How the heck do I get rid of fire ants inside the chicken run?? 😱😱😱

[Ascholten]

Boiling water on the mound works.
Id also say possibly boric acid may work too, don't think it'll be too bad on the chickie poos.

Aaron

 

[TwoCrows]

And after you powder the mound, get some rubber knee high boots on, (I use these around fire ants and they don't seem to be able to climb up your legs) get a broom and start sweeping and stomping the ants on the inside and outside of the run to get them out. Once you powder up the mound, they all run back to it to do what they do with this substance.

 

[Aapomp831]

You have to find the mound and kill it with pet safe fire ant dust.

 

[Aapomp831]

Ugh. Ok. That’s true. I didn’t think about the Queen.

Lol I know, if it’s not one thing it’s another. The dust works when the ants up top spread the dust all the way down to the queen

 

[Aapomp831]

Where do you buy yours? I looked at Amazon and on Home Depot online and can’t find it. If it’s as good as you say I must find it and kill these little buggers

Are you in the US? I believe my husband gets this at either WalMart or Lowes

 

[Brooks_]

Just get some dust and sprinkle it on every mound you find. Do you know what they look like? We’re on 2 acres in NC so fire ants are part of life. The chickens seem to naturally avoid the mounds (so do my dogs) but we don’t want them around. I take the dust with me when I mow the lawn and when I come across a mound I sprinkle it. Very easy and def doesn’t cost a small fortune!

I know what they look like. I've used pounds and pounds of Amdro (pre chickens) and still have them. The best I can do is keep them at bay. My chicks have been seen walking on mounds. Maybe immune like possums are to snake venom? Small fortune to eradicate where I live.

 

[Jld13]

Are you in the US? I believe my husband gets this at either WalMart or Lowes

Yes thank you!! I will go today!

 

[Jld13]

We are inundated with fire ants, I have even lost quail to fire ants. I have tried every method, every chemical out there and nothing worked until I found this....

View attachment 2749771

This WILL kill the entire mound. But use it very carefully, do NOT sprinkle it willy nilly, it stinks like a dead carcass and NOTHING kills the smell but months of time. So use it ONLY on the mound, don't go around the coop or it will gag you for months! Sprinkle it around and on the mound with a light powdering and give it a few days. Repeat if necessary.

Is it safe to use inside the run?

 

[Jld13]

DE (diatomaceous earth) it's great for chickens--you put some in the dust bath and a bit in their food--it kills ALL shell-bearing bugs--including ants (specifically, intestinal worms, mites, ticks, fleas, etc). DE literally slices their shells in half. and, it's totally safe. Other than, you want to keep the dust at bay or let it settle--that it generates when distributing it--because the dust can seriously aggravate the chicken's eyeballs. But, I've never had a problem with it and it's worked great for ridding of ants and other beetle bugs.

Thank you for the suggestion. I’ve tried DE without success. The fire ants just don’t care

 

[Sea Wolf]

You will find that diatomaceous earth is useless and does not work for most things that people recommend it for. It can even cause the death of your birds. What you need is permethrin powder/dust. Just look at the container and see what the ingredient is. It is sold as many things including poultry dust to put on the chickens and flea powder for your dog. Find it and powder the mound and the area around it in a circle. Would work best if you could temporarily circle the area off with some wire to keep the birds from scratching it all up. The Fire And Dust might be a stronger concentration of it but I almost doubt it. Any farm/feed store should have containers of the poultry dust. Dust your chickens completely with it. Make sure you work it all through the feathers to the skin don't just shake it on them. Also dump a bunch of it into where the birds take a dust bath. This will kill off any ants that crawl on the birds to sting them as well as get rid of/prevent any lice, mites or any other bug from attacking them. Powder any other mounds around the yard to get rid of those too. It is harmless to the chickens and other animals. Cats can be sensitive to concentrations of it though.