A food bowl placed outside that your cat can use if it gets hungry can be very practical if you have a cat that enjoys spending a lot of time outside. However, leaving food outside can often attract ants that will get into the food preventing the cat from eating it. If this sounds like a problem you are having and would like to know what you can do to solve it, keep reading while we list several methods you can use to keep ants and other insects from ruining your pet’s food.
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Keep Ants Away from Pet Food
When it comes to feeding your furry friend, ants can become a serious issue. If not stopped, they will steal the food and keep them from being able to eat. Here are some strategies to deter ants from food sources inside your home without using poisonous ant sprays.
Use Plastic Storage Bins to Store Food
Storing the food in airtight plastic containers is your first line of defense for how to keep ants away from dog and cat food. Keeping your cat food in the bag makes it easier for ants to invade, so avoid doing this.
You can purchase many different kinds of plastic containers made specifically for storing pet food.
Make a Boundary Around the Food
There are certain substances that ants won’t cross over. Create a barrier with these items around the food to keep ants away from the pet food.
Make a Barrier around Cat Food
- Chalk
- Ground cinnamon
- Coffee grounds
- Chili powder
- Cayenne pepper
- Ash
- Baby powder
- Food grade diatomaceous earth
These substances give ants a bad foot feeling that they can’t stand. Take any of these items and create a circle around your cat’s food bowl to help keep ants from finding their way to your cat’s food.
Keep Their Food Dish Clean
Ants enter your house because they are drawn to the food remnants and crumbs left over after your cat eats. One of the easiest ways to keep ants out of dog food bowl is to wash their dishes regularly.
Keep the Feeding Area Clean
To deter ants from becoming interested in your cat’s food, keep the feeding area clean. After your cat has finished eating, be sure to clean up any food crumbs.
Ants will be deterred from finding the food if the floor is mopped with vinegar or lemon juice solutions. When your cat isn’t eating, taking the bowl off the floor is a great way to prevent ants from contaminating its food.
Use Essential Oils
Many essential oils are an excellent, all-natural way to keep ants away from your cat’s food and repel them. You can wipe the area around their food bowl with a damp cloth that contains a few drops of the following essential oils:
Essential Oils to Keep Ants Away from Cat Food
- Peppermint
- Spearmint
- Clove
- Orange
- Lemon
- Eucalyptus
- Thyme
- Cinnamon
- Cedar wood
The smell of these oils will keep the ants away from any cat or dog food.
Because they can’t stand the strong smell, ants, especially carpenter ants, will stay away from the area around your cat’s bowl if you wipe it down with an essential oil. Additionally, since essential oils don’t contain any harsh chemicals, they are safe to use around animals. These oils’ scents even turn off fire ants!
Create a Moat Around Your Cat’s Food Dish
Since they can’t swim, ants will perish in water very quickly. You can keep the ants away from your cat’s food bowl by creating a moat because they won’t be able to cross the water.
Use a cheap aluminum baking dish that you can get at any grocery store to make a moat. Put your cat’s bowl in the center of the baking dish, then fill the baking dish with water so that it surrounds the bowl.
Additional Homemade Ant Killer Recipes
Boric Acid Ant Killer
The benefit of using this homemade ant-killing recipe is that the ants will bring the toxic mixture back to their colony and feed it to the other ants there. Use this method with caution if you have young children or animals in your home.
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Boric Acid Ant Killer Recipe
- ¼ cup of water
- ½ cup of sugar
- 1 tablespoon boric acid
The ingredients should be combined in a microwave-safe jar. Microwave the jar’s contents until they are warm. The boric acid and sugar should dissolve after about 30 seconds of shaking. Place cotton balls in the mixture to soak.
Place the cotton balls on a sheet of wax paper. Put the wax paper where you’ve seen scout ants.
It’s never enjoyable to discover ants in your cat’s food bowl. You ought to be able to keep the ants out of your kitchen and away from your cat’s food by following the advice given above. Keeping ants out of cat food will also ensure you don’t end up with a pesky ant infestation in other areas of your home.
Summary: How to Keep Ants Out of Cat Food?
As you can see, there are several ways to keep ants out of your cat’s food. In our household, restricting access is the most effective strategy; however, if you must leave food out because you won’t be present when it typically eats, you must use a different strategy. Baking soda is effective. It is cheap and simple to use to build a wall that the ants won’t cross. We only use vaseline when absolutely necessary because it is not environmentally friendly, but it works well in windy conditions where chalk and baking soda won’t work.
We sincerely hope you have found the answers you seek after reading this list and have enjoyed it. Please share these ten tried-and-true ways to prevent ants from contaminating your cat’s food on Facebook and Twitter if we were able to help you keep your cat’s outdoor meal safe.
