A serious problem during World War II that was eradicated, bed bugs are again a serious dilemma throughout the United States. They’re found in homes, dormitories, apartments, and commercial buildings like hotels, motels, nursing homes, and hospitals. The problem is only increasing. Because of this, it is imperative that you consider scheduling a bed bug inspection.

A Little Bit of Background Info on Bed Bugs

It is extremely difficult to see immature bed bugs and eggs laid by adult bed bugs; however, adult bed bugs are generally relatively easy to see and are either brown or red in color, depending on whether they’ve recently fed. Bed bugs hide during the day and come out at night to feed. They are primarily attracted to warm areas as well as carbon dioxide making humans and other warm-blooded animals their primary prey. Unfortunately, humans do not feel bed bugs when they bite, even though they generally feed for anywhere from two to five minutes at a time.

Visual Inspections vs. Canine Inspections

Success rates of exterminators detecting visible signs of bed bugs are at about 30%, especially if it is a low-level bed bug infestation. It is for this reason that when you schedule a bed bug inspection for your home or commercial property that you ensure the exterminating company uses other resources, such as canine bed bug inspection, like Assured Environments.  Dogs use their sense of smell rather than visual ability to detect the presence of bed bugs. In most cases, dogs can detect bed bugs in a matter of mere minutes whereas a team of even the most skilled exterminators could spend an hour searching for the same infestation.

While visual detection is still important and generally accompany a K-9 inspection, canine inspections are the most reliable methods available to detect the presence of bed bugs with a success rate of about 97-98%. This makes a canine inspection more accurate and cost-effective when compared to traditional methods used for bed bug detection.

If you need to schedule a bed bug inspection in New York, contact a company like Assured Environments that offers different levels of inspections – visual and canine – to ensure that an infestation is accurately and thoroughly detected, if you have one. Assured Environments is also skilled in chute cleaning, drain cleaning, bird control, fly management and food safety, LEED, and pest control management, including bed bugs.