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Facts – Bed Bugs

Facts on Bed Bugs

Facts are important and it is vital to stay up to date on these items about bed bugs especially when traveling. If you find bed bugs ask for a new room on the opposite side of hotel. Bed bugs are almost invisible when born, then they get a blood meal and start turning a darker color. Don’t just check the bed, check the areas around the bed like the drawers and baseboards. It’s not just the bed. See the tips for some great information to pass along.

Photo by PPMA

Bed bug tips by PestWorld

Poop – What is it?

Poop?????

Is it Poop? Not the best and most visible pictures, I need a new camera. Any ideas? I have been called a few times by people believing this to be from termites, not. I find this at the bottom of stucco and pretty readily found in Arizona.

Ok so we know its not termites, well here it is drum roll please – cricket poo. Somehow the crickets get into the wall and their feces falls down the wall voids. This is also a big sign that you need pest control because the next problem will be scorpions. I’m only guessing here but I’ll bet that scorpions love to eat crickets.

No need to PANIC!

Panic and bugs

Panic may be involved with bugs. There are a lot of bugs out there folks and we as humans have aversions to many of them. I met a lady awhile back that absolutely was terrified of crickets, mine is spiders. They just look creepy and with all those eyes staring right back at you, you see my point. The one we really should be scared to death is the mosquito, this little bug has killed more more humans than anything else.

What is your phobia?

Is it snakes, spiders or cockroaches? There can be other forms which may include the mere thought of the bug or animals. I’m sure I mentioned this before but just in case I haven’t – this guy had roaches in the toilet and I couldn’t spray so I just reached in and grabbed them – he went running. He was just freaked out but for me I was fine with that, but if that had been spiders – hell no! So don’t underestimate the fear, that is why Dr. Bug is here.

Mouse or Mice entering our homes

Mice or Mouse?

Mouse, or mice in general do their best to make it into our homes and businesses, what can be done to keep them out? I often read stories from the news sources on what people do to get pests out of their home. From the guy who torches his mattress, to the person using 25 aerosol bombs for bed bugs. And yet some people think having them in the house is cute, remember these critters carry diseases and pathogens on their bodies. ProBest Pest Management often gets the call after the person has pretty much in their opinion done it all and can’t catch that one single mouse.

mouse

They know more than you think?

The bad problem is that that mouse already is wiser to our tricks and since they are now smarter it often takes more time. Mice will generally range for about 30 feet while rats may travel over 100 feet and remember they urinate and spread feces as they run. Often times people don’t put out enough traps, or they think it’s only one and it turns out there are more. If you see one estimate a few and take charge or better yet call a Professional. So don’t think that we can get them out in 24 hours, we will bring our A game but we will get it done. Mice are curious and that is in our favor, we might need traps, glue boards or mechanical traps but we will succeed. So my advice, don’t wait call a Professional right away – we have the tools. 480-831-9328

A few facts:

Mice rely on whiskers to touch and their noses to smell.
Mice eyesight is weak.
Mice prefer to stay near the wall using their whiskers to feel there way.
Mice are curious while rats are shy.
Mice may visit multiple sites feeding on many food areas nightly.

Monsoon and Termites

Monsoon brings out the bugs

Well the monsoon has arrived and with all that rain comes the bugs. I usually say the bugs come in for 2 reasons, #1 not enough rain or #2 too much rain. Just like us the bugs need water, food and shelter and guess what that may be our home of business. Termites become more active this time of year mainly due to the increase of water, on the East Coast water is more abundant and they just seem to be active all year long. Termites create a tube in which to enter a home but that tube can often be hidden and that is the main reason to hire a Pest Management Professional to do that yearly inspection. If you live in the South I recommend a yearly inspection especially for your peace of mind.

All that water.

So when the ground becomes saturated the other bugs make for dryer land and sometimes that just happens to be your home or business. This picture below was from last week and you can see our parking lot is flooded. If this was your home this might be right up against your foundation. The more water and over time this may diminish your active termiticide.

Anywhere you play

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Anywhere you might play, eat, sleep etc. Have you hear the sentence – “You Are Within 3-6 Feet of a Spider Right Now”? A 1995 popular article by famous arachnologist Norman Platnick begins, “Wherever you sit as you read these lines, a spider is probably no more than a few yards away.” From a 1999 Sierra Club book on spiders: “Wherever you are, there is a spider within a meter of you.” From a 2001 book on nature in the city: “Even in Manhattan, you are never more than three feet from a spider.” These are just some of the myths surrounding the sentence because it really depends on where you are. So what about bugs then, you probably have them all around you and you don’t realize it.

Maybe a silverfish in your attic, a cockroach under a kitchen cabinet, maybe an earwig off the back patio or your children are at play. The reason is that they outnumber us and by big numbers, its just that they are so small and often not visible to our naked eye.

Anywhere you play

So pest control often plays a part in the management of these pests, here in Arizona we have Bark Scorpions and they can sting and cause pain and fear. They normally don’t kill anyone but the sting is painful and can cause more serious trouble to younger children and older adults. Black ad Brown Widow spiders can cause significant more damage and I recommend wearing gloves while doing work outside or in the garage or attic. Cockroaches, flies and rodents can spread diseases and can seriously damage your intestinal tract. That is why I call myself a Public Health Professional and I’m here to stop those bugs and pests from getting to your family and friends. As always if you have questions, have a picture a picture or just need some advice give us a call 480-831-9328

Traveling BedBugs

Watch out when traveling:

Bedbugs are traveling about all the time, but during those periods when we travel more we actually hear about them more often as well. So pay attention and if you suspect them in your room, ask to move across the hotel. Don’t place you luggage on bed or on chairs, I place mine in the bathroom, far far away from any place where they might hide. When you return home, undo the luggage in the garage or back porch. No sense bringing them into your home – cause that will bring on added $$$$$$ for treatment. If you think that they got into your home ask for an opinion by a qualified professional pest management operator such as ProBest Pest Management – QualityPro since 2005.

Watch the video for more information regarding these little blood suckers – “Sleep tight and don’t let the Bedbugs bite”.

Oh and by the way, this is a job for someone who knows this bug. Don’t do foolish things like spread DE everywhere or use a blowtorch (I know some people have done this). Use common sense and call ProBest at 480-831-9328, this could be the smartest thing you did this whole year.

traveling bedbugs

How close are we to a Pandemic?

Just what exactly is a Pandemic, according to Wikipedia – an epidemic of infectious disease that has spread through human populations across a large region; for instance multiple continents, or even worldwide. One of the most devastating pandemics was the Black Death, killing over 75 million people in 1350 caused by fleas carried by rats or gerbils (new information). Mosquitoes continue to kill over 1 million people each year and have killed more people than anything else.

pandemic

I don’t want to be the doomsayer, but the World is a scary place these days. Maybe more scary than the days of duck and cover which I don’t think I ever did in school. We did have Fallout Shelters in our school and I recall them being stocked with food and water. I also need to stop watching those shows on TV like “How the World will End”. What scares me the most is the ability of some to get their hands on weapons, like the IED in Manchester? Is it possible to acquire something and infect mosquitoes and to then transmit it to humans. As Rodney King said “Can’t we all get along”? I’m trying hard to not get political and in this day when people don’t just have ideas but are willing to fight in an instant instead of debating the virtues of their opinion.

We are the smartest on this planet and yet often times the most opinionated and less likely to concede that our thoughts could be wrong. How will it end? I don’t know but anything could spark that moment – a trigger on the bomb, someone with a pandemic and the ability to spread it or as

Abraham Lincoln said “…At what point, then, is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.”

The Doomsday Clock is set to – two and a half minutes to midnight, the Clock is ticking, global danger looms.

Termite tubes and tunnels

Building termite tubes and tunnels is hard work, but the termites do it 24/7/365 and I’m pretty sure not going to give it up soon. It really doesn’t matter what type of wall you have concrete, block or stone. They will work their way around electrical pipes or plumbing entry ways. They will stop at nothing to achieve their goals of getting food.

termite tubes

How about some termite facts?

Oldest insects on Earth.
Scientists believe that for every human on Earth there are 1000 lbs of termites.
A queen termite may lay 2000 or more eggs per day, some African Termite Queens may lay 30,0000.
Some Termite Queens may live 15-25 years.
Termites are more closely related to cockroaches than ants.
Termites build the largest actual nest than any other insect.
Ants are the termites biggest foes.
They believe that termites cause $5 billion worth of damage in the U.S. each year.
Ants have a narrow waist, but the termite is a solid type.
Ants have elbowed antenna while termites is straight.
In Arizona we have about 17 species of termites, not all cause problems.
Did you know that termites swarm, they send reproductives out to start new colonies. In Florida, East Coast it occurs during the early Spring while in Arizona it happens just after Monsoon in September – October or so.

Scorps how do they get in?

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Scorps in the Phoenix Valley. Is this is typical for construction here in Arizona, not only do you have to check outside but you must also check inside your family home? So this little Scorpion (let’s call him Fred) one night was out lurking about for food. He came down the block wall where he was living because he had learned about this nice cool spot where he had heard about the crickets singing and chirping all night long. He crossed the endless chasm of rocks and finally made it to the house and he started up the foundation where he found a crack. Now he was inside the wall, he started climbing the 2×4 wall studs, making his way to the attic of the house. Fred made his way under the insulation, he could’t really see anything, it was dark under all that insulation and it seemed to be everywhere. All of a sudden he fell, he had made it to a light and there was plenty of room around that light because no one had sealed it properly. Now he was in even bigger trouble, he had fallen into the bathtub and he couldn’t get out since it was very slippery porcelain. The little child Kylea was running around the house and saw something in the bathtub, she leaned over to touch it and Fred stung her. Fred was just doing what he was born to do, survive an attack by something bigger.

Well it’s to late for Fred the scorpion, the owners didn’t put up with him and gave him a sea burial. Better yet, they called ProBest Pest Management 480-831-9328 who did a home seal, specialized foam treatment and continuous monthly pest control. They also taught their child to learn the different bad bugs in the Valley.

The moral of the story, hire a pest professional to combat the bugs. Don’t wait until you, your family or pet is stung.

Scorps