Where Do Bed Bug Dogs Work?
Anywhere and Everywhere
Bed bugs stay close to their preferred host - man. Where man has been, bed bugs may be in hiding, awaiting their next meal ticket and a free ride to a new home.
As the number of bed bug infestations rise, so do the locations where bed bug sniffer dogs play an important role in early bed bug detection, such as:
Public And Private Gathering Areas
With the surge of bed bug infestations on the rise, media coverage has no shortage of confirmed sightings in hotels, apartment complexes, dormitories, homes, hospitals, long term care facilities, libraries, offices, schools and theatres. Any concentrated public or private gathering area has the potential to provide harbourage for a bed bug population; don't forget community centres, gym facilities, physiotheraphy treatment centres, restaurants, etc.
Transportation Vehicles
Various modes of transportation used by the public— rapid transit (buses, subways), planes, cruise ships and cars, including taxis, have accommodated unwelcome bed bugs.
Even ambulances are not immune to the bed bug plague. After several incidents of bed bugs were found crawling on the equipment, Chris Broughton, President of Local 911 Manitoba Government and General Employees Union, called for government to publicly report sites infested, as it does with restaurants found to be unsanitary.
Moving and storage facilities have begun to implement bed bug practices and guidelines and provide canine bed bug inspections on a regular basis, e.g. Moishe’s and Bekin's, both serving the New Jersey/New York tri-state area.
Retail Outlets
Clothing and furniture outlets have been struck hard in the media, when bed bugs were found in the stores. Simmons Mattress Gallery, in Halifax Nova Scotia, have suspended their Comfort Exchange program which allowed customers to return mattresses within a set period:
“we do not remove old mattresses or foundations. Our delivery team can move your old mattress and foundation to the curb while delivering your new mattress.”
Rentals
Bed bugs hiding in design groove of a headboard. Photo: Lou Sorkin
New, used and rental furniture is another potential harbourage, which inadvertently spreads the pest to the homes of unsuspecting new owners. Bed bugs hide in the cracks and crevices of the furniture, e.g. wood joints, upholstery seams, back of headboards, or simply in a crack or a design groove of the piece as shown in the attached picture (courtesy of Lou Sorkin).
Your risk of exposure to bed bugs increases as the problem spreads. Ensure you have pre-emptive steps in place to protect your property and your family.