“Pest buster takes bite out of bedbugs” |
| Pest buster takes bite out of bedbugs Posted: 21 Oct 2010 09:34 AM PDT As bedbug-mania sweeps the continent, Kay has emerged as one of the leading experts on the little bug that has infested thousands of homes and hotels and reeked scores of psychological havoc along the way. The business owner is president of the Colorado Pest Control Association and sits on an international blue-ribbon panel on what has sometimes been called the "bedbug pandemic." Kay organized a local bedbug conference in September. She is scheduled to attend this month's national bedbug convention in Honolulu, where she will diligently inspect the linings of her hotel bed before even bringing her suitcase in the room. Colorado Community Newspapers recently asked Kay for a thumbnail sketch of the little bug that has taken a bite out of red-blooded America. CCN: Were you into bugs when you were a kid? Kay: I wasn't. I was a prissy little girl. I just started studying the biology, the habits, the life cycles. When I told friends I was doing this, they they thought I'd kind of lost my mind. I find it interesting. But my first bedbug job did creep me out. CCN: Why the recent increase in bedbugs? Kay: Number one, the DDT we have used in the past wore off. They've gotten rid of a lot pesticides that were killing the bedbugs — and rightfully so. Plus, people are traveling a lot more. CCN: Are we seeing a bedbug pandemic? Kay: The Centers for Disease Control has considered calling it an epidemic or a pandemic. But bedbugs have never been shown to carry diseases, even though they're bloodsucking. CCN: How much has business increased recently? Kay: In 2001, I had one bedbug call. The next call I had was about six months later. We now get about 20 calls a day. CCN: Do you get many false alarms? Kay: We've had people bring in things they thought were bedbugs — lint or little black dots of something. I've had people who had a blemish on their face and say, "I've got a bedbug bite!" People are freaked out. CCN: How much of your job is providing therapy? Kay: When you pull up, people will literally run out of their house or apartment and take off their clothes. There are a lot of times when I'll go out with the crew because we know on the phone that this person is going to need at least an hour's worth of questions and answers. CCN: Grief counseling. Kay: It is (laughs). It's very upsetting to people. One thing that is really upsetting is that there are so many people trying to make money off bedbugs. If you go to a website that's trying to sell you something, there's a good chance you're going to get misinformation. One site said chemical treatments don't work at all, which is completely untrue. There's another site that says the bugs are causing hepatitis. CCN: Describe a night in the life of a bedbug. Kay: They're attracted to your breathing. They can detect your carbon dioxide up to 50 feet and they'll travel that far to get to you. If you've got bedbugs, you automatically want to move to another bed or a sofa. That's bad because you're spreading them throughout the house. Bedbugs typically bite about two hours before dawn. A lot of times, they'll travel in groups. The most common thing is to have three bites along the vein. We call it breakfast, lunch and dinner. They're very slow and lazy. They can't jump. They can't fly. They don't like to get in hair or any kind of obstruction. If you put double-sided tape around your bed, you're going to prevent yourself from being bit, plus we'll be able to positively ID them. CCN: How many treatments does it take? Kay: One treatment will not kill the eggs. We do three treatments two weeks apart. CCN: Bedbugs travel easily. They're hard to find and hard to get rid of. Some people get bit, but they show no symptoms. When they bite, you can't even feel it. It almost seems as if the universe is on their side. Kay: They're not smart. That's probably their only weakness. They numb you. It's very similar to a mosquito, but much more effective. The females lay five to eight eggs daily. That's why you need to get rid of them right away. You have to empty your dressers, your closets, your bookcases. There are no legal pesticides that will kill the eggs. CCN: It's all good for business, right? Kay: It is good for business — unfortunately (laughs). I do actually have a lot of empathy for people who get bedbugs. CCN: How do you ensure that you don't bring bedbugs home with you? Kay: Bedbugs are slow and they're not usually out during the day. No one has ever brought bedbugs home and we've been in places where even during the day, you can see the bugs on the wall. Everyone is trained to not carry their clothes inside. Put them in a bag and wash them separately. CCN: Ever been bitten? Kay: I was bitten in January in Cozumel. I inspected the room first, but I couldn't see them. Sometimes they're pretty hard to find. CCN: Is it hard for bedbug exterminators to find dates? Kay: I've had conversations with men where they'll say, "What do you do?" And all of a sudden, their whole attitude changes. One of the etymologists at this conference married her assistant. She was like, "We have to marry each other because nobody else wants to deal with us." I have a boyfriend, but he doesn't live with me. CCN: Any forecasts on the future of bedbugs? Kay: If we don't find a way to contain these in five years, I'm going to stay in my house. You've got public transportation, libraries. Bedbugs like to get into books. There's so many ways to get them. Something really does need to be done. I've never seen a pest multiply like this. I'm waiting for the horror movie to come out. "Bedbugs." Stuck on an airplane with bedbugs — and it's a 20-hour flight (laughs). 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