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Articles by Sandra Sleezer
5 focal points for cattle farm inspection & treatment
Neogen Fly control usually occurs in commercial accounts like restaurants, but many PMPs are facing new challenges in specialty markets, such as animal production and hobby farms. On cattle farms, there’s a heightened risk of fly presence thanks to the large size of cows and their waste, providing ideal conditions for flies to flourish. For a technician, managing such environments can be challenging without prior experience. Here are five focal points for cattle farm inspection and treatment: 1.
Address small flies with bio-sanitation
Rockwell Labs Small flies — fruit flies, phorid flies and drain flies — are a sanitation pest that can be challenging to control, given their ability to multiply quickly when their food sources and breeding sites are available. A successful integrated pest management (IPM) program will include sanitation measures that address organic build-up and chronic moisture problems.
Look for original breeding sites of house flies
MGK While many pest problems arise on-site, house flies and several other fly species can fly long distances; their original breeding sites can go unnoticed if you only inspect the on-site area. A livestock facility, dumpster, dog park, junkyard or other breeding source could be nearby, but hidden from view with only a line-of-sight inspection. Google Maps can be a huge help in finding nearby potential sources.
Dusts contributing to cockroach control
Dusts can be excellent tools for cockroach control. Both boric acid and silica dusts, for example, are odorless and non-repellent and will not interfere with baits. Boric acid is the best option in damp areas like commercial kitchens and needs to be ingested to kill. Self-grooming insects such as cockroaches pick up the dust when walking through it and ingest it when grooming. Boric acid dust that is super-fine milled will stick to insects.
Using abamectin for pest control
Abamectin is a unique active ingredient, despite being a long-standing tool in pest management. Derived from a soil microorganism (Streptomyces avermitilis), it functions as a broad-spectrum nerve toxin. When formulated into dry flowable bait, it can reduce exposure to non-target insects. As a dry flowable bait, abamectin can be effective against ants, cockroaches and other crawling insects. The beauty of the formulation is that it allows the product to penetrate deep harborage sites.
Marketing blueprint helps guide growth
To set yourself up for success in 2024, you need a plan. On a recent Pest Posse TV live stream — a monthly segment I host with The Pest Posse Co-owner Culley Christensen — guest Casey Lewis, CEO of Rhino Digital Media, discussed a marketing plan spreadsheet he developed specifically for pest control companies. This spreadsheet serves as a comprehensive blueprint for both the marketing agency and the pest control company, facilitating the clarification of goals, strategies and budget allocation.
Confirm your knowledge of ants
Editor’s Note: Questions for this month’s test were contributed by Foster Brusca; Doug Foster; Jerry Schappert, ACE; Pete Schopen and Mark VanderWerp, BCE. Want to know how you did? The answers are listed at the bottom of the page. Turning to truckers to help stop the spread Red (Solenopsis invicta) and black (S. richteri) imported fire ants are native to South America. In the 1930s, they were inadvertently introduced into the U.S. at the port of Mobile, Ala.
Using IGR for cockroach control
When treating cockroaches, the simple addition of an insect growth regulator (IGR) can make a big difference. IGRs break the life cycle of the cockroach. If resistance to adulticides is already in the population, IGRs will add another mode of action to help combat that resistance. Adult cockroaches that enter a location treated with an IGR can become sterilized, and juveniles that encounter an IGR may not be able to develop properly. Every infestation starts small, then grows into a serious problem.
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