Traumatized by ants!!!

A zillion teeny tiny ants have swarmed my cats' feeding area. I have scrubbed down everything, removed every spec of food but I am afraid they will return -- any pet-friendly methods to deter or destroy ants?

Thanks

* First, cracks and crevices should be sealed to eliminate passages into the home. If you do not seal entry points, ants will probably find their way into your house at some later time.
* Second, scrub around entry points with a detergent (to remove the trail pheromone) and spray a residual insecticide around entry points.

copy and pasted from a website on t he net.

Thanks for the tip--what do I use as a sealant? Are these chemicals really pet-safe?

If you have an idea where they're coming from, I strongly recommend Terro (sp?) ant poison. I used to come in a little bottle with orange labeling--you put a small drop (no bigger than a dime) on a piece of cardboard or jar lid in the ant path. They eat it and take it *home* and it quickly kills the population. Way back in college we had an invasion in my dorm and a few well-placed drops ended the entire problem quickly. The only problem is that you would need to be able to put it where the kitties can't eat it--I'm guessing it would be bad for them. In a window or under a cabinet where the cats can't reach could be perfect.

A year or so ago I found it in little plastic containers that seemed fairly pet proof--you cut off a small section and the ants crawl up a ramp to a pool of the stuff--all covered.

I have used Terro countless times in my life and it has never failed me.

Good luck!

Here you go.....

http://www.orangeguard.com/

Non toxic. Safe for humans and pets. Smells okay (makes the floor a bit sticky though)

You can usually find it at health food stores. Try Back to the Land

honestly, i always use the combat baits you get at the grocery store. i had ants a few months after i moved to my current place. i cleaned everything well and put the baits around the house. the toughest part was putting them in places the cats wouldn't get at them and bat them around like hockey pucks.