How to protect dry cat food from ants??????

I didn't know where else in this forum to post this....hopefully this is the right place!

My kitty uses a blend of three special dry foods (in addition to wet), two of which are for urinary tract health and digestive health.  I like to stock up on several bags at a time, in addition to the canisters I keep on the kitchen counter.

I recently had a small ant invasion, (mostly in the bathroom) at which point I got some clear garbage bags and double-bagged the extra dry food that hasn't been opened yet.  When the ants disappeared I removed the extra plastic bags, thinking they weren't needed any longer.   

I got up a short time ago to another ant invasion - a huge one at that - in the bathroom.  I know this sounds crazy, but not having any ant traps I used the only thing I could think of - my steam mop.  It worked, sort of.  After I was done I found a few more.  All in the bathroom.  They seem to be coming up through the seal around the toilet on the floor.

So, I'm at a loss as to what to do.  I don't know of any ant traps that are pet-friendly. 

Should I continue to cover the un-opened bags of dry food with plastic like before?  Does that harm the food at all?  I didn't think it was unsafe to do so.

Can ants get into bags of dry food that are un-opened?  I know of neighbors in another building in this complex who had mice.  Thankfully that hasn't been an issue here.  yet.

If anyone has any ideas I'd appreciate it.  I don't want to lose any of Pumpkin's food as he needs it and I finally found something that agrees with his tummy.  Thanks!

We keep dry food in a sealed, plastic Rubbermaid bin. It keeps everything out, even the dogs. The large bins some kitty litters come in, like Tidy Cats, work well, too, after being scrubbed out. Your unopened food should be ok in the plastic bags, I would think.

For non toxic ant killing, check out diatomaceous earth:
http://www.vegetablegardener.com/item/8107/diatomaceous-earth-as-non-toxic-ant-killer

There are two grades of diatomaceous earth. For indoor use, the food safe grade would probably be better than the regular grade.

I've had good luck using ground cinnamon to get rid of ants and the ASPCA says it's non-toxic to cats.  http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/toxic-and-non-toxic-plants/cinnamon 

That said, I've used cinnamon to take care of little anthills on my patio outdoors.  I'm not sure how well it works indoors.  

Good luck!

I put my feral dry cat food in a plastic tub out in the garden shed, plastic bags should be fine. There are some ant sprays out there that are safe enough to use in the kitchen around food, so should be safe for your cats. I'm pretty sure it was made by Raid and was called 'kitchen ant spray', you might want to check the label. Another thing to do is to re-caulk around your toilet base or any places that are letting ants in. Get the water clean up type so it's not so messy and such a pain to clean up. You can buy a small tube at Walmart for around 2.99. Squirt it around then wet your finger and smooth. The best way (and best looking) is to run masking tape about 1/4" inch up above the floor around the toilet base, then another strip on the floor about 1/4" out from the crack, you'll have 2 parallel lines of masking tape about 1/2 inch apart. Caulk heavy between the lines, smooth with a wet finger and carefully remove the tape. Perfect line! Good luck!

Hi,

I was happy to be advised about Simple Green. It is non-toxic. I pick up all food & water. I spray all around cat food area and allow to dry. This is a very good product all around. Please READ ALL LABELS yourself on ALL products. It could save your cats life.

I hope you are able to try this non-toxic product...Simple Green!   Ants Hate It !!!

~GK

happybird said:

We keep dry food in a sealed, plastic Rubbermaid bin. It keeps everything out, even the dogs. The large bins some kitty litters come in, like Tidy Cats, work well, too, after being scrubbed out. Your unopened food should be ok in the plastic bags, I would think.

For non toxic ant killing, check out diatomaceous earth:
http://www.vegetablegardener.com/item/8107/diatomaceous-earth-as-non-toxic-ant-killer

There are two grades of diatomaceous earth. For indoor use, the food safe grade would probably be better than the regular grade.

Click to expand...

This sounds like a great idea....I wonder if Home Depot or Lowe's sells this?  I'll look for it.  So far the critters are at a minimum, compared to a few hours ago. 

cranberry said:

 
I've had good luck using ground cinnamon to get rid of ants and the ASPCA says it's non-toxic to cats.  http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/toxic-and-non-toxic-plants/cinnamon 

That said, I've used cinnamon to take care of little anthills on my patio outdoors.  I'm not sure how well it works indoors.  

Good luck!

Click to expand...

I heard about cinnamon too but didn't know how effective it was.  They seem to congregate in the bathroom and spread out from there.  I've got tons of this stuff in my cupboard.  I could draw a thin line with it across the doorway between the bathroom and kitchen.  Thanks! 

Di and Bob said:

 
I put my feral dry cat food in a plastic tub out in the garden shed, plastic bags should be fine. There are some ant sprays out there that are safe enough to use in the kitchen around food, so should be safe for your cats. I'm pretty sure it was made by Raid and was called 'kitchen ant spray', you might want to check the label. Another thing to do is to re-caulk around your toilet base or any places that are letting ants in. Get the water clean up type so it's not so messy and such a pain to clean up. You can buy a small tube at Walmart for around 2.99. Squirt it around then wet your finger and smooth. The best way (and best looking) is to run masking tape about 1/4" inch up above the floor around the toilet base, then another strip on the floor about 1/4" out from the crack, you'll have 2 parallel lines of masking tape about 1/2 inch apart. Caulk heavy between the lines, smooth with a wet finger and carefully remove the tape. Perfect line! Good luck!

Click to expand...

I'll be going to Wally World before the end of the week, so I will pick up a tube of caulking.  The tape outline is a good idea.  I wish I thought of it several years ago when I caulked a tub.  It looked worse when I was done than it did before I started!  heheheee

gardenkitty said:

 
Hi,

I was happy to be advised about Simple Green. It is non-toxic. I pick up all food & water. I spray all around cat food area and allow to dry. This is a very good product all around. Please READ ALL LABELS yourself on ALL products. It could save your cats life.

I hope you are able to try this non-toxic product...Simple Green!   Ants Hate It !!!

~GK

Click to expand...

I'll look for this product when I go to Walmart in the next couple of days.  I read the labels on everything, esp. food (dry and wet). 

Many thanks to everyone for your suggestions!  I'll keep you posted about my war on ants!