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Bed Bug Awareness Week Bed Bug Facts & Prevention

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bedbugweek      Bed Bug Awareness Week Bed Bug Facts & Prevention

As part of National Pest Management Month, PPMA is launching “Bed Bug Awareness Week,” April 22 – 26 to promote public vigilance and provide essential prevention advice about bed bugs in advance of the summer travel season.

Tips Bed Bug Facts

• Bed bugs are found worldwide and are thought to have come to the U.S. from Europe in the 17th century.
• Bed bugs primarily feed  on humans, but they can also feed on warm-­‐blooded animals including birds, mice and family pets.
• Adults are just under ¼” long, relatively flat and oval in shape compared to most other insects.
• Bed bugs can lay one to five eggs per day and more than 500 in a lifetime.
• Bed bugs can survive for several months without eating.
• Bed bugs can withstand a wide range of temperatures, from nearly freezing to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Bed bugs draw blood for about five minutes before retreating to digest.
• Bed bug hatchlings are so small they can pass through a stitch-­‐hole in a mattress.
• Bed bugs can ingest seven-­‐times their own weight in blood, which would be the equivalent of an average-­‐sized male drinking
120 gallons of liquid.

Bed Bug Prevention Tips

There are several steps you can take to help prevent bed bugs in your everyday life. Regular bed bug inspections are the best line of defense to help you avoid a bed bug infestation.

Here are some other prevention tips to keep in mind:
• Regularly inspect areas where pets sleep for signs of bed bugs such as pepper-­‐like stains, molted bed bug skins and white, sticky eggs.
• Never bring second-­‐hand furniture, especially mattresses and box springs, into a home or college dorm without thoroughly examining it for signs of a bed bug infestation.
• At  hotels, thoroughly inspect the entire room before unpacking, including behind the headboard and in furniture. Pull back the
bed sheets and check the mattress seams for pepper-­‐like stains that may be evidence of bed bug activity.
• If you suspect an infestation or problem, notify management and change rooms immediately. Be sure the new room is not adjacent
to or directly below or above the possibly infested room.
• Keep suitcases in plastic trash bags or protective covers during a hotel stay to prevent bed bugs from nesting there. Do not put
them on the beds.
• Upon returning home from a trip, inspect all suitcases and other belongings before bringing them into the house.
• Wash all clothes -­‐ even those that have not been worn -­‐  in hot water and dry them using an extra-­‐hot dryer setting.

Information provided by Professional Pest Management Alliance

Male     mattress     Bed      bed2      A common bedbug is engorged with blood after feeding on a human arm.     bed bug male, female, and eggs      bed5      feed1npma

 

Are head lice a thing that pest control companies handle?

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Are head lice a thing that pest control companies handle?

 

Head lice are often associated with school children or children in general. There is a big difference between Bed Bugs and head lice.

Bed Bugs versus Head Lice
Bed Bugs don’t live on the host. Head Lice die after 24 -478 hours after falling off host.
Small, reddish brown insects no wings

 Head Lice look like small grains of rice
Hide and come out to feed at night Oval bugs attach themselves to the hair in order to feed
Hitch a ride on furniture Spread through contact
Live anywhere, beds, cracks, etc Live on hair not scalp
Professional Pest Control Lice treatment at pharmacy

Here are some recommendations concerning Head Lice control

  • Use a product from a pharmacy recommended for head lice. Seek the advice of the Pharmacist.
  • Wash hair and comb out the head lice with a lice/nit comb.
  • Head lice do not transmit any diseases.
  • Wash bedding in very hot water and hot cycle for drier.

If you encounter Bed Bugs then seek a Pest Management Professional at http://www.pestworld.org but Head Lice can be handled by medications and a little work of your own. By the way don’t use kerosene, gasoline or anything else you might have laying around your home – somebody can get hurt.

Cooperate with Bed Bug Professionals

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Taken from Florida Pest Pro magazine ( I want to thank them for great and informative articles)

 

  1. Save Bed Bugs in a zip locked bag for Pest Management Professional to identify.
  2. Reduce clutter.
  3. Dry clothes an bedding in a dryer on high heat.
  4. Use mattress & box springs encasements.
  5. Use interceptor type-traps and/or monitoring detection (Verifi™) devices.
  6. — USE A Qualified PEST MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONAL!

bugProBest does!

Bed Bug video (recent job)

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Bed Bug video (recent job)

 

[embedplusvideo height=”365″ width=”450″ standard=”http://www.youtube.com/v/3M1GFlQUfnE?fs=1″ vars=”ytid=3M1GFlQUfnE&width=450&height=365&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=1&chapters=&notes=” id=”ep4009″ /]
This is only a short little snippet of the Bed Bug infestation, there was also an issue with German cockroaches. We had to resort to a heat treatment because of all the stuff within the house and as soon as the heat was kicked on – the Bed Bugs began to run.

Bed Bugs are just GROSS!

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Bed Bugs are just GROSS!

 

“the best laid plans of mice and men often go astray”  Robert Burns

The jest of the saying is to always expect the unexpected, in other words, just because you think you’ve done all you can for something to go right….something can still get messed up (always have a plan B). So when traveling prepare to encounter Bed Bugs and take action before the trip and the return. Our technicians are always on the lookout so that they don’t bring bugs back home, if we do a Bed Bug job that day we inspect our clothes to prevent accidental infestation.

200x’s the sniffer – Bed Bug Dogs

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200x’s the sniffer – Bed Bug Dogs

 

I’m all about efficiency but the Bed Bug dogs got it going on. I had this school that thought they might have an issue with Bed Bugs and I thought WOW just how many places could a Bed Bug hide. Well I can now tell you – thousands maybe tens of thousands. From carpet tack strips to electrical outlets, from back packs and wall paintings to – well you get the picture right – anyplace where there is a crack or crevice. It only takes a small space ——————————– maybe that line right there to hide something like a Bed Bug. That dog Olivia was amazing, she went around the room with her handler and sniffed and sniffed, this would have taken me hours and I might have missed something.

Come on look at that face – only a Bed Bug should be scared!

What sucks your body and wallet dry?

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What sucks your body and wallet dry?

 

I know what you are thinking “Uncle Sam” or the Federal Government, right! The inevitable blood sucking tax man or could it be “Bed Bugs at the Federal Building in Cleveland, Ohio“. This last month it happens that the library in (Hamden, CT), Sinai Hospital, Firehouses and the Federal Buildings are being hit by these little biters.

So let’s reflect on this Bed Bugs are NOT going away, we must all be vigilant. They are popping up everywhere from libraries to hospitals, from movie theaters to high end cloths stores and everywhere in between. If you travel take care not to bring them home and if you get them, don’t waste your money on Do It Yourself (DIY) products – they can work but it’s the knowledge you need to treat effectively. Check out our website for further details on this pest at ProBest Pest Management.

FTC Consumer Alert

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FTC Consumer Alert

 

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt194.shtm and this article on deceptive claims on advertisement “FTC Takes Action“. I constantly hear people say things that are just not true or factual. Bed Bugs do not jump, I don’t care what you have heard they cannot jump. They may be able to fall into cuffs of pants or onto clothes and hitchhike in a lot of different ways. The biggest item is that you must throw away everything, not true use common sense just like the article above suggests. It isn’t always necessary to throw away mattresses or dressers, they may be old and you may want to discard them but in 99% of the cases a Pest Management Professional can treat and eliminate the Bed Bugs without damaging the article.

These sites listed above can be a valuable tool in getting rid of Bed Bugs and that Creep Factor associated with them.

 

Bedbugs Put Police Cars Out of Service – Bed Bugs showing up in weird places…

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Bedbugs Put Police Cars Out of Service

I think it is amazing where we are finding Bed Bugs, they are showing up in ambulances, movie theaters and now police cruisers. So if you’re a police officer, EMT or just a regular citizen take care when and where you take a ride.

A FEW FACTS

  • Bed bugs get their name because they are commonly found in beds, but can also be found in other places. Dressers, baseboards, clothes, drapes, bed frames, wall mounted devices, tack strips/carpets, behind cracked paint or wallpaper.
  • Bed bugs feed on the blood of any warm-blooded animal.
  • They can ingest up to 7 times their weight.
  • A severe infestation can result in over 500 bites in a single night.
  • Bed Bugs are able to live up to 12 months without a meal, this is debatable in Arizona because of the lack of humidity.
  • They are immune to many of today’s insecticides, generally permethrins.
  • Many people can live with them without even knowing they’re there.
  • Their eggs hatch within 10 days and only take 30 days to become fully grown.
  • Females can lay up to 500 eggs over their lifetime.
  • Reported cases have increased over 500% the past few years.
  • Bed bug infestations are a traumatic experience for those attacked including increased stress, anxiety and insomnia – I call this the CREEP FACTOR.

 

 

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