Bed bugs (or related)
Hi all,
Someone who spends time in our home has recently gotten a bunch of bites that look perhaps like bed bugs. We're trying to figure out where she got them and what they might be. Does anyone recommend a service that will do an inspection of our home to assess what might be going on (bed bugs, fleas, spiders, something else)? Thanks so much.
[ Moderator note: See also past advice: "What is Biting Us?" and "Biting Insects" ]
Sep 21, 2020
Parent Replies
heck out the Berkeley REnt Board for brochures and information on bed bus. All owners who rent to tenants are required by law to provide Bedbug information to tenants.
Have you considered rat mite bites? Years ago our then young kids had a bunch of bites we couldn't figure out. The pediatrician suspected rat mite bites, and sure enough we found a dead rat outside of their bedroom window. YUK! Rats are extremely pervasive in the area.
We had bedbugs a year and half ago - they multiply exponentially at a rapid rate so finding out what the bites are is critical. My son's pediatrician at Kaiser pulled in a dermatologist and it was diagnosed in 2 seconds. You can also look at corners of your mattress between mattress and boxspring to look for evidence of bugs or actual bugs. We used Orkin because they were the only ones who gave us a 30 day warantee on the work done (we opted to tent the house).
Contact Alameda County Vector Control. They will come to your house and assess for free. They’ll tell you which vermin you have and how to fix the issue. We called them a few years ago when we had an issue and they came out and were helpful.