NOBODY is safe!

 I have yet to come across a bed bug in my travels around the province. I do take precautions and make sure I check the seams on the mattress to make sure there are no bugs. I have heard too many horror story’s about them. The scary part is that the numbers are on the rise. Bed Bug bites are up 57% across the country.(yikes!)

I did a little researching on the pests………. 

Bed bugs were fairly common in the 1900s but after the Second World War use of insecticides and better spraying techniques seemed to eliminate them. However in recent years they’ve shown up in homeless shelters, hostels, dormitories, prisons, hospitals and five star hotels. (cases reported in southwestern British Columbia grew by 600 percent between 2003 and 2005.)

Authorities suggest the resurgence is linked to changes in pest control practices as well as an increase in homelessness and travel abroad. Infestation is usually associated with poor housing conditions but the pests can also travel in luggage, old furniture or emerge from the walls during renovations.

Signs of Bed Bug Infestation

• Dark spotting and staining on sheets, mattress pillows and clothing from their excrement or blood from crushed insecrs.
• Molted skins, excrement and egg shells where the insects hide in mattress crevices or furniture.
• An offensive sweet, musty odour from their scent glands if there is a large infestation.

Checking for Bed Bugs

• Inspect bedroom furniture especially mattresses and box springs.
• Check under chairs, couches and dressers.
• Pull out drawers and check under bedroom lamps.
• Check cracks along baseboards, behind paintings and pictures.

How to Prevent Bed Bugs From Entering Your Home

• Inspect your luggage and clothing after trips.
• Vacuum your mattress regularly.
• Remove clutter to reduce hiding places for bed bugs.
• Inspect second hand furniture before bringing it home.
• Repair cracks in exterior of your home and install screens to prevent birds or rodents serving as bed bug hosts inside your home.

I actually heard stories of people putting Vaseline on the legs of their bed so the bugs would get stuck on their way up before reaching the mattress!

I started taking calls on infestations, but the calls leaned towards spider bites…have a listen……. Spider Bites 

good luck trying to get to sleep tonight

The Lounge

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 at 12:20 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.