ANTS..... ahhhhh - Page 1

Ok, so how does everyone keep the ants off their tracking bait???

Nero and Deuce both got one up the nostril, and while I might think it's a wee bit funny to hear them
snort, I know that an uncomfortable ant bite in the nose may deter them from wanting to track
further.

Thanks
Melissa

Hey Melissa

     Track very eary in the morning

Portion your bait then freeze it.  Don't use hot dogs.

I'm using a dog food roll. I'll have to try freezing it.

Michael, I will as soon as school starts back up, LOL but for now, I track when I can :)

Melissa

It's difficult to keep the ants off of bait in the summer.

I live in South Florida, plenty of ants and nasty suckers everywhere.  Portion and freeze hot dogs and I never have a problem.

Toby

It is not Ants we have a problem with over here it is Crows. I laid a Track for Gina about half a mile from home put the bait down we use hot dog.
Anyway we get Gina and start the Track she is snuffling along like a Pig and picking little or nothing up. First article she downs then we carry on to the second and third articles very little picking up of any bait, My brother said what are you doing not laying a proper baited track for her, I said i did, something has been on here since i left time about 20 minutes ago. 
The next time i laid the track opposite directions and a zigzag course i did not go home i waited 10 minutes passed then Two Crows arrived and the damn things started picking up the bait they did the track as well as Gina could it was funny to see them weaving in and out at a hop and walk one behind the other. I should have taken a camera if i had known the cause.
Steve1

LMAO @ Steve! That's really funny!

We have enough land available to us that I can lay tracks at home and never use the same place twice. I have to watch certain areas
that the kitties frequent because they too steal the bait. I think the cats can track better at this point then the dogs.

Melissa

Melissa, thats my tracking problem with Apache. He had snorted up an ant and stopped tracking all together. Its a struggle since then, as soon as he saw an ant on the track (food or not), he quit. I was very discouraged going tracking with him. 6mo old Ava is a tracking machine which makes me enjoy tracking once again. So Apache is learning now that quitting is not an option, ants or no ants. He will leave at least half the bait on the track. Used turkey breast over the last 3 weeks with large chicken piece at the end as he is starving at this point. With this "wet" bait we worked through the "omfg...i see an ant" part. A good dog that wont track is just unacceptable. Will see who is more stubborn ;)
Will start him on "baggies" this coming week, which I use like articles (food in approx 8 plastic bags, approx 15 feet apart to start with, no other food on track). Goal... follow scent to plastic baggie with food. I cut the food down starting 2 days before the tracking to just a few crumbs; he then is very very hungry and very very angry....LOL

With Ava I use the Natural Balance rolls. Have you tried using freeze dried liver? The freezing of food didnt work for me, ants were still attracked an mass to the moisture.

You froze the Natural Balance and still had ants?  Several of the advantages of using the NB are the fact that it's non-greasy (grease ants on hot dogs) and somewhat dry.  Portion it, bag it, freeze it, lay the track and by the time you are running it, the (d)iced cubes are thawing.