Bed bugs are horrible pests to have infest your home. They can sneak into your home quite easily, and once inside, they will multiply quickly, with each female laying up to 6 eggs per day. Even with this rapid infestation rate, it can still take several months before you even realize that bed bugs have infested your home.
They hide in difficult to reach areas near your bed so that they will have easy access to food, your blood, while you are fast asleep. Due to their tiny size, great ability to hide during the day and painless bites, it is always difficult to discover a moderate bed bug infestation. Luckily there are some warning signs that may indicate you have a bed bug infestation, such as:
- red bite marks on your skin
- tiny blood stains on your bed sheets
- reddish brown fecal matter on your bed sheets
These warning signs can, however, be the result of other pests as well so the best bet is to hire a bed bug control company if you have any suspicions that there are bed bugs living in your home but have not actually caught a live or deceased bed bug. Bed bug exterminators have special tools and the required experience to catch bed bugs, allowing them to confirm your suspicions.
Bed Bugs Leave Red Bite Marks
Bed bugs feed at night by inserting a straw like mechanism into their hosts skin, sucking blood out until they are full. While piercing their victims skin, a numbing agent present in their saliva is secreted allowing them to feed without disturbing the host. Once they are full, they return back to their hiding spot until the next time they need food which can be several weeks or months later.
The tough part in identifying a bed bug bite is that there are several different reactions to the bites. Some people may not have any symptoms at all while others may have an allergic reaction creating a rash. In general, the most common reaction to a bed bug bite is a little red dot similar to that of a mosquito bite. If you notice several tiny bite marks on your skin that appear in the morning, there is a possibility that bed bugs are hiding nearby.
Tiny Blood Stains On Your Bed Sheets
When bed bugs pierce your skin to feed, this creates a momentary open wound which, if rubbed against your bed sheets, will most likely leave a tiny red blood stain on your sheets. Chances are you will notice bite marks on your skin long before you notice these small blood stains, but for those who do not react to bed bug bites, this is another indication that bed bugs may be present in your home. A good practice is to check your bed sheets for these marks before putting them into the washing machine just as a preventative measure.
Reddish Brown Fecal Matter
Fortunately bed bugs have no shame when they have to go to the bathroom. They will usually defecate on their journey from feeding on your blood to going back into hiding. Their fecal matter consists purely of digested blood and will have a reddish brown to black color. If you notice tiny reddish brown or black smudges on your bed sheets, it may be bed bug feces and should warrant further investigation.