It is just natural to write the little things off. An ant in the home, a
ladybug sighting, or a
bed bug on the property. What’s the big deal, right? It’s just a few simple bugs. Plus, if you ignore it, it’s almost like it didn’t even happen. This is most people’s mentality, and it’s completely understandable. Most people get away with this because a simple bug sighting in the home doesn’t necessarily mean you are dealing with a full-blown infestation. However, it does warrant a visit from your local, friendly pest management firm. Want to know why?
Why Does Spotting A Bed Bug Require An Exterminator?
Even if you just spot a single
bed bug in the home, you’ll want to
get our local office on the line. This will allow us to choose a date and time where we can come out and evaluate the property. If that bug you are looking at is female, there is double reason to be concerned. Unfortunately, this is probably something you won’t be able to determine. While males have more pointed abdomens and females have more rounded abdomens, the bugs are incredibly tiny and are even harder to procure.
With all this in mind, the reason a single
bed bug in the home is a problem is that the
bed bug is a social insect. Where there is one, there are likely several around the corner. However, what’s even more troubling is that the
bed bug is smart and witty. It goes out of its way to avoid human detection. Simply put, if you are spotting these bugs in and around the home, something is wrong. It likely means that the population in the home has gotten so big that they’ve started pushing each other into the open
You combine this with the fact that the female bed bug is a prolific breeder, and it just makes the situation all that much worse. The adult female possesses the ability to lay 500 eggs in a single lifetime. This might not sound like a lot, but when you look at it on paper, it’s an incredible number of bugs.
Bed Bugs Are Harder Than Your Average Bug To Spot
What makes matters even far worse is bed bugs are harder than your average insect to spot and detect. Yes, a lot of this has to do with the fact that they go out of their way to hide from you, but you also must consider their size and body design. These creepy crawlers have a credit card-like profile that enables them to squeeze into some of the tiniest openings in the home. They are also reddish-brown in color, which gives them the innate ability to blend with most of the everyday surroundings in the wood.
Simply put, your endeavor to detect bed bugs in the home will certainly not be an easy one. As of matter of fact, you almost need to know exactly where to look.
Detecting The Early Warning Signs
Before you can even start looking for bugs in the home, you must suspect you have a problem. Despite what you might believe, this is not as easy as one would think. Just because you are waking up with bite marks, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are getting bitten by bed bugs. You could be suffering from a mite or flea infestation. On top of this, not every person out there reacts to bed bug bites. You might be getting bitten and not even know it.
All this aside, there are some early warning signs you’ll want to keep an eye out for.
Bloodstains: Bed bugs are parasitic parasites, which means they are going to feed on the blood of a human or animal hosts. More likely than not, a human hosts 90 percent of the time. This is a transaction that will take place in the bed. If this is the case, there might be droplets of blood left behind on the sheets. Plus, it is possible that you might roll over and squash one of the bugs during the process. Either way, this is all going to result in blood on the sheets. Keep an eye out!
Exoskeletons: Just like the snake or common reptile sheds its skin, so will the bed bug. This is a process that leaves behind clear, near-translucent skin. It looks similar to that of the bed bug and will be shaped in the same way. Given the size of the bed bug, this might be a hard thing to spot, but if you look hard enough, you should have a problem finding it.
Eggs/Egg Casings: Eggs and egg casings are only about the size of a pinpoint, making them incredibly hard to spot. However, spotting these items in the home means big problems because it means a whole new set of bugs is on the way or just recently hatched. Either way, these are not things you want to see in the home.
Fecal Matter: As disgusting as it might seem, fecal matter is always a real possibility with insects, especially when they are constantly feeding. When bed bugs feed on you in the mattress, there is always the chance for a bowel movement afterward. Unfortunately, this is also something that will likely take place in the bed or on the mattress. It’ll show up in black stains similar to that of inkblots.
Bitemarks: As was previously mentioned, not everyone reacts to bed bug bites, but most people do. While these bites do appear in similar forms as mosquito and flea bites, they usually only show up on the exposed parts of the skin. Exposed parts of the skin while sleeping can be the shin, legs, ankles, hands, arms, neck, and face.
If you find any of these things in your home, call us. We can help you deal with the bedbug infestation quickly.
Turning To The Professional
As soon as you spot the presence of bed bugs in the home, you’ll want to get the professionals on the phone. If you even suspect that your home has been invaded, you’ll want to get someone to come and examine the home. Bed bugs might be small, parasitic pests, but they can cause big problems and it won’t take long before they’ve spread throughout the entirety of the home. One or two bugs in the home might not seem like a big deal and might not mean a full-blown infestation, but it absolutely warrants a call to your local, friendly pest management firm. Our doors are always open and our phone lines there for the calling.
