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You’ve spent months planning your ideal vacation. Imagine a five-star hotel in a tropical paradise. Your grand vacation will have everything dreams are made of. And, perhaps, a little bit more.
If travelers knew that there is a ninety percent chance that well-known hotel chains, even presidential suites in five-star hotels are prone to bed bugs, there would be far fewer bodies lining the beaches. Your favorite hotel may have hosted a bed bug infestation, while clients slept completely unaware.
So, what would you do if you discovered that your hotel had bed bugs? And, how would you know? If you enjoy traveling, you have to know the signs and symptoms of a bed bug infestation. That way, you’ll know how to prevent these insects from following you home.
Itchy
Most likely, you will feel this sign before you see it. The itch of a bed bug bite is widespread before the rash is even visible. Bed bug bites seem to be itchier than mosquito bites. When a mosquito bites, you are able to sense the sting of the bite and the sucking of blood. With bed bugs, it’s quite the opposite. First of all, the bugs only feed while their preys are fast asleep.
Further, there are anesthetics in bed bug’s saliva to deaden the pain, and anticoagulants to prevent the blood from clotting. They are able to bite you without being detected, and then leisurely feed until they can take no more.
The rash of a bed bug bite appears about an hour after the first piercing of the skin. However, some people will not develop a rash until several days after being bitten. It all depends on a person’s reaction to the chemicals being secreted by bed bugs.
Would you be able to locate a bed bug rash? The rash starts with a single, small, red, inflamed bump. It will look more swollen than a mosquito rash. At first, the rash will appear as a single, swollen spot. However, days later, the bed bug rash will multiply. Of course, this means that the original bug has brought his pesky friends back for another feast. People who move around a lot while they sleep may observe a rash of “in-line” bite marks. This formation takes place because the bed bugs feed swiftly and return to their hiding places as soon as the host begins moving.
If you have a rash that you suspect may be the result of bed bugs, observe it for a few days. Bed bug rashes remain itchy, even days after the rash initially appears. The rash itself will not heal as fast as a mosquito bite mark, and may remain swollen for weeks.
Stinky
The presence of bed bugs can sometimes be detected by a particular musty odor in the room. Hotel rooms with heavy bed bug infestations have an offensive,musty, sweetish, musty odor. This scent is released by the bed bugs through their feces and urine. Conduct a “sniff test” in your room, paying close attention to the headboard, wood chairs, upholstered furniture and under the mattress. If you detect a strange odor that you believe may indicate a presence of bed bugs, keep traveling.
In hotels with minimal or light infestation, the bed bug odor is not so easily detectable.
Avoiding a Home Invasion
* The night before you check out of the hotel, remove all items from your suitcase. Incredibly, bed bugs are effective hitchhikers. They are able to survive for months without food, and could very easily begin an infestation in your home if they traveled home in your luggage.
* Bed bugs are partial to things made of cloth, paper and wood. These are porous materials in which they can easily hide and make a habitat. Carefully check any and all items made of these materials.
* Spray a water-based insect killer around your luggage.
* Shake out your clothes to get rid of any bed bugs.
* Wipe your bathtub dry, and put your clothing and travel stuff in the tub. Bed bugs won’t stay on ceramic tub or marble surfaces, as these offer no comfort to the pests and usually gets wet.
* Wash your laundry before coming back home.
All of this may look like a lot of work, but it’s nothing compared the trouble you’d go to when exterminating your home. Once your bedroom has been infested with bed bugs, they will swiftly spread to neighboring rooms. Eliminating bed bugs is a very tough job and in extreme cases, you may need to throw away your sofa and bed to completely rid your home of bed bugs.
Taking a dream vacation can be even more enjoyable when you travel with a guest. But if you see indications of Itchy and Stinky in your hotel room, send them packing. You’ll be much better off traveling by yourself.
Tagged with: bed bugs control • pests control
Filed under: Bed Bugs in Hotels