We went to East Texas over the weekend to visit family. I took Clyde with me this time. He was very well behaved during the five hour drive. When it was time to leave I took him outsdid for his last trip before we got going. I walked him across a very green patch of grass that I thought he would enjoy.

He began sneezing and acting funny almost immediately. I was looking at him but couldn't see anything in particular. But his behavior suggested otherwise. He was not interested inthe grassy plot at all. I took a closer look at him and he was covered in fire ants!! I never saw the nest but they were all over him. I had a bottle of water in my hands and doused him with that but that only made them angrier. IIt took a few minutes to get the relatives to point me to a water hose where I completey soaked him and washed the ants off. Whereas that helped, I noticed that he had begun to whelp up and was not breathing right. But by then we had gotten in the car and was 30 miles down the road. For some reason I had some benadryl in my purse and I literally pushed a pill down his throat and said a prayer that that would help. I've beena a nervous wreck for the past two days but noticed improvements each day. Here is what I found on the web about fire ants. The pictures are shocking. If it doesn't come through here's the website: www.dpi.qld.gov.au/fireants

Fire ants look very much like ordinary house or garden ants.

Fire ants:

• Are small
• Are coppery-brown in colour on the head and body, with a darker abdomen
• Come in a variety of sizes within one nest, ranging from 2mm to 6 mm. Thisis a distinguishing feature of fire ants
• Have nests with no obvious entry or exit holes on top of them
• Can be distinguished by their aggressive behaviour, particularly near the nest

Their nests can appear as dome-shaped mounds, up to 40cm high, or can be found next to, or underneath other objects found on the ground, such as timber, logs, rocks, pavers, bricks etc. Mounds will not always be evident, but are usually found in open areas such as lawns, pastures, along roadsides and unused cropland. Mounds arerarelyfound in frequently cultivated areas. This species could easily be confused with the common coastal brown ant and as well as somelocal native ants.

More pictures of fire ants and their nests.

Fire ants inflict a fiery sting, which causesa small blister or pustuleto form at the site of each sting after several hours. The blisters become itchy whilehealing and are prone to infection if broken.

If you are stung by a fire ant:

• Apply a cold compress to relieve the swelling and pain.
• Gently wash the affected area with soap and water and leave the blister intact.
• People who are allergic to insect stings should seek medical attention immediately. On rare occasions, fire ant stings can cause severe acute allergic reaction (anaphylaxis)

Firstly, avoid contact with the ants.

Fire ants pose such a serious threat to oureconomy, environment and lifestylethat they theyhave been declaredanotifiable pest under the Plant Protection Act 1989.This means that landholders who think or know they have fire ants on their property are legally obliged to inform the DPI&F of the infestation. Withholding this information could result in the landholder being fined.

If you find any nest, DO NOT TOUCH IT. Try to identify if it is a fire ant nest, which may appear as a closed, dome-shaped mound (that is, no opening) up to 40 cm high. In contrast, many native ants build a smaller nest with one or more obvious openings. However, in some soil types, fire ants may not form obvious mounds, particularly in the early months of nest development, or if there is other debris where they can build a nest beneath.