Gnats Coming out of Litter Box

By Jenna (Guest Post)

I recently found a stray cat and DO NOT have a litter box, it uses the tub in the bathroom and there are ALWAYS gnats. I have to believe that it is coming from within it's feces and has absolutely NOTHING to do with kitty litter.

By Angela (Guest Post)

I have been having the same problem with my litter box I clean it and they reinfest. They get into my compost, kitchen sink etc like fruit flies but they seem to be too big to be fruit flies as some people have suggested,are much more annoying and I really think they are biting my cats and dog also. I havent found a definite solution yet but since it is winter here I have been opening the windows and freezing them out which is helping but so far not a solution. I put my cats litter outside today and hope that will kill off any remaining ones. I did not have this problem when I used different litter but since switching back to regular cat litter they have appeared. I will try changing the kind of litter, putting the kitchen compost outside and write back with any results.

By Amber H. (Guest Post)

The vinegar trick seems to be working. what are some other tricks.

By Amber H. (Guest Post)

For some reason all of a sudden gnats have been spotted n my bathroom around my plants. I don't know where they could have come from. It can't be my plants because they were here before i even started to plant my plants. They showed up in my bathroom one day. It was about 5 of them and I killed them but they just kept showing up. Are they coming inside my house just because it is getting cold outside?

In my kitchen they just started to show up. I noticed them about a week 2 weeks ago. How do i get rid of them. I need to know before thanksgiving comes because i don't want them to be all over my food. The problem started off in my bathroom and has spread. Those little bugs are such annoying pests.I need remedies now! Quick. Please.

By cindy (Guest Post)

Not sure if this is the problem. These bugs fly around only one at a time, they are black with white wings, very very small in size. But seem to like the garbage can as well.
they also fly to the light like any bug, and like food. Can't seem to see anything coming out of the litter box per say. They are almost the size of a flea. They could be fruit flies, could someone find a solution and a product to kill whatever is infesting the house?

By (Guest Post)

Are they coming from worms in the cat poops in the litter box? Do we need to treat the cats for worms?

By Carissa (Guest Post)

Would these bugs be biting the cat? I think we have them and I think they are biting our cat!

By Shari (Guest Post)

Does anyone know what the egg of a gnat looks like?

By Gma in Texas (Guest Post)

SOLUTION: My problem started a short time after I started using a "crystals" type litter. After reading a post here that said they used Fresh Step Scoopable and never had a problem, I decided to give it a try. I emptied the litter box, washed it out, and refilled it with Fresh Step Scoopable. I left my dish with "apple cider vinegar with a dab of liquid dish soap" on the counter to catch the last of the renegade gnats, for a day, but it has been two days now, and no more gnats. Hurray!

By SoSweet (Guest Post)

I have been struggling with the same issues. I did initially clean out the box but my down fall was that I placed the clean box back in the same spot. Yes, it got reinfested. This litter box was in the bathroom, in a dark corner. It seems that these "gnats" tend to like dark areas a lot. Thanks for all the suggestions and info, even from 2004.

By Winter Dryden (Guest Post)

I have also had these, they are especially bad in the bathrooms, kitchen, & litter. I refer to them as "kamikaze gnats" because they will fly right into your mouth, nose, or even into hot food. They are fruit flies. They like the litter, and they LOVE bananas. If your gnats have stripes on them, this is probably what they are. Here is a better link to decscribe them: http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/ef621.asp

By gillie (Guest Post)

man, it's like they appeared in a week and have totally taken over my house! i'm being dive bombed! they are in my trash and litter, so i'm constantly picking up trash, changing the litter box and taking out the trash. nothing is working. those little buggers are determined to ruin my life! i guess i'll try the fly paper thingys cause i got pets and i don't want to harm them.

By

keredokc

Great...I have this same problem now. From what I've seen, there are a combination of both gnats and what look to be fruitflies. After I couldn't find a food source in the kitchen that may have been giving life to these annoying pests, I looked in the cat litter box and noticed quite a few. I couldn't even drink anything without using a lid on the glass, for if I waited awhile one of the gnats would land in it and drown. I also found a substantial amount of dead gnats in both the refrigerator and freezer. Guess I will try cleaning out the litter box, using the flypaper strips around it, and maybe the bowl of vinegar idea that someone else posted. My concern is that once one of my cats has another nature call, the gnats will infest the litter box all over again.

By

ThriftyFun

Hi Lisa,
If these are pill bugs, the color means they are dying so probably aren't any risk to your cat. Here's a link that shows some pictures and give some information:

http://www.whatsthatbug.com/Pill.html

You can see if this is the same type of pest you are dealing with.

Susan from ThriftyFun

By Lisa (Guest Post)

I have found red pill bugs in my cats litter box. Do I need to take my cat to the vet?

By Beverly (Guest Post)

Help! They are living in my refrigerator. What is causing this and what can I do about it?

By

LISADAWN

gnats are really bad last year and this year. the best thing for it them is fly paper strips all over your house. and especially above the litter box. they are cheap and they work....

By Jay (Guest Post)

Had this problem and it got so bad today that I had to go to Home Depot and get fly paper coils. The pop open and then are hung on the walls or wherever and capture the flying adults. I also got some spray and fumigated the cats litter box area (which we keep under the stairwell downstairs, with it's own door fortunately). I cleaned the box with bleach and scrubbed it clean.

So far, seems like they are gone for now. Will see if it lasts. Thanks for the info everyone. Very helpful.

By Jessi (Guest Post)

We had this same problem last year. My husband tells me that these insects also like urinals. I accidently found a solution to this problem when I decided to put a bowl of vinegar near the catbox for odor control. The gnats must have liked the way the vinegar smelled because they all drowned themselves in it within a week or two.

By Chrissy (Guest Post)

I have from time to time seen a spider or 2 in the dirty box, I will clean it, replace it. Then recently I spotted an unidentifyable bug. Is this normal???

By

beckyalan

These are, more then likely, not gnats. I am willing to bet these are what most people would call fruit flies. I know what you are thinking...however, fruit flies are related to dung flies. So these could be the cousins, that have invaded kitty's box. I would empty the box. Scrub it with bleach water and let it air dry in the sun. Move any box you have for the cat, to another part of the home. If you put a clean box back, the bugs will still come. If the bugs have nothing to eat, then they will die. You can also try spraying them with bug spray.

By

truleelee

From what I've read, the gnats (possibly called fungus gnats) are probably laying eggs in the kitty litter.