Ant farms are relatively cheap. You should be able to find one for less than $15 USD. If you’re a first-time ant owner—or if you’re helping your child care for an ant colony—a premade ant farm is the way to go.
If the soil is moist and forms clumps, mix it with 2-3 handfuls of sand. This allows the ants to tunnel through the soil and sand mixture.
Direct, bright light can interfere with ants’ reproduction cycles by killing larvae and eggs.
Your local pet supply shop should have a stock of electronic heat mats.
If you have a choice between different species of ants, ask for Lasius niger: a species of black garden ant that doesn’t bite.
Once 10–12 ants are on the stick, deposit them inside a glass jar. Repeat this until you’ve collected about 30 ants. If no ants are coming out of the anthill, put a little sugar water, jam, or honey in a jar or shallow dish. Leave it next to the hill for an hour and, when you come back, it should be full of ants.
If you try to make a colony out of only worker and drone ants, they won’t be able to reproduce and will all die off within a couple of months.
If, for some reason, you must place your hands into the ant colony, wear a pair of latex gloves.
For example, if the ants only eat about half of the food you give them with each meal, cut back on the amount you give them.
It’s important that your pet ants receive plenty of protein or they won’t be able to produce healthy young. They may die, also.
Keep an eye on the water in the bottle cap and replenish it as soon as it starts to get low.
The droplets will work their way into the soil—or, if ants are thirsty, they can drink the droplets. Do not spray water directly into the sandy soil of the ant farm. You could cause the ants’ tunnels to collapse or drown the insects.
