All posts in “pests”

A Picture is worth a “Thousand Words”

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A Picture is worth a “Thousand Words”

I love this picture, this crack is about as thick as a credit card and this German Cockroach was making it’s way into it, without much difficulty. German Roaches love to have their top and bottoms of their bodies touching an object, it affords them comfort in knowing that they are out of sight and hidden. This is called Thigmotropic – The turning or bending response of an organism upon direct contact with a solid surface or object.

This isn’t the greatest picture but roaches and bugs are able to hide in the smallest of harborages, just think about the ability of Bed Bugs to hide behind baseboards and in dressers or just about any area in which they can flatten out and hide. Remember pests have adapted to us and have done so in remarkable a fashion, they can hide so well that it takes a true Professional to track them down.

Crazier than thee, trust me!

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Nobody in Arizona knows bugs more than me, OK there probably are a few especially at the Universities or extension offices but are they in Gilbert and accessible to just about anybody. Well just bring those bugs, or send pictures to ProBest Pest Management 425 W. Guadalupe Road #110, Gilbert, AZ 85233

Or you can them to [email protected] or call 602-249-7378 for further instructions… don’t smooosh!

Have you ever had one of those days?

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Have you ever had one of those days, when you think the world may be against you?

Yes all of us probably run into this weekly, maybe daily. We can handle it primarily because of faith, faith maybe in a few different things like 1. Faith in God 2. Faith that it just happens 3. Faith that it probably can’t get much worse, but anyway you get my drift here. I don’t want to go on about the economy or the government, or preach about the existence of God but you know stuff just happens.

So here are a few tips to stop that stuff from happening – especially the bug or bird kind of stuff.

  • More cases of Bed Bugs are happening right now because we are traveling for the summer, so take precautions.
  • Get a termite inspection yearly, it can’t hurt – it’s not like a colonoscopy (I just had to throw that in) it’s nothing like that….
  • Don’t put firewood against your home, don’t allow rocks to be higher than the stucco.
  • Clean up those oranges and grapefruits that fall on the ground, better yet give them to the food bank.
  • Clutter in and around your home can lead to pest infestations.
  • Don’t let tree limbs touch the house.

When in doubt seek out a trained professional for advice – the National Pest Management Association has a great website for consumers.

A personal experience with bed bugs by Dr. Mike Merchant

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A personal experience with bed bugs by Dr. Mike Merchant (re-home seal)

His daughter called , a visit to her apartment the next day revealed 200 to 300 bed bugs happily tucked away in the corners of the fitted sheets, dust ruffle and box spring cover of her bed.

Often times when we talk about an infestation we are talking about the issues involved with a customer perspective in mind. Mike recently had a Bed Bug issue of his own, so please take a moment to see how he dealt with the problems “A personal experience with bed bugs” and gain his insights into the mind of someone who has to deal with Bed Bugs in their home.

Desperation leads to mistake! Bed Bugs

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Desperation leads to BIG mistake! Bed Bugs

 

30 people have to find a new place to live for awhile , woman in Kentucky uses alcohol to treat her couch and this action leads to fire. “Kentucky woman sets apartment on fire while attempting to kill bed bugs“

There is a place and reason to hiring a Professional, just like I don’t repair the brakes on my cars or company vehicles. I probably could do it but it isn’t my life and frankly other people do it better. What I can do and I’m rather good at it is understanding bugs and how to eliminate them. Its not always about

Please use caution and I truly believe you should call a Professional http://www.pestworld.org

mistake

Photo by PPMA mistake

Don’t Tick me!

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Don’t tick me! 

 

Most of the North  didn’t get the cold weather this year and so the ticks are going to be out in force. Here  in Arizona the temperature rarely dips cold enough to really freeze out most of our bugs. Reader’s Digest did an article called “13 things ticks won’t tell you“, if your camping this year I would highly advise you to read the readers digest article and prepare accordingly.

Have a safe summer and play safe!

One of the key techniques in identifying ticks are that they have eight legs but recently I encountered bedbugs in a home and just so everyone is aware bedbugs also have eight legs. So if you find something in your home it is essential to determine where you are fining them and if possible bring a sample into your local pest control professional.

If you find them under a bed and you have pets it is probably a good indication that you have ticks or if you’re fining them in your bed it is probably a good indication that you have bedbugs. No guessing the first part of any good treatment is always in identifying the problem.

Dr. Bug plays — Name and Identify that Bug!

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Dr. Bug here, do you have a bug you need to identify or just want them gone.  Well we know by looking at this thing that it is a spider, but what kind? My best guess is that is a House Spider of some kind.               Do you have any clue what type spider it might be? My goal is that you send me your photo’s and or bugs and we will post a picture to share with our readers. You never know maybe you can stump Dr. Bug at his own game.

Send your pictures to [email protected] (just put in subject line – Identify this Bug) or you can send them to 425 W. Guadalupe Road #110, Gilbert, AZ 85233 (just try not to smoosh them to much).

Just the facts please…. provide info to expedite the treatment!

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Just the facts please…. provide info to expedite the treatment!

Today I received a new lead from an online referral site and I’ll tell you I love getting referrals but I need more information. So here is a list of things to tell the bug guy when they show up at your home.

  1. When you call the office please tell the receptionist what you’re experiencing, for example are you being bitten. It is really important to answer the questions like Who, what, where,  when, why and how. To me its almost like being a detective, we need all the information so that we can make an intelligent recommendation on treatment.
  2. After receiving the information the technician comes up with the treatment plan and discusses this with the homeowner.
  3. We have talked about this before but before the technician arrives please reduce clutter and vacuum the area (if you have a bag vacuum please throw it away). I remember years ago in Florida, someone had vacuumed and put the entire vacuum with bag into the closet. I was amazed at the numbers of fleas in the closet and elsewhere in the home, but they were concentrated within that closet.
  4. A lot of the treatment plans may include a followup visit – remember this occurrence took time to build up and probably will take time to completely solve it. Don’t think for one minute that we are magicians and can make this outbreak disappear overnight, won’t happen…. This usually surprises me the most, even after discussing this with some customers they are upset that they still might see the occasional roach or two. I learned many years ago, we attempt to eradicate at least 97% on the first visit to get control but depending on a variety of circumstances this number may change. Sanitation is a leading cause of failure, if the place has grease or oil everywhere all the pesticide in the world won’t change the outcome. The pesticide will lose it efficacy and the roaches will have plenty to eat and not be affected by the product.
  5. Work with the technician and follow any advice, he has probably seen it all so it won’t be a big surprise to him. Clean behind the stove and refrigerator yearly, pay particular attention to the fan motor (warm and probably close to the overflow pan).

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