FINCHforum

Hi All,

I have a rather unpleasant problem. Over the summer we had some fruit flies around the house. I always had a basket of fresh veggies on the counter from our garden and that's how it started. Over the years I've had a few of them around in the summer and then they'd disapperar. The problem is they haven't gone away and seem to now be attracted to the birds food. I've put most of the food in the fridge and don't leave out any fruit or veggies anymore but it's not helping. Since the birds are on the back porch which is right next to the kitchen, they are in those two rooms mainly. We keep killing them and there seems to be more and more.

My husband and I are not very pleased and although I don't agree he's talking about getting rid of the birds

I have a 3mos old baby here and I don't want to call an exterminator or uses harsh sprays around the baby and birds. Has anyone ever experienced this and if so have any suggestions how I can get rid of them? I'll be very upset if the birds go.

Thanks in advance,
Renee

I would have thought the cold weather would be killing off the fruit flies. I too have them inside in the birdroom in the summer but not now anymore - too cold for them I presumed. You could get yellow sticky papers meant for catching fruit flies - at least inside. Don't know what else you can use. I'm sure there must be something others have tried / used successfully.

Yes. I thought so too with the cold weather but my house is warm and they are obviously breeding somewhere I'll have to look out for the strips, I don't see them around the stores. I'll have to look for them online.

Renee

I to have the problem. you can get the fly paper at the grocer, in the section where they keep pestasides. They come 4 to a pack they are strips about 2 feet long rolled inside a card board tube you pull the string and out it comes.

James

The pest strips should be good.What about coopex spray?If you have it there.That's safe for birds so it should be ok around babies?

I think I'm going to try the strips. They have some for fruit flies and not those long ugly stips that hang from the ceiling. I've seen them around James and I can't stand them. I don't want to spray anything around now. If it was the summer I could have put the birds on the deck all day and went out with the baby but too cold now.

Anyway, just strange that they seem to have multiplied so much. In the summer there was a few around but now it seems much more. I've only had the finches for about a month but I've had my cockatiel for a year now and never had a problem.

Thanks for the replies!
Renee

You can also take a plastic 2-liter soda bottle, cut the top third off, then place some apple cider vinegar in the bottom, place the top third upsidedown inside the bottom, like a funnel. The fruit flies are supposed to fly in and can't find their way out--can't imagine why it works, but it does.

I had forgotten about that inverted pop bottle idea - good suggestion Sally!

"I'm representing queens she was raised out in brooklyn."

Thanks Sally, I'll have to try that as well. I read online somewhere about using red wine vinegar. I put a few plates out a few weeks ago. I left them out for a few days till I couldn't stand the smell anymore and they didn't even go near it ;(

Thanks again all,
Renee

I think perhaps a malt vinegar would work better... from experience I've seen fruit flies in bottles of malt vinegar at (believe it or not) a restaurant near where I work. It was the last time I went there!

good one sally.now you mention that I have seen them sold commercially.

Funny, the flies have seemed to disappear on their own. I see a few but definetly not as many as before. Hopefully, since it's getting colder here they will disappear. I still ordered the strips but for now I think it's under control I hope.

Renee

Good to hear they are finally disappearing. What are your daytime temps outside? Do you still have your birds outside?

My porch is indoors. It's heated. Outside it's about 33 right now. It snowed for the first time last night but not much this morning. In their room it's in the 70's at least.

Renee