Bug Details
Bed Bugs
Bed bugs feed on human blood and are commonly found in mattress seams, box springs, and crevices in bed frames. Although they haven’t been shown to spread disease, these tiny blood suckers can cause a lot of stress and leave you with itchy welts from their bites. You can help protect your family and home by learning how to find, prevent, and kill bed bugs.
- Most bed bug problems start by bugs that hitch a ride into homes on luggage, furniture, clothing, or other items brought from infested areas.
- To look for bed bugs, check pillowcases, sheets, box springs, and mattresses for rust-colored smears of dried blood or small, red spots of fresh blood.
- If you find even one bed bug, take immediate action. Inspect beds and furniture to determine if the one bug was brought in alone or if there’s an active infestation present.
Additional details
Where bed bugs hide?
- Bed bug identification can be difficult because they’re so small and hide in tiny spaces.
- Bed bugs usually hide close to where they feed, which is why they’re often found near places where people sleep. Favorite hiding places include near the piping and seams of mattresses, and in the cracks and crevices of bed frames.
- When populations become larger, they can spread to other furniture, drapes, dressers, carpet, and even behind pictures and wallpaper.
What they want from you?
- Each life stage must bite their “host” for blood to survive, which is why they are often found in or very close to the bed or furniture such as armchairs and couches.
- Generally, bed bugs do not bite cats and dogs. However, when populations are severe, a pet may also be bitten.
Why they're a problem?
- Bed bug bites affect different people in different ways. Some people don’t notice they have been bitten, while others may develop swelling or itchy red welts similar to mosquito bites.
- Bites may itch for up to two weeks before healing.
- Large populations of bed bugs can result in hundreds of bites.
- They are very small (1/16 to 1/4 inches long) and hide in the smallest cracks and crevices, which can make it hard to find and kill bed bugs.
- Their population numbers can grow somewhat quickly, and one female bed bug can become dozens in just a few weeks.
