Ack! Ants in the kibble!

[ladyshiva]

Hey folks,

Well, I started switching my doggy over to Solid Gold (was using Nature's Recipe before) on the recommendations of a pet store owner friend and people on this board. I had opened the 33 lb bag maybe one, one a half, less than 2 weeks ago and today I discovered a whole pile of ANTS crawling all over it and the bookcase that it was leaning against! (Yes, silly me, I keep the kibble inside the house) The open bag top had been rolled close to try to keep the freshness intact, but apparently it didn't prevent the ants from becoming attracted to it.

It hadn't even occurred to me that the kibble would attract ants inside the house, especially since I had the Nature's Recipe bag in the same spot with no problem for a few weeks.

I suppose this should put minds to rest about how "fresh" the ingredients in the Solid Gold kibble is, if the ants made a beeline for it and ignored Nature's Recipe :) (I still had several cups left over to mix in with the SG)

At any rate, now I need to go out and get more. *sigh* But I was wondering if any other SG users could enlighten me on: 1) the shelf life of SG, 2) whether there have been similar problems with ants, and 3) whether, perhaps, I should just get a smaller bag or a bin to pour the kibble into? My doggy eats 10-12 cups a day *wince* and still looks up at me for more, but we were going through the SG fairly slowly thanks to adjusting his diet.

Thanks!

[traci]

I never had that problem yet with Sable's food. I once had that happen with my old cat's food. And all the groceries in the pantry. Wasted lots of money throwing food away. Gross.

Right now Sable is eating 8 cups a day, and wanting more. We put her food in one of those bins, just a general one. Sits in the laundry room. I think we paid $10 for it. Holds a 40lb bag. Which isn't lasting long anymore.

Good luck with the ants.

Traci

[MP]

That's funny that the ants go right for the pricey stuff! "Baby" refused to eat his SG all of a sudden, so I speculate the bag went bad (about 2/3 empty).

If the bag is going to be emptied into a plastic container, I think it is supposed to be food-quality plastic like Vittle Vaults or a product for people food.

I use clothes pins to keep the roll closed tighter, but this one had been on trip and subjected to high temps, which may have done it. Otherwise my experience with the brand has been fine.

mp

[Moose]

We keep our dog food in plastic buckets. I get my hand feeding formula for the birds in these big buckets (they hold 25# of formula). So the buckets are pretty much freebies. I also keep my bird feed in the buckets or it gets buggy. We also use the buckets in the garden, Moose cuts the bottoms off of them and we put the buckets around the tomato plants to protect them. Reuse, reinvent, recycle!!!!!!!

[klejeune]

Before opening the new bag your going to get, place the bag on the floor and make a thick chalk outline around it on the floor and perhaps on the wall also if it leans on the wall. Chalk is supposed to keep ants at bay.

Hope this helps!:)

Kristin, Brycen & Tip

[Zoeys Mom]

I believe the shelf life of SG is only one month AFTER the bag has been opened. I use Flexo Feeders, and I'm able to keep Zoey's food stored in there, with no problems. Yesterday she dropped once piece of kibble on the floor, and I didn't pick it up until later, when unfortunately I saw it because there were Ants ALL over it!!

[Mom x 2]

I keep our dog food in a rubbermaid tub lined with an extra heavy duty trash bag. The bucket is big enough to hold 3-33lb bags of dog food which would last just under a month. If it lasted any longer than that I wouldn't open that many at a time. Also, I keep their dog food bowls on top of it to ask as the raised feeder. There's a lip around the edge so the bowls don't slide off. No way I could keep my dog food outside. The racoons, foxes, squirrels, and opposums would have a field day!
Cindy

[Sharky]

Great inexpensive idea!! I just might try that one. The raised feeds we looked at were all between $20 and $30 dollars, right now we are using my kitchen step stool. (I'm only 5'3" so I'd like my step stool back..:) ) We are currently putting her food in a storage bin we got from SuperPetz for free but only hold 1/2 of the bag of food at a time. I love those Rubbermaid totes, I store all my holiday stuff in them in the garage. Thanks for sharing a simple, wonderful idea!!

[ladyshiva]

Chalk??? That's a new one, I'll have to try it if I don't get a bucket soon (my car broke down earlier this week and I've been browbeating my bf into chauffering me around for errands, LOL).

Thanks. :)