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The litter tray

What are the very very tiny bugs forming on canned cat food?

25 replies

norsksun · 28/07/2018 08:03

Has anyone else had this? I feed the canned food to my cats - I put it on a paper plate - cat eats - leaves some - withing fifteen minutes these very tiny light colored bugs appear - it would be hard to see them except they are moving. They have also appeared on dry cat food. i have fed cats for some twenty years and have never seen this before. Help - does anyone know what this is?

OP posts:

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AjasLipstick · 28/07/2018 09:09

Probably some kind of fly larvae...have you got flies around? Also, why are you using paper plates? Not very eco friendly.

OhYouBadBadKitten · 28/07/2018 09:12

My guess is that they are on the paper plates.

Babdoc · 28/07/2018 09:14

Remove any uneaten wet food as soon as the cat has finished. Otherwise flies will lay eggs on it that rapidly become wiggling maggots. They can travel surprisingly far - like from the bottom to the top of a wheely bin - in no time.

norsksun · 28/07/2018 20:45

Thank you all for ideas - we may have one fly in the house - I have been removing plate as soon as our cat eats - and keeping dry bowl nearly empty - now today - these tiny moving "whatevers" were all over the dry bowl. I am beside myself - and I have scrubbed the floor - moved the feeding station, etc. Still they show up - any other ideas? I sure hate this. Yuk!!!

OP posts:

recklessruby · 28/07/2018 21:18

Oh yuk this happened to me the other day when my cat Ellie left some wet food.
Definitely disgusting maggots. I have since bought the little Sheba sachets as she doesn't leave bits.
Horrid horrid things. I have a real problem with flies too they make me feel dirty and sick even though I keep the kitchen and the cat dish clean. It's been 35c here so they are everywhere

lunatunes · 28/07/2018 21:33

How big are the bugs? Could they be mites? I've been told that they can be quite common in dry pet food

norsksun · 29/07/2018 00:30

I don't think they are maggots - tho I've never seen maggots. It seems like they may be the mites - but, not sure - and now I can't even leave any dry food out. Answering the question - they are almost like tan specks - they move - if they didn't move you wouldn't notice them. But, I wonder if they are on my rugs/runners - when I scrubbed the floor beneath the feeding station - they were on my cleaning paper towel. I am not up to totally cleaning and removing rugs today (just in case) - so trying not to obsess today - any more ideas? Thank you.

OP posts:

LemonysSnicket · 29/07/2018 00:34

Sounds like fruit flies (also known as bar flies) , they find food and sugar bloody everywhere and the heat is making them crazy. It was a nightmare to get them out of the pub I used to work at.

I think there are treatments you can buy to eradicate

Toddlerteaplease · 29/07/2018 03:35

I use paper plates for wet food and lik e lix. Saves me having to wash bowls out.

AjasLipstick · 29/07/2018 03:43

Toddler it may "save you" having to wash up but are you recycling them?

Weedsnseeds1 · 30/07/2018 00:05

Most likely maggots
Cat food that is canned has been processed to commercial sterility ( and pouches), dry food has too low a water activity to allow anything to live in the sealed food..

IamMommy · 09/08/2018 17:46

Could they be weevils?

lljkk · 09/08/2018 17:51

We have flies & wet food (& dry food) out but no maggots. I don't think any egg hatches into visible worms within 15 minutes.

AndNoneForGretchenWieners · 09/08/2018 17:57

Definitely sounds like fruit fly larvae, we had them in our kitchen too.

lljkk · 09/08/2018 18:02

Fruit fly eggs take 24-30 hours to hatch (says Dr. Google).
Mayfly eggs can hatch almost immediately (I read) but I think OP would know if she had mayflies in house, they are very ugly.

Vitalogy · 09/08/2018 18:05

The fly eggs are like mini grains of rice that don't move when first laid, so it doesn't sound like them. I took my eye off the cats wet food bowl for 5 minutes the other day and they'd nipped on a laid some, ick.

OP, are the dried biscuits in the packet/box ok? Although that doesn't explain the wet food. Are the sachets all sealed ok?

Plastictattoo · 09/08/2018 18:07

I've noticed this too. They are a light coloured tiny tiny worm. I've washed dishes and only giving half a packet at a time but they appear so quickly. Even tried different brands of food. I've never had this before and at a loss as to what to do. Sorry, not helpful but you're not alone.

Vitalogy · 09/08/2018 18:10

I don't think any egg hatches into visible worms within 15 minutes. I looked it up the other day, I think it takes 24 hour. Although it's best not to risk the cats ingesting any eggs, I think it gives them worms.

Petitpomme · 09/08/2018 18:11

Sounds like weevils to me. Where do you keep the food? And plates? Chuck it all out. Bleach your cupboards and start again.
Try using a ceramic bowl or plate as well.

Vitalogy · 09/08/2018 18:13

I put a bag over the bowl if there's any wet food left. Another job the cat has me doing for him

Vitalogy · 09/08/2018 18:15

and only giving half a packet at a time I've started doing that too.

AlexisHarper · 31/08/2018 21:43

They’re not maggots. You can’t mistake a maggot. Sounds like you have pantry beetles. They are tiny and attracted to grain based foods like dry cat food. They are harmless but a pain in the patooty. I have them and I clean the area every time I feed my kitties. Vinegar seems to work well but if you can get bug sprays or better yet glue traps. Put a couple of crunchies in the cardboard trap and place it in a place the cats can’t get in.

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AlexisHarper · 31/08/2018 22:12

Forgot to add, they also are attracted to wet food.

Dori5557 · 07/08/2019 22:37

I had the same thing happened to me just this last month. It's the cat food , the bugs are inside. I have been seeing them in my cats dish. She would eat a little and then walk away. Every time I went to clean it up I see these little crawling bugs.
I was thinking what the...
I said maybe a bugs got in my room. Well the other day I open a dress h can of food took some out and then poured the juice on top tabs there it was a crawling disgusting bug. Threw all the canned foods out and will never buy that brand again.The brand starts with an F. My dish was clean and spotless and definitely saw the bugs come from the juice of the cat food.
I am going to call the company and let them know
These bugs gave been showing up for the last month.Never before this and my cat is 12 years old.Havent seen one bug since I got rid of that nasty canned food. So that's how I can confirm it's in the canned food.

AbbyKat1235 · 17/09/2023 13:14

Oh my goodness, I thought I was the only one with this problem, first it happens with the cat food juice, and than I was feeding my cats some hard food and on the floor, THERE THEY WERE AGAIN! I was having fun crushing them but theirs way too much! Help!

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