- Are there small brown scales in your bed?
- Do you think you have bed bugs?
- Would you know the signs if you had bed bugs?
- Do you have a strange odor coming from your room?
Five signs that you might have bed bugs and should search for a bed bug exterminator:
Bites
One of the most common signs that people notice when they have bed bugs are the bites. Before marks appear on their body, people generally don’t even consider bed bugs. The bites that will appear if you have bed bugs are red, flat welts that will be in zigzag lines, straight lines, or a small cluster. You won’t get a disease from the bugs, but they are itchy and can lead to an infection if irritated by scratching until blood appears. The bites typically appear on arms, legs, shoulders, or any skin that’s left naked while sleeping. This differs from other bugs during warm weather that might bite around the ankles, like fleas, chiggers, and mosquitos.
The Bed
An infected bed is the second telltale sign that something has infiltrated your sheets. After biting you, there will be small dried blood stains on the edges and corners of the bed. As they mature, bed bugs shed their skin, so the second sign would be finding their circular tan exoskeletons in the covers. Look for bed bugs on the mattress corners, around the folds, and the boxspring.
Fecal Matter
These will appear on the mattress, box spring, or sheets as dark or black stains that look like a felt tip pen has bled onto the fabric. These spots are digested blood, or fecal matter left behind after the bed bugs have fed. To confirm whether you do have a bed bug infestation, you can wipe the spots with a wet rag and if they smear, it is bed bug feces.
Eggs and Empty Eggshells
Bed bugs can lay a large amount of eggs, so they remains of the egg shells can be seen fairly easy. A female bed bug can lay up to five eggs a day so if not caught early, a bed bug infestation can lead to a large problem quite quickly. Look closely at the seams on your mattress and box spring for small, translucent shells.
Smell
What makes Northwest K9 Bed Bug Detective special is that our bed bug sniffing dogs can locate the bugs by their smell. The musty odor occurs when the bugs release alarm pheromones. The smell is hard to notice unless there is a large infestation, so have an inspection done at the first sign of bed bugs.
If you are experiencing one or more of these signs, then there’s probably a bed bug infestation. We recommend bed bug removal as soon as possible. Northwest K9 is the best bed bug exterminator in Seattle, WA. Try our unique way of bed bug removal by having our reliable dog, Magic, find the bed bugs and exterminate them. Call us today to learn more about bed bug removal, cost, and how Northwest K9 can help.