Customer Login
How To Tell If It's Bed Bugs In Your Longview Home
August 13, 2021
Bed bugs are just plain nasty. The thought of sharing your bed with them will make you start itching everywhere. It’s bad enough to have a problem with bed bugs, but to admit it out loud is hard to do. They are in the same category as lice. Having the reputation of being associated with filth. We know now this isn’t always the case. Pest-Pro Services, Inc. is here to help the people of Longview with bed bug problems.
Bed Bugs Can Be Hard To Identify
Other insects have similarities to bed bugs, for example, spider beetles are oval-shaped and dark brown. Baby cockroaches resemble bed bugs, but are more cylindrical. Carpet beetles are small, round, and brown, but have distinct wings. Lastly, booklice look like baby bed bugs. Because identification is so difficult, having a professional is extremely helpful. Interesting factoid: did you know that dogs can be trained to sniff out bed bugs?
Bed Bug Description
Knowing what you are looking for is half the battle. This list should help you, but also in our pest library, you will find pictures of the various stages of bed bugs, including the eggs.
-
About the size of an apple seed (5-7 mm or 3/16 - 1/4 inch long).
-
If NOT fed recently, they are long and brown, with a flat, oval-shaped body.
-
If fed recently they are balloon-like, reddish-brown, and more elongated.
-
The bugs in Texas normally have a mottled appearance on their backs. Brown with black modeling.
-
Smelly, with a “musty-sweetish” odor produced through glands on the lower side of the body.
-
Young bed bugs (also called nymphs) in general are smaller, translucent, or whitish-yellow; and if not recently fed, can be nearly invisible to the naked eye because of coloring and size.
-
Bed bug eggs are generally tiny, the size of a pinhead, pearl-white, and marked by an eyespot if more than five days old.
In 1990 a resurgence of bed bug numbers made headlines. A survey of pest control companies nationwide reported that 99% of those that responded had treated an infestation. We know that this can be an embarrassment, but nowadays it has, unfortunately, become commonplace.
Signs That You Have Bed Bugs
The two easiest ways to discern that you are facing a bed bug infestation would be the bites made on your skin, and the blood specks on your sheets, mattress cover, and pillowcases. Once you suspect you have become infested, most people will attempt to search them out. They are notoriously difficult to find, and you shouldn’t let the name bed bug fool you into thinking they will reside only in your bed. You will find them hiding in any of these locations:
-
The seams of the mattress, and between the mattress and box spring.
-
In bed frames or headboard joints.
-
Behind baseboards, and in between baseboards and carpeting.
-
Behind lifted edges of wallpaper.
-
In your dresser drawers or your linen closets.
-
In your wall outlets.
They are hitchhikers, which is why you seem to spontaneously have an infestation. They are easily picked up in hotels, dorm rooms, public transportation while visiting a friend, or riding in their car. You really can be exposed almost anywhere.
Call The Pros Right Away
At Pest-Pro Services, Inc., the first step we take to get rid of bed bugs is to provide a free inspection and estimate. Our experienced technicians then provide guaranteed services up to one year that are needed to completely get rid of bed bugs from your home or business. Don't waste time while they are breeding, call us today.
