Frequently Asked Questions

Bedbug Life Cycle - My Bedbug Lawyer

Female bed bugs can lay 200 to 250 eggs, which mature to adult stage within four to six weeks, meaning one or two bed bugs can turn into a massive infestation within a couple of months, if not caught and treated early. Bed bugs are resilient. Nymphs can survive months without feeding and the adults for more than a year. 

Bed bugs can spread quickly throughout a building. The bugs travel from room to room or floor to floor by crawling and by human transport. Bed bugs are efficient hitchhikers and may be brought in on luggage, clothing, beds, furniture, and other items. Hotels, motels and apartments, face additional challenges due to the constant turnover of occupants.

What are bed bugs?

Bed bugs are small, nocturnal insects that feed on blood. Despite their name, bed bugs can be found in a variety of environments outside of bedding such as furniture, walls, office buildings, college dormitories etc. Recently bed bugs have undergone a massive resurgence and are quickly becoming an a worldwide problem.

What do bed bugs look like?

Adults are small, brownish insects, just under a ¼” long and are relatively flat. They are nearly as wide as they are long, and oval in shape. Immature bed bugs (nymphs) resemble the adults, but are much smaller and lighter in color. Newly hatched nymphs are translucent and are no bigger than a pinhead (1 mm).

How do you get bed bugs?

Bed bugs need to be introduced into an environment. They do not jump or fly but are excellent hitch-hikers and can be transported on clothing, luggage, used furniture and various other objects. Risk for bed bug exposure increases in several of the following situations:

– Purchasing or using second-hand furniture and mattresses.
– Entertaining or being an overnight guest.
– Staying in hotels, college dormitories, boarding schools.
– Children coming home from summer camp.

Aren’t bed bugs typically associated with the dirty and poor?

Nope. Bed buds have been found everywhere from low-income housing to five-star hotels. Anywhere bedbugs can be transported, they can infest. Everyone should take precautions regardless of socio-economic status.

Do bed bugs transmit disease? What are their bite symptoms?

No. Although bed bugs carry over 28 human pathogens, there has been no documented case of bed bugs transmitting disease. The medical concerns of bed bugs are typically limited to the itching and inflammation associated with their bite. The bites effects are similar to allergic reactions and can vary from itchy welts to a severe and painful rashes that requires medical attention. Often, the emotional trauma associated with discovering a bed bug infestation is considerable.

How will I know if I have bed bugs?

The most reliable way to confirm you have bed bugs is to contact an entomologist or pest management professional and have them identify a sample collected from your home. However, there are key warning signs that you may have an infestation:

– Going to bed and waking with bites, welts or rashes. Bite marks may appear in a rows and clusters.
– Dark spotting or blood droplets on mattresses or bedding. These are waste products bed bugs excrete while digesting a blood-meal.
– Visible observation of eggs, molted insect skin, or the insect. The failure to locate an insect does not indicate they are not present. – – Adult bed bugs are difficult to locate and immature bed bugs can be difficult to see due to their size.

Do you think you've been exposed to bed bugs?

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