You know the feeling just before falling asleep when you are totally relaxed? Now imagine adding bed bugs to the mix and you get yourself a sleepless night in your St. Louis home. Thankfully, all of us at Nationwide Pest Control have a few tips to help you recognize a bed bug infestation and know when to call in a pest control professional for bed bugs in St Louis.
Read the signs below to know if you have a bed bug problem and leave the sleepless nights behind!
What Exactly IS a Bed Bug and Why are They a Nightmare to Deal With?
Bed bugs are wingless insects that love to feed on human blood along with the blood of other warm-blooded mammals; this gives them their lovely rusty red color. If that’s enough of a description to make your skin crawl (pun intended) then read no further. Bed bugs can live just about anywhere in your home but are most noticeable when they are found in your bedding or mattress because they leave behind small brown or red marks from fecal matter or blood.
Bed Bug Eggs and Live Bed Bugs
Bed bug eggs look like a robust grain of rice and are white to yellowish in color. If you stay in a hotel or a friend’s home and a female bed bug gets into your belongings, you may be bringing home an entire pest infestation with you! Female bed bugs can lay around 200 eggs and when they hatch they can spread around your home.
Bed Bugs are oval shaped and small in size (comparable to an apple seed). They are often confused with fleas or carpet beetles which is why it can be helpful to call a pest control company and set up a free inspection to help identify the pest.
Bed Bugs Shell Casings
Bed bug populations will shed their shells while growing into adult bed bugs. The shell is their exoskeleton and looks just like a bed bug aside from the color (which is more yellow). If you see these around your bed, furniture or on the floor, you likely have an infestation.
Bed Bug Bites
Bed bugs bite exposed areas of skin while a person sleeps, leaving a swollen itchy bite mark behind. The bites can last between 1-2 weeks. Due to the level of itchiness these bite marks have, people tend to scratch frequently which can lead to an open wound and a possible infection. Yikes!
A Sweet Musty Odor That is NOT Your Loved One’s New Perfume
Bed bugs carry with them a special scent that is secreted from their scent glands. The scent becomes more apparent of the bed bugs are moved or disturbed. The scent has been described as smelling like Coriander when the bed bug is disturbed or berries when left undisturbed. If you start noticing a new scent in your home and can’t determine the source, you may be dealing with a bed bug problem.
Treatment Options for Bed Bugs in St Louis
If you live in the Saint Louis area and are looking for a pest control company with bed bug treatment options, Nationwide Pest Control is here to help! The companies we refer have listed reviews and will likely be up to date on the latest heat treatment technology to help safely treat your pest problem.
Call today at (866) 584-9183 and get the rest and assurance you need!
