Green Earth Pest Control in New York City, Hudson County New Jersey, Los Angeles and Ventura California, yields dozens of new calls every single week from clients who are at their wits end, concerned they have Bed Bugs in their home or office. It is definitely our most common call and unfortunately a very traumatizing ordeal for all involved, including our own staff.
Our very first question to our potential client is “what makes you think that you have bed bugs?”. The most common answer being they suffered a bite or their doctor or dermatologist told them to call an exterminator because they have bed bugs.
Tidbit…
Did you know that a Dermatologist is not able to tell you which insect bit you? Dermatologists are only able to tell if the bite-like mark on your skin is from an arthropod (insect), arachnid (spider), skin irritation or a skin disease. Confirmation can only be attained through a biopsy of the infected skin and not simply by looking at the bite-like mark/s.
Once we successfully talk the caller down from the ledge we ask if they actually saw physical evidence of bed bugs or not. Mostly the answer is “no”. However for those clients who actually saw live bed bugs, bed bug eggs or bed bug feces we ask them to email us a picture or video of the insect or evidence found for our staff entomologist to analyze. In more than 50% percent of cases the insect evidence submitted is not that of a biting insect! Now that does not mean that the insect in the picture or video can’t cause a skin irritations, but there is a distinct difference in between a biting insect and an insect that does not bite rather leaving behind skin lesions or a rash.
Insects that commonly bite humans are mosquitoes, fleas, bed bugs and sometimes spiders. Those insects are not to be confused with insects that may leave rashes without biting, such as carpet beetle larvae. The most common culprit we receive is the insidious looking shiny spider beetle. Shiny spider beetles do not bite but they do closely resemble a bed bug. Our callers are very relieved to hear that just simple vacuuming can resolve a shiny spider beetle infestation! During these occurrences it is our pleasure to deliver the great news, even if it means that we do not sell our service.
Upon successfully identifying the offending irritant insect we are then able to prescribe effective treatment options for that specific insect. While the recommended services can vary on the insect they can include traditional, green, organic and sometimes even pesticide free options! Some examples of pesticide free options are heat remediation, physical elimination via pheromone trapping or even vacuuming. In certain cases treatment may not even be recommended! Wait, what!?!…That’s right, sometimes a dehumidifier or vacuuming can resolve your insect problem, without a single drop of insecticides used! What a relief!
