If you’ve ever discovered itchy, red bumps on your skin, chances are that you ignored them and passed them off at mosquito bites. Hey-- you tell yourself-- Fido or Kitty must have fleas. It must be an allergy. Even though that may be a possibility, there’s also the chance that you have been in contact with bed bugs.

Thankfully these tiny pests don’t spread disease. What they do instead is feed on animal and human blood. Much like mosquitoes after feeding they have grown from size and are rotund, darkened and red. Attracted by the carbon dioxide that humans and animals exhale, they typically gravitate towards an easy feeding ground: beds are ideal for this.

With a lifespan reaching up to a year, a single female bed bug can lay up to 400 eggs. It can be hard to know how to get rid of bed bugs. If you have bed bugs, please call a professional pest control provider to exterminate your bed bug problem.

When it comes to bed bugs, the best offence is a good defense. Being proactive to keep your home bed bug free will stop you from ever having to ask yourself, how do I get rid of bedbugs? Follow these steps and be vigilant:

1. NEVER bring used clothing into your home without washing it first. Since bed bugs don’t fly and aren’t especially dextrous, they rely on being transported into new places. Clothing fabrics are ideal for bed bugs to latch onto and hitch-hike their way into you home.

2. RESEARCH hotel ratings and reports for any bed bug infestations. Bed bugs can settle into your luggage and come home to your bed bug-free household.

3. KNOW if signs of bed bug bites and don’t allow people into your home that you suspect may have been in contact with bed bugs. Bites often manifest as red welts and cause severe itch; they are often found in straight lines.

4. ALWAYS remove books from boxes before bringing them into your home. Bed bugs have been known to hide in the spines and bindings of old books. Make sure you check books, library books and textbooks, that are brought to and from numerous people’s homes in short periods of time.

5. AVOID using under-bed storage. This gives bed bugs new places to hide and reproduce.

6. REGULARLY wash your linens in hot water. While they’re in the machine, make sure you check for any signs of bed bugs. Bed bugs usually hide within 6 feet of their feeding area. Check for carcasses, eggs, and deep red/brown staining on fabrics.

Remember, if you have bed bugs, do not move the items you have out of your home without fully covering them in plastic and do not use your vacuum in your infested space and then also in your uninfested spaces: you run the risk of spreading bed bugs to new areas of your home.

KEEPING BED BUGS OUT OF YOUR HOME