Beware of AMDRO FIRE ANT KILLER!!

[Donza]

Don't know how well known this is but please do NOT use AMDRO or most of the fire ant killers that are on the market. They are DEADLY to all birds and therefore chickens. The warning about deadly to birds is in VERY small print on the containers so it's easy to miss.

Once they eat even a little bit they are dead within the day. I killed 3 of my favorite girls when I was still new to chickens by using this ant bait. Since it's deadly to all types of birds I personally think it shouldn't even be on the market but a lot of people buy it without realizing they can kill off their songbirds and any other ones including chickens.

There are a very few that are safe but make sure to read the containers VERY carefully before you use them.

 

[yellowdragon]

Thank you. I am having a fire ant problem... I won't get that now. Do you know if The Spray for all types of bug ( that can be used around the base of your house in doors and out)?

 

[jnjross]

i worked in a garden center and you have to wear a mask to unpack this stuff, noone told me and i got put in the hospital! it burned my throat and sinuses cavities

 

[Rte.66_chicks]

Wow! I have used it on the little red & black ants that sting so bad here, but I have always put a cinder block over the ant nest, propped up just a little so the ants can go in & out, and covered it with a board and a rock so NOTHING else can get to it. The Amdro goes inside the holes in the block. I leave that in place for a month or more, then check the inside for any left. I usually dig out the top soil and discard it, also. So far, so good-no casualties of any kind. But I do worry about the residuals that must be in the soil from the dead ant bodies underground-what is that doing to the other soil life there?

Does anyone know of good organic alternatives? DE might kill those it contacts, but has anyone here come up with a successful way for it to be carried into the nest and be fed to the larvae, queen, and rest of the workers?

 

[priszilla]

I DE'd 6 fire ant mounds today.I dug it in and covered them as they swarmed.I took delight in it but I couldn't tell how effective it was.I've been told clorox kills them and also boiling water.

 

[KSANDERS1]

I know you'll probably laugh but somebody who is from this area where I live recommends pouring grits onto the ant hills. She says the ants carry the dry grits into the hills where they ingest it, their saliva makes it swell, and it kills them. I figure the grits won't hurt the chickens, so it can't hurt to try. Can it?

 

[halo]

Amdro is the only thing I have found to work against fire ants. I find that what little I have to do to use the Amdro and keep the chickens away from it is well well WELL worth having to deal with fire ants. I have used Amdro for about 2 years now, and on my 10 acres I have very little, if any fire ants. It does the job, you just have to use a little common sense when using it.

 

[chickenshadow]

Good post Donza. People joy in using chemicals to kill living creatures without
any regard for the environment. (I'm a conservative, not a tree hugger for those
interested).

I am truly sorry to hear about your loss and wish you the best.


P.S. I always loved gasoline for fire ants. It didn't always work but the battle
was fun.

 

[moms_pantry]

Several years ago, DH put out ant poison (not sure if it was Amdro) and my barred rock roo go some of it. His comb turned light pink and he just sat around for days. We didn't know what to do. Eventually (about 4-5 days) he was fine. His comb turned back to red and acted like nothing ever happened.

 

[Retrocop]

You are correct. i was just now searching for answers to why one of our layers was sick for two days, then woke up dead one morning. I had suspicions about Amdro, as i had just put out copious amounts of it a few days before. Actually i have two large bags I was about to broadcast over my entire property. Molly's death at least alerted me to this problem. Naturally she was my wife's favorite and very gentle.

Now what to do about the fire ants??