From: Batzner Pest Management
16948 W. Victor Rd.
New Berlin, WI 53151
Contact: Jerry Batzner or Chris Venuti, 262-797-4160
or Jordan Fox, 414-352-2645
No one likes bed bugs, but those tiny bloodsucking creatures like you. In fact, they may have crept into your very own bed last night. With bed bug infestations growing to alarming figures in the Midwest and other parts of the country, Ted Snyder, entomologist for Batzner Bed Bug Services, Inc., and Batzner Pest Management, Inc., New Berlin, has suggestions to help you identify telltale signs.
“It’s important to identify bed bugs as soon as you can,” he says. “If you don’t, an infestation can grow quickly. Bed bugs can bite you, members of your family, and even your pets. They aren’t known to carry diseases, but can certainly be a major nuisance both mentally and financially.”
Usually just under a quarter-inch long and oval in shape, they are wingless, brown or reddish brown in color, and usually relatively flat. They are able to crawl into very small crevices in and around human living spaces. These include between box springs and mattresses, their creases, folds, tufts and seams. They can easily hide in upholstery, inside electrical boxes, and in window frames. They even lurk behind picture frames, wallpaper and in other spaces close to a potential meal, says Snyder.
“An infestation doesn’t mean there are unclean or unsanitary living conditions,” he notes. “Even highly regarded
hotels and office buildings in the USA have had bed bug infestations lately, probably because of domestic and international
travel.”
Bed bugs are nocturnal creatures and can usually be seen in the early morning hours, but if an infestation is large, they may be spotted at other times as well. According to Snyder, bites can be the first signs of an infestation. Bites on some people will swell up, but bites on 30% of the population may hardly cause any type of reaction, he says.
Other signs include:
*Blood smears on the sheets.
*Bed bug fecal matter, which look like small red spots.
*Bed bug shed skin.
*Bed bug eggs, which are pretty invisible but very sticky.
“Removing headboards, washing bed linens or other infested areas might not eliminate the source. The first thing to do is to have a pest control professional thoroughly inspect the area. We do this to determine the places where the bed bugs are living. To get rid of them, we’ll then do an appropriate treatment of these areas as well as adjacent areas,” he says.
Because of the growing bed bug problem, Batzner Services, parent company of Batzner Pest Management, recently established Batzner Bed Bug Services, their new company devoted to enhanced bed bug control. The new company created its No Bed Bug ZoneSM program.
For more information, contact them at 262-797-4160, or visit them on the web at www.Batzner.com . The company has service centers in Madison, Racine, Fond du Lac, Milwaukee and Oshkosh.
