Fire ants can be aggravated easily and their bites can be painfully annoying. Just walking with 15 feet of a fire ant hill can aggravate them enough to swarm and attack you. Just in case you run into trouble with fire ants, here are some methods on how to treat fire ant bites.
How to Treat Fire Ant Bites
1. First of all, get rid of the fire ants, because once they start biting you, they won’t stop, even if they’re out of venom. Neither will their friends. So brush them off, and get away from the area that the attack occurred. Slapping them will only aggravate them more.
2. Wash the bites with cold water or put ice directly on the bites to numb the pain.
3. Next, cover the bites with alcohol to neutralize the poison. You can dab alcohol onto the bites with a washcloth or a cotton swab. You can also take aspirin instead of alcohol to dull the effects of the poison.
4. Put an anti-itch cream on the bites and make sure you don’t scratch them. Scratching them can re-aggravate them, and make them scar.
5. If the ice and cold water didn’t numb the pain enough, try soaking the bites in salt water. This will kill the pain for hours.
6. Use Neosporin or any antibiotic to keep the bites from getting infected. Fire ant bites are notorious for developing into infections.
Additional Help
If your fire ant bites become infected or will not subside with these methods, see a doctor immediately. If you have a fire ant infestation, talk to a pest control professional. TalkLocal will put you in contact with up to three pest control professionals in your area who will be able to rid your home of fire ants.
