SiouxCityJournal.com reported on February 1, 2012 that University officials have said that they have spent $20,000 trying to kill the bed bugs since January 9, 2012.  Because of the widespread infestation on the campus, officials are anticipating eradication costs to elevate upwards to $100,000!  Bed bugs have been found in closets, couches, lobby areas, and 25 dorm rooms in three different buildings.  Reports are that the University has purchased eight thermal pouches that will heat smaller items to kill the bed bugs and has bought a carbon dioxide machine to freeze the bloodsuckers as well.  In addition, the University has decided to use heat treatment to bake the bed bugs in the infested rooms. You may read the article here.

A bed bug sniffing dog has been brought in to help identify the exact location of the bed bugs in the housing units.  Bed bug sniffing dogs are extremely accurate at detecting adult, nymphs, and bed bug eggs.  They are even able to alert when bed bug skins are found.  A door-to-door bed bug search is now underway at the campus and the University has vowed to continue working until all bugs are killed.  The University is considering bringing in additional sniffer dogs from Minneapolis to help with this ongoing campus crisis.

Bed bug infestations can be overcome, but it will be a difficult task that requires the expertise of a licensed pest control professional.  Stern Environmental Group provides excellent bed bug eradication services in New York and New Jersey.

Signs of infestation of mice include gnaw marks on wood cabinets or furniture, track marks, nesting material, mouse droppings, and dribbles of urine.  Mice constantly need to file down their incisors so they gnaw on wood.  Nesting material can consist of sticks, leaves, fabric, hair, paper, cardboard, string, or anything that a mouse can forage and shred.

Mice are most active at night.  They prefer to eat grains, but they are scavengers and will feed upon any food source that they come across.  Not needing much food to survive, crumbs or pet food that is left unattended can feed hungry mice in a home.  Because mice have strong sharp teeth, they can easily rip open sealed packages of food and eat undetected in cabinets.

Mice infestations are difficult to control because they multiply very quickly.  Female mice can have from five to ten litters of pups in her lifetime.  Each litter has on average between five or six mice babies, which are born approximately 21 days after mating occurs.  Those babies reach reproductive maturity in six to ten weeks depending on the environment that they live within.  It’s easy to see how a single pair of fertile mice can multiply out-of-control and cause a full-blown mouse invasion in no time.

The pest control technicians at Stern Environmental Group are trained to look for the signs of mice activity and can find their nesting spots so that they can be safely eliminated in homes, garages, sheds, attics, and all types of businesses.

Some public school systems within the United States would like you to believe that bed bugs will not thrive in a school environment.  Not unlike any other location that you will find bed bugs, these little vampires will hitch a ride into the school via a student, teacher or administrator.  Backpacks, coats, hats, gloves, purses, laptop bags, and lunch boxes all serve as excellent transport vehicles for bed bugs.  Bed bugs can also hitch a ride in the folds of clothing that a person is wearing and drop off in a school at any moment in time.

Any bed bug could immediately climb up on their next victim or scurry off and hide in the area that it dropped off of its original host in.  Bed bugs can easily thrive within a school building because there are plenty of places for them to hide and an easy supply of blood sources available.  Left untreated by a licensed pest control professional, bed bugs will be able to multiply. It only takes one pregnant bed bug to cause a massive bed bug invasion.

On January 27, 2012, MyFox New York reported that the New York Department of Education Pest Control Unit confirmed that a bed bug was found at the Russel Sage Junior High School in Forest Hills.  The bed bug was found in the schools general office but reports from students are that they have also found bed bugs in the cafeteria and in classrooms at the school.  You may read the article here.

Avoiding bed bugs at school can be difficult.  Parents should be on high alert when bed bugs are present in their child’s school.  All items should be checked daily for bed bugs prior to them being brought into the school.  Clothing should be shaken out outdoors and immediately laundered to avoid bringing bed bugs inside the home.  Soft items can be placed in the dryer on high heat for 30 minutes to kill any hitchhiking bed bugs or their eggs.  In the event that bed bugs are found in your home, it is wise to contact a licensed pest control professional to kill the bloodsuckers before the infestation rages out-of-control.

For businesses across the United States, having a customer find bed bugs in their establishment could spell big trouble.  Depending on the response given from any bed bug infested business, it could either spell great news or really bad news for a business.  Bed bugs are a problem for upscale hotels as well as fleabag motels.  Because of the fast turnover of people, a hotel/motel can be bed bug free on one day and then infested on another.

The New York Times reported on January 25, 2012 that a swanky New York City hotel near Central Park South is the latest to have the creepy crawlers infiltrate one of their rooms.  Reports are that the hotel was alerted to the problem when a guest produced a bed bug to the front desk upon check-out.  The hotel jumped into action by moving guests from the adjoining rooms as well as the rooms above and below the infested room so that proper treatment could commence.  In addition to calling a New York City pest control professional, the hotel staff was shown a video and given training about how to recognize the signs of bed bugs.  Kuddos to the hotel in question for their quick action and not denying that the problem exists!  You may read the article here.

Many people have learned the hard way that bed bugs are not a do-it-yourself type of pest.  Hiring a New York City pest control professional that is trained in bed bug eradication services is the only way to fully eradicate bed bugs.

The house mouse is a native of Asia that was spread throughout Europe.  Humans helped the house mouse spread throughout the rest of the world.  Like other types of insects and animals, mice need food, water and shelter to survive.  Human habitats provide the perfect environment for mice to thrive.  Once they have moved into your home, you’ll need help from a NYC pest control professional to eliminate the pesky critters.

The house mouse will eat crumbs, food scraps, or pet food that is left out.  They will also gnaw into boxed or bagged food with ease to gain access to sealed food products.  Mice constantly dribble urine and leave a trail of feces behind in their wake which will contaminate any surface that they walk upon as well as any food product that they are near.

Mice tend to stay within 10 feet of their nesting site and they typically follow the same path to and from food or water sources over and over again.  Trying to remain undetected, mice will travel from place to place along the walls.  In addition to a dirt or oil type smear left on the wall.  You may also notice gnaw marks on the wood baseboards or furniture as mice are in constant need of filing down their incisor teeth.

Stern Environmental Group provides commercial and hospitality industry rodent extermination services to businesses in New York and New Jersey.  Call us today for help with your mice or rat eradication needs.

1011Now.com reported on January 19, 2011 that two students found bed bugs in their dorm room at Abel Hall at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  The bed bugs were not discovered until after the students returned from winter break.  The University quickly brought in a pest control professional which then found a significant amount of the pesky critters nesting behind cork board that was hung just over the student’s bed.  As expected, soft items such as bedding and clothing has been laundered to kill the bed bugs.  The University chose thermal heat treatment to bake the bloodsuckers to death.  You may read the article here.

What is surprising to some folks is that just a day later, more bed bugs were found at the University.  According to JournalStar.com on January 20, 2012, another dorm room at Abel Hall, a student room at The Village, and a student lounge have also been found to have creepy bed bugs.  You may read the article here.

The University does not believe that other dorm rooms in the buildings that are affected are at risk of having bed bugs.  In actuality, once bed bugs are in a building with shared walls, it is quite easy for them to move from place to place.  Depending on the level of infestation, bed bugs could be lurking within the walls throughout the entire building.  Always on the hunt for their next victim, bed bugs use electrical wires and plumbing pipes as a bed bug highway to gain access between units.  Because of their small size, they can easily travel between walls as well.  With bed bugs already being found in several locations in the building, it might be wise for the University to consider treating the entire building at one time instead of each dorm room, or common space, that they find the bugs.

Image courtesy of Eugene E. Nelson, Bugwood.org

New Jersey pest control professionals say that the brown marmorated stink bughas been a formidable opponent to deal with.  Stink bugs have been nibbling their way on fruits, vegetables, and a variety of vegetation throughout the mid-Atlantic region since their discovery in Allentown, Pennsylvania in the 1990’s.  Much to the dismay of farmers and homeowners, these destructive pests can now be found in 33 different states.

Stink bugs do not pose a threat to humans, but they have caused considerable distress to home and business owners.  During the summer months, these stinky pests are busy suckling on plant nectar and laying thousands of eggs on the undersides of leaves in gardens and crops.  Now that fall is fast approaching, New Jersey pest control experts say that the brown marmorated stink bug will soon be making its way back to your home or business looking for a place to overwinter during the cold winter months.

Many home and business owners call pest control experts to kill the hundreds or even thousands of stink bugs that congregate on the exterior walls of their structure during the fall months.  As the weather begins to cool, left untreated, some of these stinky pests will make their way under your siding and then creep under your insulation where they will huddle together until they feel the warm spring temperatures.

Some pushier stink bugs will find their way into your home or business through cracks, crevices, screens, windows, open doors, etc.  You’ll initially find them crawling on windows, window sills, or walls until the chilly weather arrives.  They will eventually find a warm spot indoors to overwinter.  On the occasional sunny day, these stinky pests will sneak out of baseboards, carpet edging, closets, electrical outlets, or other hiding spots and bask in the sun, waiting for spring to arrive.  Stink bugs do not breed indoors, but they are a nuisance when you crush or scare them and they release their pungent stench.

Stink bugs populations are difficult to control as most over-the-counter pesticides do not work on these non-native creatures.  Stink bugs can be reduced by having the perimeter of your home treated by a licensed pest control expert.

Different states have different laws on the books when it comes to bed bug infestations. In some states, bed bug infestations that are ignored by landlords or building owners open the door to litigation by tenants.  The DesMoinesRegister.com reported on November 11, 2011 that a lawsuit was filed on behalf of about 300 current and former residents of two low-income apartment buildings which houses elderly and disabled residents in Des Moines, Iowa.  The lawsuit claims that the managers of the buildings “turned a blind eye to the growing bed bug infestation for more than two years.”  The residents report that they were repeatedly bitten by the bloodsuckers, forced to sleep on the floor because their furniture was infested, forced to discard furniture, shunned by relatives and landlords, suffered from emotional issues, and incurred medical costs and financial damages.  Just recently, a Judge has ruled that the lawsuit that was filed may proceed as a class action suit on behalf of the tenants against the two apartment buildings.  You may read the article here.

The simple fact is that everyone deserves to sleep in peace in their home without the threat or knowledge of little vampires creeping into their beds at night to suck their blood.  Having to dispose of furniture and personal property because of bed bugs is a terrible burden to carry, especially in today’s troubling economy.  Hiring a licensed pest control professional at the first sign of bed bugs is the only way to stave off a massive bed bug population explosion say NYC pest control professionals.

Kissing bugs have been predominately found in the southern 2/3 of the United States, but have been moving northeast with insects found as far as Florida.  Like a bed bug, kissing bugs have a flattened body until they receive a blood meal.  Whereas bed bugs climb upon their victims exposed body parts in order to feed, the kissing bug tends to crawl alongside their intended victims.  They use their long proboscis to pierce exposed skin, often around (or on) the lips and eye areas.  Their mouthparts are not capable of biting, only sucking, but their aftermath is still considered to be a “bite”.

Like a bed bug, the kissing bug often goes undetected in homes because it is nocturnal and feeds upon victims while they sleep.  They will join humans inside their beds, but they do not climb on their host, nor will they bite through fabric.  Feeding time ranges from 8 to 15 minutes.  The kissing bug typically feeds every three weeks, but like a bed bug can abstain from receiving a blood meal if necessary.  These bloodsuckers are able to survive for three to six months between dining rituals.

On the upside, despite the fact that kissing bugs hide, they are not as elusive or as small as bed bugs tend to be.  In cases where the kissing bug has been the suspected culprit of the bite wound, a thorough search of the home has yielded a positive hit on finding this menacing pest.  Many times the engorged pest is found hiding in a couch or near bedding materials.

You can prevent kissing bugs from entering your home by removing any wild animal nests in the attic or surround areas.  Firewood piles should be kept away from the structure and pet bedding, as well as pets, should be inspected to be sure that kissing bugs are not in their fur.  A licensed NJ pest control professional will be able to provide proper outdoor insecticide applications to keep kissing bugs, as well as other unwanted pests, out of your home all year long.

There are 16 species and 18 subspecies of Triatoma in the United States. Just like a bed bug, the kissing bug survives solely on the blood of mammals.  These bugs will attack wild and domestic animals, as well as humans.  In North America, opossums, raccoons, rats, armadillos, cats, and dogs have fallen victim to kissing bug attacks.

Kissing bug bite wounds are often misdiagnosed as spider bites, bed bug bites, herpes zoster, flea bites, and erythema multiforme.  In extreme cases, death from anaphylaxis is possible from the bite of a kissing bug.

The main reason that the kissing bug bite is so dangerous is because it can spread Chagas’ disease.  The disease is spread when the kissing bug bites their victim and leaves their feces behind in or near the bite wound.  If a person scratches or rubs the feces into the bite wound, the disease can be contracted.  Some people will show signs of the disease immediately, some will not.  Symptoms include a rash, fever, vomiting, and a swelling near the eyes.  The disease often goes misdiagnosed by the medical community.  Additionally, some people will not show any symptoms of the disease for years.  Chagas disease will lurk in their blood and surface twenty to thirty years after the bite wound occurred.  When this happens it is difficult for doctors to determine the digestive and heart problems that the victim is exhibiting.

Please check back on Monday for the conclusion.