NESDCA Certified Handler Teams!

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Jason M

Buckeye Bed Bug Detection is starting 2012 off with a bang!  Our two handler teams are both certified with the National Entomology Scent Detection Canine Association (www.nesdca.com).  NESDCA was formed by pest control professionals to ensure the highest  standards for entomology scent detection canines are upheld and is a certifying organization assuring the highest quality standards in scent detection canines.  Certification is good for one year and the handler teams must pass the certification exam on an annual basis.  The test includes various distractors (such as dead bed bugs) to ensure the canine only alerts on live bed bugs and viable eggs.  This third party administered testing is further verification that canine bed bug detection really does work and is yet another weapon to be used in the ongoing battle with the spreading bedbug epidemic.

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Mild Winter in Ohio and the Midwest may add to the Bed Bug Epidemic

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Admin

With a mild winter in 2012, at least in Central Ohio and throughout much of the Midwest, you can expect that the bed bug epidemic will grow even faster. Since freezing is know to kill bedbugs, the typical winter season has a helpful impact on reducing bed bugs living outside of the home, office, hotel or other heated building.
Bed bugs that have found their way into a vehicle, garage, boat, or outdoor area are usually killed by freezing winter temperatures. In a mild winter, this may not happen. Since the parasitic insects are able to go several months without feeding on your blood, without extended periods of freezing temperatures to reduce the bedbug population, a mild winter could prove to add to the bed bug epidemic for 2012.

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Celebrate National Wear Red Day® Friday, February 3, 2012

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Admin

On National Wear Red Day® Americans nationwide will wear red to
show support for women’s heart disease awareness. The Heart Truth® is:
“Heart Disease Doesn’t Care What You Wear—It’s the #1 Killer of Women.®”
The Heart Truth: National Wear Red Day, Friday, February 3, 2012. Get Involved!
Join the national awareness movement by wearing red on February 3rd and encourage your family, friends, and coworkers to do the same. For more information on The Heart Truth campaign, National Wear Red Day, and The Red Dress®—the national symbol of women and heart disease awareness—visit www.hearttruth.gov.
The Heart Truth is a national awareness campaign for women about heart disease sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. ® The Heart Truth, its logo, The Red Dress, and Heart Disease Doesn’t Care What You Wear—It’s the #1 Killer of Women, are trademarks of HHS. ® National Wear Red Day is a registered trademark of HHS and AHA.

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Bed Bugs Are In Our Schools!

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Jason M

This picture below is from a school somewhere in Central Ohio:

Preventing the spread of bed bugs in schools.

Yes, this school is having a problem with bed bugs being spread amongst the kids school bags and coats as they hang in the hallway.  This is not an isolated incident or problem.  It can happen at any school in any city.  All it takes is one student or teacher with bedbugs at home….some bugs there catch a ride to school, move to another bag or jacket and head back with the owner to their home.  This process can continue until the infestation is discovered and treated.  But who knows where the bugs have spread before that happens? 

 
I do applaud the approach being taken by this school to combat the problem.  It’s economical and does an effective job of isolating each student’s items from roaming bedbugs.  As I’ve said before, these items are not being posted to deter you from interacting with the world.  They are meant to educate you to the different ways bed bugs are being spread and hopefully assist you in avoiding the spreading bed bug epidemic. 
 
 

Continue reading →

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Travel Tips For Avoiding Bed Bugs

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Jason M

There are many things you can do to reduce your chances of picking up bed bugs while you travel:

  1. Treat the outside of your luggage with appropriately labeled insect repellant to deter bed bugs from hitching a ride home.
  2. Avoid bringing personal items like pillows, blannkets and etcetera to the lodging facility.
  3. Bring a small, bright flashlight to assist with your inspection.  LED lights work best.
  4. Place your luggage on a luggage rack (after inspecting it), or against the farthest wall from the bed and nightstands.  Do not place it on the bed at any time.
  5. Remove the headboard (if you can) and carefully look for bedbugs, reddish blood spots or dark fecal spots from bedbugs.
  6. Before placing items in or on them, look inside and underneath drawers in the bedside tables for signs of an infestation.

If you find signs of bed bugs or think you’ve found an actuall bedbug, collect the evidence and present it to hotel management as proof of your claim.  If your room does have a problem, have hotel management move you to a different room.  Make sure it is not immediately adjacent on any side or corner to the infested room you are departing.

After traveling, if bed bugs are suspected of being in your luggage, do not bring it into your bedroom at home.  Unpack on a table or surface where bedbugs can be more easily seen.  Be sure to wash and dry all suspect clothing in the warmest temperature that is safe according to the clothing care directions on the tag.

Despite the increasing incidence of bed bugs, the odds of encountering these insects are small.  Be vigilant…but don’t stop traveling and enjoying life!

With that in mind, what kind of steps do you take to avoid bedbugs when traveling?

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Bed Bugs Without Borders

Posted on October 23, 2011 by Jason M

Each year PCT magazine send out a survey to pest control providers across the country to gather statistics on their experiences.  Well, once again, the number of bedbug infestations across the country has increased.  More specifically, many places experienced double-digit growth from a year ago, including:

  • College dorms (54 percent, up from 35 percent a year ago)
  • Hotels/motels (80 percent, up from 67 percent a year ago)
  • Nursing homes (46 percent, up from 25 percent a year ago)
  • Office buildings (38 percent, up from 17 percent a year ago)
  • Schools and day care centers (36 percent, up from 10 percent a year ago)
  • Transportation (train/bus/taxi) (18 percent up from nine percent a year ago)
  • Hospitals (31 percent, up from 12 percent a year ago)
  • Movie theaters (17 percent, up from four percent a year ago)

Bedbugs are widely reviled by consumers who get them. In fact, nearly every respondent (98 percent) described bed bug customers as upset and concerned. The most frequent description was “very” concerned (78 percent).

The respondents report one-quarter of their bed bug customers (25 percent) attempted to treat these pests prior to calling a pest control professional. A year ago, the comparable figure was substantially higher (38 percent), suggesting that in this arena the DIY approach is becoming less popular.

Do yourself a favor and don’t try to treat a potential infestation on your own.  Contact a pest control company…or better yet, contact several and have them explain their bedbug treatment process to you.  Or, you could call Buckeye Bed Bug Detection and we will provide you with a canine inspection to determine where the infestation is located.  We will gladly work with your pest control provider…or refer you to some of the quality companies we have worked with in the past!

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Dangers of Insecticides to get rid of Bed Bugs

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Admin

With a solution that is more dangerous than the problem, the ability to narrow the area where pesticides to get rid of bedbugs are sprayed doesn’t just save money, it can save your health. While bed bugs technically don’t pose a threat to ones health, these un-welcome visitors are still a growing epidemic. With the ability to travel large distances to feed, bedbugs do not always infest the usual spots. In addition to the obvious location of mattress and furniture seems, bedbugs can infest crevices in a floor, carpeted areas, dresser drawers, behind outlets, and just about any other place that you can think of.

The use of a canine bedbug detection service can narrow the area where dangerous pesticides are saving you money, keeping you in better health, protecting your pets, and helping the environment. With reports of recent government studies about health problems caused by bed bug insecticide use, it is now as important as ever to take your health into consideration before getting your home sprayed for bedbugs. At Buckeye Bed Bug Detection we do just that. See Ollie the bed bug sniffing dog in action!

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Tips for avoiding hotel bedbugs

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Admin

Bed bugs frequently find their way into your home from travel. While the insects can be picked up in many places, even in the office, at school, or in a vehicle, the most frequently thought of place where bedbugs are found are hotels. Even if you do not get bitten by bed bugs at a hotel, they can find their way into or onto your luggage, in a purse, or on your clothing. This is significant because all these items are brought into your homes or the home of another where you may be staying, thus spreading the bedbugs.

Due to the small size of bedbugs and the numerous places they hide it can be very difficult to accurately determine if bedbugs are in a hotel you may be staying at. In addition to asking the hotel if they have regular bedbug inspections here are some tips for avoiding hotel bedbugs.

As part of the regular business of Buckeye Bed Bug Detection, we regularly inspect hotels for bedbugs to assess the bedbug status and keep the guests safe.

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Top 15 Most Bed Bug Infested U.S. Cities

Posted on July 21, 2011 by Jason M

For those of you who don’t believe bed bugs are a problem here in Ohio, check out this list of the top 15 most bed bug infested cities in the United States.  As you can see, there are four cities from Ohio listed….Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton and Columbus.  The Midwest is well represented by the inclusion of these four Ohio cities along with Detroit, Louisville and Indianapolis.  This list was published in 2010 so I’m sure there’s been some changes in the rankings since then.  However, it definitely illustrates we need to be vigilant in our daily bed bug inspections!

Top 15 Most Bed Bug Infested U.S. Cities

  1. New York City, NY
  2. Philadelphia, PA
  3. Detroit, MI
  4. Cincinnati, OH
  5. Chicago, IL
  6. Denver, CO
  7. Columbus, OH
  8. Dayton, OH
  9. Washington, DC
  10. Los Angeles, CA
  11. Boston, MA
  12. Indianapolis, IA
  13. Louisville, KY
  14. Cleveland, OH
  15. Minneapolis, MN

List is provided by AOL News

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Renters May Be Held Responsible For Bed Bugs

Posted on July 21, 2011 by Jason M

Attention all renters!  Your landlord may soon be holding you accountable for all the treatment costs associated with any bed bug infestations in your residence.  Check out this story:

Channel 10 Columbus – “Some Renters Could Be Have To Sign Bed Bug Pact”

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