Bed Bugs

Bed bugs are parasitic pests that feed on the blood of mammals. Humans are bed bugs' favorite source of food, but if necessary, they will feed on pets or other animals. Adult bed bugs are wingless, about 1/4 of an inch long, and have a flat, oval shape. They are often likened to an apple seed with legs. Before feeding, bed bugs are reddish-brown in color. After feeding they turn a deep purple-reddish color and their bodies expand in a balloon-like manner. Nymphs (immature bed bugs) resemble adults, except they are smaller and are a whitish-yellow color. After they have their first blood meal nymphs turn bright red.

Bed bugs are found where there are people because, as with other pests, they like to live near their main food source. Hotels, motels, airports, buses, taxis, shopping centers, hospitals, schools, dormitories, movie theaters, and libraries can all house populations of bed bugs. Bed bugs are mainly nocturnal, hiding during the day in tight cracks and crevices, emerging at night to feed on their host(s). Common bed bug hiding spots include the seams of mattresses and box springs, in furniture, behind window and door frames, in wall voids, behind light switches and electrical outlets, underneath piles of dirty laundry, behind loose wallpaper, inside electronics, and in other similar areas.

Though bed bugs are expert hitchhikers, there are a few things you can do to avoid introducing bed bugs into your home including keeping your belongings up off the ground when in public places, avoiding purchasing used furniture, mattresses or box springs for use within your home, inspecting your hotel room before bringing belongings inside, regularly washing your family’s bedding and vacuuming your home, and using a protective cover that encases your mattresses and box springs to help eliminate hiding spots.

Protect the residents of your long term care community from bed bugs with the help of Perfect Pest Control!