If you plan on leaving your Kansas City home to visit friends or family this holiday season, it is a good idea to get brushed up on your bed bug knowledge. Not only will it help you have a safer, more fun trip, it could potentially save you the misery of bringing these blood-eating pests home with you.

Why Bed Bugs Are A Problem For Holiday Travellers

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you are probably already aware that bed bugs are hitchhiking bugs that many people pick up when they stay at hotels and motels. But, what you may not know is that bed bugs are not just found in hotels and motels. They can be found in buses, taxis, trains, planes, and other forms of public transportation. Infestations have been discovered in libraries, schools, police stations, office buildings, daycares, and a whole host of other public places. You can even pick bed bugs up while staying at the house of your friends or family.

Tips For Keeping Bed Bugs From Coming Home With You

• Check bedbugregistry.com or some other review site before staying anywhere. These will give you a head up if bed bugs have been seen.

• When you arrive at your hotel, leave your bag in the bathroom while you inspect for signs of bed bugs.

• Use a flashlight to check the seams of mattresses and the stitching on upholstered furniture for black fecal residue and streaks, shed insect casings, blood stains, and the insects themselves.

• Black streaks, blood stains, and insect casings can also be found on pillowcases, sheets, wall outlet covers, and baseboards.

• If you see rashy bites that look like mosquito bites, but they appear in a line or a cluster, be aware that they may be bed bug bites. Knowing this can help you take appropriate measures to prevent these bugs from traveling home with you.

• Newly hatched bed bugs are about the size of the tip on a pen, and their casing is mostly transparent. These are not bugs you’re going to notice, unless they are feeding. If you see a tiny red bug on your skin, you may want to take a closer look.

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, these tiny bugs find a way to come home with us, no matter what we do. If this happens to you, you can count on Schendel to get rid of those bed bugs in your Kansas City home. We offer effective, non-invasive canine bed bug inspections, and eco-friendly heat treatment solutions. When it comes to eradicating bed bugs, you can trust Schendel Pest Services.