Expert Flea and Bedbug Control Services Provided in Yorkshire and the North West
Itchy skin may be the first indicator of a bedbug infestation in your home. Bedbugs are typically small with a body the size of an apple seed which means that they can fit into tiny spaces, including mattresses, box springs, and bed frames.
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Flea bites differ from bedbug bites as fleas typically bite the ankles. For more information on our flea and bedbug control services, please contact our expert technicians in Yorkshire and the North West.
Bedbugs
Are you seeking local pest control services to deal with bedbugs? Bedbugs are small, brown parasites that survive on the blood of humans and animals. No doubt for most people this is a pretty disturbing thought and incredibly unpleasant to think about - especially when it comes to your own bed! Often, you’ll find that adult bedbugs have a flat body, around the same size as an apple seed. When a bedbug has recently extracted blood they turn a dark, red colour.
Bed bugs are unable to fly, however, are quick and can move very fast over floors, walls or ceilings. Female bedbugs lay hundreds of eggs, these are about the size of a speck of dust.
Immature bedbugs, also known as nymphs, will shed their skin five times before they reach maturity, and they require a meal of blood before each shedding. Bedbugs are able to grow to full-sized in as little as one month, and they can produce three or more generations per year. Fortunately, bedbugs do not transmit diseases, so despite the fact that they are a big issue for many and problematic, to say the least, it is pretty straightforward to remove them.
Where Will I Find Bedbugs?
As they are small, bedbugs can enter your home on luggage and clothing as well as on used beds and couches. Due to their flattened bodies, bedbugs can easily fit into small spaces, including spaces as tiny as the width of a credit card! Although they do not have nests like ants or bees, bedbugs do tend to live in groups in hiding places. Plus, bedbugs usually house themselves in places where it is hard to notice them such as mattresses, box springs, bed frames, and headboards. These locations mean that bedbugs can easily bite you at night whilst you are sleeping.
A bedbug bite is usually painless at first but can turn itchy later. Moreover, a bedbug can bite any exposed area of your skin while you sleep, whereas fleas typically bite your ankles. Also, bedbug bites do not have a red spot in the centre like flea bites.
People often mistake a bedbug bite for a mosquito bite, which means that the infestation usually progresses into a bigger issue. To ensure you have a bedbug bite and not a mosquito bite, you need to identify the bugs in your home.
Signs of Infestation
Waking up on a morning with itchy skin may be the first indicator that you have a bedbug infestation. This is especially important if you have a used bed or furniture and the itching started around the same time as when you bought these. Other signs that you have bedbugs include:
Blood Stains on Your Sheets or Pillowcases
Dark or Rusty Spots of Bedbug Excrement on Sheets and Mattresses, Bed Clothes, and Walls
Bedbug Eggshells or Shed Skin in Areas Where Bedbugs Hide
An Offensive, Musty Odour from the Bugs’ Scent Glands
It is important to act as quickly as possible if you notice an infestation. We recommend removing all bedding and checking it for signs of the bugs or their excrement. Also, you should remove the dust cover over the bottom of the box springs and examine the seams in the wood framing. You should also peel back the fabric stapled to the wood frame.
People often forget to check the surrounding areas of the bed, including bedside tables, books, telephones, radios, the edge of the carpet, and in electrical outlets. Plus, don’t forget to check your wardrobe because bedbugs are known to attach to clothing.
The longer bedbugs are left to infest your property, the higher the chance of them spreading through your bedroom. If left for a long time, they may even spread to nearby rooms or apartments. Another misconception is that only dirty houses have bedbugs, this is not true, you are just as likely to find bedbugs in immaculate properties just as much as dirty ones.
When Bedbugs Bite
Bedbugs are most likely to bite when you are sleeping at night. They feed by penetrating the skin and withdrawing blood through an elongated beak. Typically, bugs feed for three to ten minutes after which they crawl away to hide back in your mattress.
Fleas
Fleas are very similar to moths, especially the lifecycle as they start from an egg, then progress to larva (caterpillar), then to a pupa (cocoon), and finally into an adult. Tiny in appearance, a newly hatched flea will be black, aggressive, and hungry! Although when they have their first meal, fleas become larger and their body changes colour.
People often complain that flea treatments are ineffective, this is because you can still see small black fleas after completing the treatment. The reason for this is because pupas are resistant to chemicals. Therefore, fleas continue to hatch as the insecticides cannot infiltrate the flea pupal case. Ten fleas can reproduce to 250,000 in only 30 days!
Fleas are most likely to lay their eggs when your pet is relaxing. Moreover, the white eggs will fall off your pet and land onto the carpet or soil etc. Small blind larvae emerge from the eggs. These larvae move away from the light, delving down into the carpet, cracks in floorboards, or into the soil. They feed on protein, such as flea droppings of partly digested blood. They moult three times before forming a pupa. The larva changes into the adult in the pupa.
In the summer months, a flea may hatch from the pupa approximately 7-14 days after it is formed. Having said this, the fleas may also not do anything for up to 18 months. Hatching of the flea from the pupa is triggered by nearby movement, predominantly during warm, moist weather conditions. After feeding on the host, the engorged female flea is ready to mate and lay eggs – about 24 hours after hatching. She can lay up to 500 eggs (27 per day) over a lifetime which may span several weeks.
Important Flea Treatment Information
To achieve optimal results from the treatment, you must carry out the following:
1. Indoors
Remove toys, clothes etc from the floor. Some insecticides will affect fish. Cover the fish tank and turn off the filter before the treatment. Remove pets from the area to be treated – return them only after the treatment has dried.
2. Treat the pet(s)
Sought advice from your Veterinarian. The use of soaps or shampoos may reduce the residual action of the treatment.
3. Be patient
It is normal to see fleas for several weeks after the treatment. Do not leave flea-infested areas undisturbed – movement hatches fleas.
4. Do not vacuum
for at least seven days after treatment. Place the vacuuming in a bag and put in the bin.
5. Leave your pet in the flea-infested areas
it will attract the fleas. If you remove your pet from the infested area, the fleas will continue to hatch for about six weeks with normal 'human' activity.
You are most likely to see fleas when an area is newly disturbed, for example, when people get up in the morning and go outside. Moreover, you will not see the fleas in the same area later in the day. If the treatment works effectively, the fleas will hatch, retreat to the treated surface (carpet or soil which has been treated by our experts, or your pet which we will have applied one of our products onto), and die within a few hours.
Flea Control – Helpful Hints
1. For optimum results
carry out the environmental and on-animal flat treatments at the same time.
2. We strongly advise
against avoiding flea-infested areas after the treatment as this can significantly reduce the effects of it. Don’t forget about the places where your pet likes to rest, such as the shed, spare room, and anywhere else.
3. Although it can be tempting
refrain from moving your pet from the infested area as if you do, you will become the only potential host.
4. Don’t leave the problem
to progress into a larger issue, as soon as you see fleas, treat them. After all, there is no need to suffer pain from flea bites.
5. When you enter
a vacant house, this will stimulate fleas waiting to hatch. This is most common in vacant rental and holiday houses.
6. Be sure to ask
your friend to walk/stomp through your house several times if you are going on holiday. If your friend cannot go around your house every day, ask them to go around on the day of your return as this will ensure the fleas hatch and die on the treated surfaces before you return!
Need More Information?
Be sure to contact our dedicated team about our flea and bedbug control services.