The holidays are here, which means lots of traveling! In fact, according to TripAdvisor, almost half of all consumers polled plan on increasing their travel budget for the 2013 holiday season. With more travelers on the roads and staying in commercial lodgings, the chances of picking up bed bugs on your travels become quite a bit higher. These sneaky pests are excellent hitchhikers, so you must be aware of bed bugs if you plan to travel this holiday season.
Bed bugs are known for being anywhere that humans are; they need to live near people so that they can feed on our blood for nourishment. Because hotels are often quick stops for many different travelers, bed bugs can be introduced into a hotel room very easily. Just one person who has an infestation of bed bugs inside their home can introduce bed bugs into a commercial lodging facility. For example, Mr. Smith rents room 232 at the Quality Econo-Comfort Lodge. He doesn’t realize it, but the bed bugs he was harboring at home have come with him, hiding inside his luggage, in the seams of his clothing, and even inside the alarm clock he brought with him. Once inside the room, the bed bugs flee from wherever they are hiding and find a good place to hide inside room 232. When Mr. Smith checks out the next morning, he takes his luggage with him and leaves behind the bed bugs that followed him there, thus creating a problem for all future occupants of room 232.
If you are a future occupant of room 232, there’s a good chance you had no idea about the other guests living inside the room, especially if you’ve never previously given thought to bed bugs in hotels. Unfortunately, this scenario happens a lot- enough so that there is a website dedicated to helping hotel guests be ‘in the know’ about possible bed bug problems at prospective hotels across the country. Checking this ‘bed bug registry’ can help you steer clear of hotels with many bad reviews about bed bugs- but please keep in mind that even though bed bugs may have been detected at an establishment before, a thorough bed bug treatment can eliminate the pests, especially when done by knowledgeable and experienced professionals like the Indiana pest control pros at Action. You should also keep in mind that the hotel scenario is not the only way bed bugs are transferred from person to person; you can pick these pests up while spending time in movie theaters, friend’s homes, retail shops, libraries, and many other places where people spend a significant amount of time.
For those holiday travelers, out there, it’s important to realize that bed bugs can also be found inside modes of transportation, including buses, trains, rental cars, and even airplanes. Knowing the signs of bed bugs before you travel can help you significantly in making sure you don’t bring these pests home with you. If you choose to travel this holiday, take your car if possible, but if you must use public transportation, stay on the lookout for signs of bed bugs and keep your belongings on your lap whenever possible.
If you suspect you’ve come into contact with bed bugs, or you would just like the peace of mind of knowing your home or apartment is bed bug-free, contact the professionals at Action for an inspection performed by our bed bug detection dogs. Our extensively trained pups can locate even a single bed bug through the power of scent; inspections by our dogs are highly accurate and often take less than 5 minutes per room. Should our dogs detect bed bugs, we can offer a bed bug treatment to eliminate these pests so that you can sleep well at night, without the worry of those pesky bed bug bites.
For local pest control services, you can trust in Lexington, Louisville, Indianapolis, and Terre Haute, contact Action Pest Control today. We want you to be able to enjoy the holidays without the worry of bed bugs; contact us to schedule your first appointment and to learn more about the bed bug control services provided by Action.