Natural pest control in the kitchen? LOL

[hippywife]

I don't know why or how but we have been finding little frogs in our kitchen now for several weeks. We only find one at a time, usually first thing in the morning, and throw them outside. This makes about ten of them! This time my husband decided we would leave the latest one to possibly help control the fruit flies, because we eat mostly fruits and veggies they have been getting a little out of control.

So here's my latest kitchen assistant, I guess. We know it's a she because she hasn't uttered a sound. Some of the others have.



I filled a little saucer of water for her and sat her in it.



They have all been confining themselves to the corner by the microwave or they sit on top of my stand mixer right next to it or on top of the goose neck faucet.

I had bought a small venus flytrap plant but they fruit flies are so light, they can land on the flowers with complete immunity. So far the best fruit fly remedy was contrived by my husband. I had an empty Earthbound Farms lettuce container and he poked holes in the lid. He then laid a banana peel inside, about half covered it with water and drizzled the water with dish soap so they would sink when they landed. Really works pretty good, a lot better than the cider vinegar version.

[bicentennial_baby]

1. Our solution:

ALL food scraps go in a plastic bag in the freezer. The only food waste that is allowed in the garbage is coffee grounds. We do have fruit on the table, and the occasional onions or tomatoes, but we never have fruit flies. :shrug:

[hippywife]

2. We compost all of our kitchen scraps.

I have a large container with a pail inside. I would love to find something I could attach to the top of the lid that would kill the fruit flies without tainting the scraps that go out to the compost pile with any chemicals. I also keep many of our fresh fruits and veggies on the countertop rather than in the fridge.

Fruit flies aren't usually really that big of a nuisance until there are so many of them. I'm sure living in an apartment several floors up it's a different story for you and sniffa.

[Warpy]

3. It sounds like your amphibian friends will do a good job

and other than wiping down surfaces before you put food on them, I can't see any reason in the world for refusing to tolerate your guests.

I tolerate spiders for the same reason.

[hippywife]

5. She was on top

of the stand mixer early this morning as I was working in the kitchen. I was working all around and above her and she didn't move at all. A little bit later, she hopped across to the microwave into her saucer of water for a bit then went behind the microwave to sleep for the day. I think she's getting into the rhythm of the kitchen.

[Warpy]

7. I'm jealous, I have to admit

I was the type of little girl who loved worms and frogs and bugs.

The only critters I've had visit my kitchen in NM have been a whiptail lizard and the neighbor's cat. Both were welcome. I had one line of pissants going after the cat's food, swept em up and mopped the trail with white vinegar and they never came back.

[hippywife]

8. The years I've spent out here

on "the farm" have been some of the happiest of my life. Once I got over the scorpions, that is. Not so many of those now that the house is nearer to being finished. We have pretty little blue and green striped skinks that get in once in awhile, too.

Thanx for that info on mopping the ant trail with vinegar. I'll have to remember that the next time we have any come in. Been a while for that, too, thank goodness.

[Stinky The Clown]

4. Our dogs would eat those

Sparkly made this video of them chasing a backyard visitor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAh2FS5RBTM

(The bunny was long gone before we let the dogs loose. Actually, they never catch anything ..... but they do keep the <very destructive> deer at bay.)

The dogs are Molly, the Big Wussy Shepard, and Doovy (no, not doobey :) ) Haskell (Eddie's canine reincarnation), who is forever getting Molly to do stuff, like go into the creek and come back smelling like a swamp, all the while acting all sweet and innocent.

[hippywife]

6. Lovely puppies!

Your dogs really crack me up. They look like really fun companions.

Yeah, our cats would, too, if they knew she existed. So far, they're just babies and are only interested in chasing each other.

[Stinky The Clown]

9. The kitties are adorable!

[pengillian101]

10. Now how cute is that, LOL

Your very own 'kitchen assistant'. I love it when you post your pics! :silly:

[hippywife]

11. I suppose

we oughta name her, huh? :hi:

[NMDemDist2]

12. you could name her Sarah

:evilgrin:

or Fiona the fruit fly eating frog

[hippywife]

13. Fiona it is!

I like that! LOL. I think I'm going to be hearing Sarah enough that I'm going to hurl many times before November.

She's already getting the Bush treatment. Every time I hear her on NPR as I'm driving, my reaction is, "Oh, fuck you!" as I turn down the volume. :eyes:

[hippywife]

14. She's awake.

Fiona just appeared from behind the microwave while I was doing the last of the dishes and is sitting on top of it.

She's on fly patrol. :patriot:

[blondie58]

15. oh, how cool- I am jealous!!

although I don't think that she is a Sarah. She is simply too beautiful. How did they get in?

[hippywife]

16. I wish we knew.

Haven't the faintest clue. She isn't ruffled by us in the slightest, tho. I was just in the fridge and got myself a handful of tiny champagne grapes and gave her a very tiny one. I set it right next to her and she didn't budge. It's almost as if she's as interested in us as we are in her.

:hi:

[japple]

17. What a sweet little frog. And your kittens are precious. If your

froggie ever decides to leave the kitchen, apple cider vinegar (with the mother) works wonders. I just put about a tablespoon in a babyfood jar and they drown like crazy. I had tried other remedies (except for the amphibian kind) from beer to balsamic vinegar, but the ACV works best. A few skinks or anoles have visited my kitchen, but I always get them out in a hurry lest my killing machine (Lola cat) finds them.

[hippywife]

20. Thanx, japple.

So far Fiona and the banana trap are working wonders! :hi:

[Arkansas Granny]

18. Several years ago I had a "house toad". Two or three times a week I would

find him late at night hopping from the dining room into the front room. I would scoop him up, put him outside and a couple of nights later, there he would be again. I was pretty certain it was the same one because he/she had a distinctive reddish color which was unlike the brownish-gray toads that I usually saw out in the yard. I never did figure out how it got into the house, but putting it out became so routine that it stopped trying to avoid me when I went to pick it up.

[hippywife]

21. I always figure

if there's one, there are others. I'm learning lately tho that frogs are very much creatures of habit. :hi:

[Arkansas Granny]

25. Yep. Where I live now I have an abundance of toads, but I don't use any pesticides

in the yard, so there are plenty of bugs for them to eat and lots of shady, protected places for them to hide around the house in the daytime. My grandchildren used to take flashlights outside at night and count how many toads they could find. One evening they counted 26 toads in one trip around the house.

[wryter2000]

19. That's so cute!

I'd love to have that little visitor in my house.

We have cute newts here, but I'm not sure they'd be tame enough to keep in the house.

[hippywife]

22. Living in a rural area

I've learned that you're going to have to live with critters whether I want to or not. Once I got over my insane fear of the scorpions, I've managed pretty well. :hi:

[hippywife]

23. She let me pet her this morning

before she enjoyed a short dip in her pool and then want to bed. She really has become part of the household.

I don't know how long frogs generally live or how long she can live indoors so I'm starting to get a little concerned that this may not be the best thing for her.

[wryter2000]

24. Awesome

I am soooooooooo jealous.

Why not put her back outside for a while? It sounds as if she'll come back.

[Rhiannon12866]

26. How adorable! Do you know what she eats, besides fruit flies?

I had a frog as a kid, raised her from a tadpole. I have no idea whether my frog was male or female, but I named her Susan...:D

[hippywife]

27. I really haven't researched it

but I should. I know champagne grapes apparently aren't appealing. I tried giving her a very tiny one but it was still there the next afternoon.

I'm pretty sure she ate a mosquito this morning before retiring for the day.

[Rhiannon12866]

28. This might help...

:hi:

Some Common Questions
Concerning Keeping Frogs and Toads as Pets

http://allaboutfrogs.org/info/doctor/common.html

[hippywife]

29. Thanx!

I'm figuring I need to bring in more flies. I never thought I'd hear myself say that! LOL Living surrounded by cows, horses, and chickens certainly allows for plenty of those little buggers!

[Rhiannon12866]

30. It sounds like you have plenty, LOL, fortunate for your frog... :D

The article mentioned crickets, but I'd think crickets would be too large for the average frog, at least those I've seen...:shrug:

[hippywife]

31. Fiona's out hunting early tonight.

I sat a glass with a little bit of apple juice on the counter to attract the fruit flies, and boy has it! Fiona wasted little time getting over there tonight. I wish I had gotten a pic of her looking down into the glass at all the dead floaters. LOL

[mtnester]

32. You still have her?

OMG you are lucky. What a delighful addition to your kitchen. I read this thread a while ago, never dreaming you would have her this long.

[hippywife]

34. Yep.

She seems entirely happy here with her surroundings and the routine of the house. I'm just hoping the kittens never catch sight of her! They did hear her once and got curious but I was able to divert their attention elsewhere. Whew! LOL

[NMDemDist2]

33. so the name stuck huh?? cool!

she's actually so sweet looking I'm glad she's there doing her job

:hi:

[hippywife]

35. Of course!

It's a great name for her and someone really nice suggested it. :hug:

[hippywife]

36. The further adventures of Fiona.

Last night while I was in the midst of frying the chicken, I went down to the other end of the counter and saw Fiona sitting on the top of the coffeemaker covered in flour and there were these two very distinct froggy paw prints in flour on the front of the dark blue stand mixer. She had jumped down into my leftover flour mix for the chicken dredge. :rofl:

I had set it down there to put away and save for later use but I just threw it away. She had to get in her pool and clean off.

Today, I heard some loud chirping behind the microwave. She's never chirped before now so either she's just starting or another one has gotten in and she has a mate. Who knows? She did stay up until afternoon today watching me clean and cook. I think she feels rather secure here with us.

[mtnester]

37. Girl, you are so lucky to have that kind of entertainment

you ought to set a webcam up

Adventures of Fiona, the kitchen frog

[hippywife]

38. Between her and

the chickens and kitties there's lots of smiles and laughs to be had around here. The chickens especially crack me up when they get to running across the yard. If you're standing behind them they look like a bunch of old women in mourning garb who've hiked up there skirts and bustles and just took off bouncing across the yard. No matter how many times I see it, it still cracks me up. :rofl:

[pengillian101]

39. You crack us up, hippywife

Keep the great toady photos coming - hilarious! I hope he fares well indoors over the winter. :-)

"the chickens and kitties there's lots of smiles and laughs to be had around here. The chickens especially crack me up when they get to running across the yard. If you're standing behind them they look like a bunch of old women in mourning garb who've hiked up there skirts and bustles and just took off bouncing across the yard. No matter how many times I see it, it still cracks me up. :rofl:"

Pics or video would be great for those of us who live vicariously.

:hi:

[hippywife]

42. I'll have to have my husband

to see if he can get a quick little clip of them running with his camera. It really is a hoot! :rofl:

[Hekate]

40. LOL. I came by here because I was about to have an anxiety attack...this is wonderful!

I love your toad! We used to get lizards in Hawaii, which was great because they eat bugs. But the toads there were nothing you'd want to live with. Your Fiona is beautiful, and very entertaining.

:hi:

Hekate

[hippywife]

43. So happy to have provided

a little diversion to prevent your anxiety attack. We get little blue tailed skinks sometimes, too, but we haven't let them stay. LOL

:hi:

[hippywife]

44. delete n/t

[riverdeep]

41. Glad I stumbled across this post.

I meant to hit the computer users group, accidentally hit the cooking group, and thought, eh, while I'm here.

The Adventures of Fiona the Frog™. I love it.

Question: do you ever wonder about sanitary issues? I mean, certain mice carry lyme disease, iguanas can carry salmonella, etc., maybe I'm hypochondriacal, but having a frog, even a cute one, going over my counters would make me think of that stuff- are they carrying some weird bacteria?

I hope that's not the case, for one thing, she matches your countertop perfectly.

[hippywife]

45. The Final Further Adventures of Fiona.

Well, I hadn't seen her for three days and was getting pretty worried. I even pulled out the microwave and couldn't find her. Then I was standing at the stove last night and looked up on my pot rack and there she was, much farther down the counter than she'd ever been. She was sitting up there on top of one of my glass pan lids so I caught sight of her from the bottom.

The fruit flies are becoming few and she's staying out and awake longer all the time. I think I may have to take her out and release her after the chickens go to bed. I know she won't be able to survive well inside indefinitely. It will be kind of sad to see her go but it will be for the best for her.

Thanx to everyone for sharing in the fun with me while it lasted. :hi:

[sazemisery]

46. Bye, Fiona, we will miss you as much as hippywife will

This has been so much fun to read. I bet she finds her way back in before the weekend is over.

:hi: to you HW. Been lurking lately as work has piled up.

[hippywife]

47. Good to see you!

I've been so busy this week, I haven't even had time to so much as lurk. LOL

Hope all is well down your way. :hug:

[sazemisery]

48. All is well just really busy n/t

[hippywife]

49. The Final Chapter.

This morning, I saw Fiona on top of the pot rack above the stove again. Once again, she sat on top of my large glass pot lid for awhile, then I saw her move to one of the side rails and look longingly at the window. I knew it was time. I took her outside and sat her on top of the pallet composter by the creekbed. She sat there for a little while and I went to let the chickens out of their pen for the day. I heard the cries of large birds in the woods by the creekbed and worried they might see her even tho she seemed to change her color to match the washed out gray of the old pallets. I went back and scooted her along until she jumped down into the high grass. I came back inside and took her pool off the top of the microwave and dumped it out in the sink.

We will miss having her around; it was fun and interesting while it lasted. I just hope that she will fair well out there where she really belongs and that the final chapter of her visit with us is just the first chapter of a good long froggy life.

Adios, Fiona. :hi:

[mtnester]

50. You have a good soul

you will reincarnate well

:)

[La Lioness Priyanka]

51. so adorable

[hippywife]

52. The saga continues.

Well, two days after the last post, I mentioned to my husband that I almost looked for Fiona out of habit when I came down in the morning, just out of habit. He came into the kitchen a little later and told me to look on top of the stand mixer. Well, there she was!

I had thought that it was odd that the frog I took out seemed a tad bigger and a little lighter in color but I thought she was growing and changing. It also started chirping loudly when I cupped it in my hands to take it out. We hadn't seen her at all for three days before that and we had heard some loud chirping sounds from behind the microwave just before she disappeared.

My theory is that, since she had never chirped before, I musta taken her boyfriend outside. LOL I'm still gonna have to free her eventually, and probably soon. The weather here has turned chilly and the fruit fly supply has tanked. She won't survive the winter in the house, I fear. I'm thinking I'll wait until this weekend.

[hippywife]

53. Fiona wishes everyone

a very good morning! LOL She now enjoys sitting atop my banana hanger.

[wryter2000]

54. She's so adorable

I'm jealous.

[pengillian101]

56. LOL She now enjoys sitting atop my banana hanger.

Wow, that is a precious photo! Thanks for posting it.

I thought Fiona high-tailed it outside for the winter. That pic is the best ever!

[pengillian101]

55. My little house mouse invasion, once again - every Fall!

Mice just love to invade rural homes and I have known that for years. My many cats have done their jobs for decades. My current two are getting old - almost 20 years old.

Sneakers just sleeps and snores all day.

Scootie still has some spunk in her, even at her age. A mouse - is a real trophy catch. The past few days, she is finding the mice indoors and laying them at the back doormat.

What a mouser! I hate to think of the little meeses invading us upstairs, so I am so extremely thankful! She gets treats. :hi:

[hippywife]

57. I hate mouse invasions!

In the over 11 years I've lived here, we've had two. One was just last year. It drives me crazy!

We have a 12 year old arthritic cat who no longer cares to chase them down. But we just got two kitties who should prove to be great mousers.

Good luck with heading off your invasion. :hug:

BTW, did you see the chicken video I posted in the family chat thread just for you? LOL

[pengillian101]

58. BTW, did you see the chicken video I posted in the family chat thread just for you? LOL

NO I missed seeing it.
***


Just for me? That must have been the hennie hustle, eh? I live vicarious, lol. Please post a link pic - Thanks :hi:

[hippywife]

59. It wasn't quite what we were going for

but we'll keep trying. :rofl:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=236&topic_id=49431&mesg_id=49661

I'm heading to bed. Have a good night! :hi: