Can Fire Ants Kill a Cow?

Fire ants can and will take down and kill a cow, especially the weak, sick, young, and elderly. With this unfortunate fact in mind, control the population of these pests with the proven treatments provided by Fire Ant Specialists. Your farm, pasture, or field will remain up to 95% free of fire ants when you book treatments with us 2-3 times annually. 

If our treatments don’t provide the promised protection level, call us. We’ll come back and do a spot treatment – free of charge.

Livestock and Fire Ants – The Danger and the Solution

Imported red fire ants are a persistent issue, prevalent all over the Southeast region of the US, causing problems in the operations of livestock facilities in particular. 

The sting of this type of ant can cause intense pain and potential allergic reactions. Unfortunately, the venom can lead to allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. Fire ants can cause the death of livestock and people, so protecting your herd and treating the property is essential. 

The eradication of fire ants is a pipe dream. It’s not going to happen without new science, but you can suppress the population by targeting the colony’s reproductive source: the queen. Fire Ant Specialists employs measures that remove the queen’s fertility, killing the colony as the living ants die naturally. 

The red imported fire ant, otherwise known as Solenopsis invicta, came to the US in the early 1930s through the Port of Mobile. This ant flourishes in the country’s Southeast region, especially Florida, because of its love for warmth and humidity, aggressive nature, prodigious breeding habits, and lack of competition for natural resources.

Concerns over fire ants have led to implementing a quarantine to attempt to control their spread. In collaboration with our sister companies, Fire Ant Specialists can serve that entire area, and we can treat up to 1,000 acres per day. Our services are available on weekends, when you may have fewer activities going on, so your workday experiences less disruption. 

The colonies of these ants can have one queen only, or a colony may have many queens. When a colony has one queen, it is very territorial and will war with other colonies, but if the colony is one with multiple queens, it doesn’t. If your property has multi-queen colonies, you may have several colonies within one area, making the population of fire ants vast and dense.

Losses due to fire ants in livestock businesses are not just significant, they can be devastating. They are caused by injury to cattle and workers, damage to equipment, and downtime caused by injuries and damage. When choosing a fire ant treatment method, you’ll need one that can be used around animals, like the one used by Fire Ant Specialists. Our granular bait is regulated and can be used around people and animals without a wait time before entering the property. 

Now that you know that in rare instances, fire ants can kill a cow and that they can routinely damage equipment used in your cattle operations, reach out for effective fire ant treatment. Click here or call 352-291-2687 for a free estimate or to book fire ant treatment from Fire Ant Specialists.