[quote]The only cat I ever owned (who ever REALLY owns a cat?) used to put bird feet under my computer desk for me. I hated it but knew she loved me.

Lorace[/quote]

The presentation of the prize is half of the fun of it for all cats of the world. Honestly Joyful, no offense but a cat wouldn't stand up to the groundhogs around here. LOL. I've seen mature groundhogs that are at least 25 pounds. We always shot them with a 22 rifle. This method would be a little tougher in town or around a building, but they do have a tendency to wander so there still could be hope. Also a friend of mine in our local town has live traps and will help people in such a situation. Maybe there is someone in your town that could help you out that way. Just a few suggestions.

Kent

Quote: Joyful Girl

Yep. She loved me from afar. That cat hunted so much, she didn't even eat cat food most days, and she was always torn up from the battle. I do miss that unfriendly kitty.

Funny that you should call the kitty unfriendly, because the cat I was speaking about of mine, I named her Friendly. The neighborhood was loaded with feral cats and she walked up to me one day and adopted me! She was something else. Loved her.

And Kent, WOW~ your groundhogs at 25lbs. You should be able to train them to be WatchHogs. lol (contact Harry Potter for the Warthogs)

Lorace

help please i just can't get rid of flies in my scalp they fliy around and walk in my hair i have try so many products even insecticides hard ones to g et rid od them. but the only thing worst it's that my sclap it's so damage now ! How can i get rid of them ? Please it's so disgusting and frustrating to have that ! I am begging for some help !!

HI Help! I cant find anything to kill fleas. saw your msg that was written last year and saw you had something to kill fleas and eggs. PLease tell me what it is-the name and the address of company if you please. I am gonna die if I cant kill these things! I've tried like 5 different things and they don't work. I am so desperate. I need whatever advice you can give me as well. thanks so much! ps- please send to skitts1963@hotmail.com. Thankyou, Coria

Even when I had a couple of dogs with free run of the garage, I never really had a flea problem. Their dog house and beds were lined with cedar chips. Their beds were aired out or washed whenever they started to look grungy, then dried and treated with natural cedar or lavender oils. The dogs didn't seem to mind as long as the scent came from real cedar or natural lavender. (They strongly objected to anything in a spray can.) I also added a pinch of brewer's yeast to their food daily, and a few drops of apple cider vinegar to their drinking water.

As to carpet in their living area - I would lock the dogs outside, then cover the carpet lightly with either powdered diatomaceous earth (the type used in the garden, not the type used for swimming pools) or powdered borax ( that would be the "20 Mule Team Borax" type laundry booster that you can find in the laundry aisle), use a broom to sweep it into the carpet, then vacuum it using a HEPA filter type bag. The bag was then taken out, sealed completely, then sealed in a plastic bag to go out with the trash. Then I let the dogs back in. Dogs and humans should not breathe the DE or the borax, which is why I used a HEPA filter for vacuuming.

That's it for fleas, even with dogs who ran lose in the country. Getting rid of ticks took a little more work, but that's another story.

More info on:

Natural Flea Prevention

Diatomaceous Earth

Borax

Here is a trick that someone told my mother. And it works.
What you do is get a clear plastic container (not very deep) and put in some warm water and a touch of dishwashing
soap. Put it under a night light when you go to bed. When you wake up the next morning you will be amazed. Keep repeating until the fleas are gone. If fleas are in more than one room you need to do it for every room. Hope it helps your flea problem.

I just wanted to say thank you, from one Ada to another! :o) I really appreciate the ideas for dealing with fleas and fruit flies safely and organically. Also, I love reading "Ada, you're great!" "Thanks so much, Ada, you're the best!" and other such accolades, even if I'm not the actual Ada doing all this smart stuff! ;o)

I will definitely be keeping my eye on this message board for other great ideas!

Ada (Floyd)

Last week I started noticing gnats or fruit flies in my apartment. It's very disturbing to me because I am a neat freak. I don't leave fruit out, I don't let my trash build up and my place is very clean. I can't understand what's attracting them. I went through my cupboards and cleaned out anything that was open, (cereal, pasta, etc) and it seems like they really came out of the woodworks then. I've literally been killing gnats for hours (not kidding). I set out some vinegar mixed with soap. They'll fly around the rim, but won't go inside. I checked my windows to make sure they weren't getting in that way. I ran my dishwasher (which I never use) to make sure they weren't coming from there. I even poured bleach down my sinks and put down the stoppers to keep them out. I've also called an exterminator and he told me there was really nothing they could do for gnats. Do you have any ideas on how to get rid of them. Like I said, I don't have plants or anything sweet in my apartment. The only fruit I have is sealed in the refrigerator. Please Help!!!

Construct a trap by placing a paper funnel (rolled from a sheet of notebook paper) into a jar which is then baited with a few ounces of cider vinegar. Place the jar trap(s) wherever fruit flies are seen. This simple but effective trap will soon catch any remaining adult flies which can then be killed or released outdoors.

Construct a trap by placing a paper funnel (rolled from a sheet of notebook paper) into a jar which is then baited with a few ounces of cider vinegar. Place the jar trap(s) wherever fruit flies are seen. This simple but effective trap will soon catch any remaining adult flies which can then be killed or released outdoors.

For killing fleas, sprinkle table salt on the floor very liberally, let it stay at least 12 hours (I do it overnight) then vacuum. Don't forget under beds, in closets or area rugs.

The salt we add to our food is poisonous to fleas, but won't harm children or house pets.

One important note - this method does not kill the flea eggs and must be repeated a few times to get rid of an infestation. If you can, I suggest leaving the salt in your carpet for a week, then vacuuming.

Lord help me!!

These suckers are not only in my kitchen, they are in my laundry room, bathrooms, bedroom, EVERYWHERE!

One of the things I got rid of is all of my potpourri....so for those of you who have this in your house...sorry! Although it makes for really good decor and a pleasant smell, unfortunately, these buggers like it too.

Thanks for the tips...I will try a couple and see how it goes....LET THE WAR BEGIN!

well this time last year i dont remember having hardly any flies in the kitchen..

however this year i have had lots and all seem to be in the kitchen. yesterday is when it all started, through out the day we killed and got rid of 28 flies and today when we got home there was 14 of them. there the normal house hold fly you get the blue/black ones. but what we have noticed is the 28 we got rid of and killed yesterday were very fat and were easy to catch as they didnt seem to want to fly yet all the ones from today were fat but flying all the time so it took longer to kill them or get them out of the house. not far from our house is few big trees all different types could these be a problem? but then its only in the kitchen the flies seem to be?!!!

yesterday when this happened i we went round the kitchen and cleaned everywhere again and also looked under everything and couldnt find anything? so we closed all the windows in the house and sealed up the air vent in the kitchen. i closed all the doors when i left home today and no windows were open yet we get home and were amazed to find yet more flys, so we opened the window in the kitchen and uncovered the air vent.they always seem to say on the window too. we have an alovra plant in the kitchen on the window seal could it be this? not that we have noticed anything? is there anyway of catching them in a jar or something so when we get hoe we can just throw the jar out?

is there anything that can be put inthe kitchen to stop flys getting in? any idea where these flys r coming from. we have a dog and his very clean and gets a bath one a week, his food and water is in the kitchen too should i move it to different room? i am really hating all the flys as they make me feel like im a dirty person, but im not and its making me not want to eat food from the fride even though i know they havent been in there.

PLEASE HELP ME SOMEONE!! im at the end of it now i feel like there is something wrong.

many thanks.
hope all this info is enough?

Charmagne

I don't know if anyone is still reading this thread, but we have fruit flies.

Here's what I've done already or am planning to do:
1. A lot of cleaning--I've moved everything I can move and washed it down with pine sol. Things I can't move I've just washed as best I can. I've wiped the now naked counters with pine sol. In all this cleaning and moving I didn't find any foresaken bananas or larvae/eggs.
2. I bought one trap for $10.99 (US dollar). Now that I've seen how easy they are to make, I feel silly but that's ok, I'm still going to make more.
3. I'll do the tape-on-the-drain trick tonight. If it looks like they are breeding down there, I've found a place to order something online.

I have 3 questions, if you would be so kind:
1--What should I do about my houseplants? Is there something to wipe them down with? Is Bti only good if they have laid eggs in the soil?
2--Are clean, wet dishes a breeding ground for fruit flies? We usually wash our dishes in one side of the sink and pile them to dry in the other. When I went to put the dishes away last night, a bunch of fruit flies swarmed out at me. I'll do the tape-over-the-drain trick tonight, but in the meantime should we get a dish-drying rack? My fiance doesn't want to b/c our apartment is small and cluddered-enough already, but he'll go along with it if it will help.
3--If they are coming from the drain trap, does anyone know of something I could get from a local hardware store to pour down there, rather than ordering by mail and paying shipping? I don't want to just trap them forever, and I do like to let my fruit ripen outside of the fridge.

Thanks in advance for any help!

PS- Ada, if you're still reading, I cracked up about you not sharing your merlot with fruit flies; I wouldn't share either! Luckily, I have some old red zinfandel that isn't good for drinking, but I have been saving (tightly closed) for cooking.

dear CHARMAGNE your problem was exactly the same as mine . closing all windows at night and waking up the next morning with big fat lazy bluebottles on the kitchen WINDOW (very easy to kill) they actually spin on there backs before dying , LIKE BREAKDANCING ! RECENTLY I BLOCKED UP MY CHIMNEY IN THE SITTINGROOM . 4 weeks ago i heard scratching noise comimg from it, i knew it was a bird trapped but i could'nt do anything about ! To cut along story short, it rotted at the bottom of my chimney and maggots formed to bluebottles. i only found them tonight. maybe in other cases it might be dead mice, bird etc.......! thanks for your comment ,i thought it was only happening to me. CHECK EVERYWHERE BECAUSE EVERYTHING YOU SAID HAPPENED TO ME

all you need is water, dish soap and spray bottle. and about 10min.

Well I've been fighting fruit flies for about 3weeks now. I've spent over 30.00 on things to kill them with. And I found an easy and cheap way. Oh and safe way for your kitchen. All you have to use is dish soap and water. You will get your walls wet and floors wet but it works and they die. Yes you will have to invest about 10min-20min of your time but its worth it. I promise ya. Have fun

What poison did you use and where can it be purchased? I have cage traps but want the critters dead as there are too many of them. But I don't want them to suffer too much, just die quickly. What do you suggest? Thank you!