevent the ants from physically approaching the nest.

 

[chickalicia]

I have used baby powder and red chili peppers. That seems to work.

 

[chickalicia]

Also I don't know if possible where yours are at I drown them. I put my hose on full blast even with nozzle on stick it down as far as it goes in the ant hole and drown them out. I've seen piles of eggs from these ants three feet or so down in ground that is what worked when I tried everything one time on this huge ant hill red ones. Tons of eggs but they drowned or moved on. Idk. And don't care they left lol

 

[PapaChaz]

we had a preachers wife who told us of her battle with fire ants once. She said she used amdro on the hills, that it was supposed to kill them. Of course all it does is make them move the hill over a few feet. Once she got them moved into the neighbors yard, she didn't worry about them any more. BAHAHAHA she was a hoot, that's for sure.

Your best bet may be to have an exterminator come out and treat the ground around the coop and run They can treat an area a couple feet wide all the way around the coop and run and kill off all the ants. Be sure to ask him how long before you can let them out to free range though, you don't want the chickens to get into the area he poisons

 

[Fentress]

this is not good news. I have just started to see fire ants. Wouldn't a good size flock eat the ants and chase them away?

 

[SkyWorld]

I have used dish soap with lots of water. The ants also don't like baking soda, ammonia, Windex and bleach. Not in that order, but you do need to get aggressive with these buggers.

 

[stephross]

I have gone to the place where I buy my feed and they sell things to exterminate bugs.Since I believe the ants come from a dried up well I will definately spray that area and outside the coop just to be safe and so the others don't get sick or intoxicated by mistake even though it's supposed to be safe for them.

 

[stephross]

I have used dish soap with lots of water. The ants also don't like baking soda, ammonia, Windex and bleach. Not in that order, but you do need to get aggressive with these buggers.

I agree,I haven't tried ammonia but I read that chickens are very sensitive to the smell so I will avoid that to annoy them but indeed some heavy artillery will be needed! Thanks for the suggestions!