Where Do Bed Bugs Come From?
A common question asked by many home owners and Apartments and Hotels. We have discovered and rid countless residences of nasty bed bug infestations. We are providing here some true stories that might help you understand the problem and solution.
How Do Bed Bugs Spread?
Beaufort County, South Carolina
I recall a bed bug case in Beaufort, SC in which a family had been on a three week vacation to Europe. They were a retired couple and had traveled with a group of Americans during the trip. Neither the husband nor wife recalled having ever been bitten and were not even sure that the bugs they found on their sheets were even bed bugs. As a precaution the family in Beaufort asked their pest control company to identify the bug which they had saved in a Ziploc.
As it turns out the bugs were indeed bedbugs and upon further investigation more bed bugs were found behind the headboard. Due to the number of bed bugs it was estimated that the couple had been living with these bugs approximately four or more months which was also close to the time they had returned from Europe to their home in Beaufort. Being educated they understood that they were being bitten in order for the infestation to grow, but because neither had any allergic reaction it was a little hard to comprehend. The point I’m making is that bed bugs will eventually make their presence known even for those who have no allergic reaction. As the population grows more and more will begin moving around at all different times of the day and will be seen by anyone with normal vision.
How Do You Get Bed Bugs?
Hilton Head Island is well known for its beautiful landscapes, beaches, golf courses and overall natural tropical appeal. What may be less known is that bed bugs are on the rise even in affluent places like Hilton Head. Since Hilton Head is a travel destination many people come in for short periods of time and stay in homes, resorts, and hotels.
I’ve seen cases in which people have found infestations upon their hotel arrival or before departing and on other occasions guest have been embarrassed upon seeing a bed bug come out of their suitcase and knowing that they must have brought the bedbugs into someone’s rental property or hotel. Obviously, they were unaware they were transporting the bed bugs and often realize they must have picked them up at the previous place they stayed before arriving to their destination.
Other times they are just bewildered at how bedbugs have crawled out of their luggage as they didn’t make a pit stop before arriving, haven’t taken public transportation, haven’t had any company visit them, have no kids in daycare, school or college, home is a single family dwelling, work from home and haven’t purchased any used goods. You many never know, but it is always good to try and figure it out so that you avoid re-infestation. Hilton Head may be a beautiful tourist destination, but it is not immune to getting bed bugs.
Bed Bug Infestation
Port Royal, South Carolina is another one of the towns located near Beaufort, SC as well as Parris Island. Nearby is a Marine training base in which recruits come from all over to be trained. As you can imagine bringing people together from all over is another way that bed bugs are able to move from one region or town to another. Port Royal, SC is a small, cozy low country town which may be small, but not too small to have had its own experiences with bed bug infestations.
I recall someone from the Port Royal base having bed bugs and it was believed that he most likely brought them back from his last deployment.
What Causes Bed Bugs?
Saint Helena Island is another one of the small towns that is part of Beaufort County in South Carolina. Recognized for its rural low country character and being a major center for the Gullah culture and the language they speak.
I recall a case where a lady allowed her daughter and son-in-law to vacation in her rental home several times a year when she had openings available. The family stayed in her Saint Helena home and then realized they were being bitten by bed bugs. When the k-9 searched the home bedbugs were found on several mattresses as well as in the coat closet.
As the family began to retrace their steps they realized that prior to their arrival in Saint Helena they had been to a party in their hometown up north. The wife recalled how everyone had thrown their coats together on the bed. When she went to retrieve their coats she had seen a small black bug on one of their jackets, but hadn’t thought much about it at the time. It was unclear if the bed bugs were in the bed or if they had come from someone’s coat or purse, but needless to say, they must have been a couple of pregnant bed bugs due to the sheer number of Nymph Instar 1’s that were present.
The family did contact all of their friends from the party to let everyone know to be aware of the problem. Was it embarrassing? Well, yes, but at the same time it takes a real friend to warn others so that they may search and eradicate bedbugs if need be, versus waiting until a full blown infestation has occurred and major treatments must be done.
Jasper County
How Do You Get Bed Bugs In Your House?
Pineland, South Carolina is a small rural town in Jasper County. An elderly gentleman called our office stating that his wife had just returned from a trip and thought she had brought back bed bugs to their home in Pineland, SC. He was interested in having our K-9 team come out and verify what they believed and once we found them he went ahead and had us do the Heat Treatment. During the K-9 inspection three bed bugs were found in his wife’s bedroom, and also in their guest bedroom, but had not moved into his bedroom which was across the hall.
It had been a couple of months since his wife had traveled and so the infestation was very low. We wondered if the bed bugs just had avoided his bedroom because he didn’t have any itching or bites though he might have been a person who showed no reaction to the bites. He did have a few suspicious spots on his bed. There is also the possibility that because of his poor health of being a diabetic and on oxygen as well as numerous medicines had made him less desirable as a meal. Would be interested to see studies on similar such cases as was seen in this Pineland, SC home.
Professional Bed Bug Inspection
It can take two trained technicians up to two hours to search one bedroom for bed bugs visually and they only have around 25% accuracy. Inspecting an entire home with an IBBMA certified canine and handler can be completed in a number of minutes with accuracy of 90% or greater. Bed Bugs are excellent hitchhikers and just like lice they are parasites and need people or animal blood to survive.
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Bed Bug Detection Remediation Services of South Carolina is a division of FFR, Inc.
