Finding bedbugs with a dog
Just as you teach a drug dog to look for a number of drugs, you teach a bedbug dog to look for the scent of live bedbugs.
Dogs’ amazing sense of smell enables them to detect extremely small scents. Our dogs are carefully trained to detect live bedbugs at all stages, from eggs to full-grown lice. The dogs are also trained to distinguish between dead lice, feces and shedding shells and mark only live individuals and viable eggs.
Why hire a dog to find bedbugs?
Finding bedbug infestations at the earliest possible stage means minimizing the risk of spread and clean-up time, which also results in saving both time and money.
Eliminate or confirm suspicion
Eliminating or confirming suspected bed bugs is important to guide further action. The vast majority of searches we do for individuals who feel they have been bitten by something do not have road lice. Checking off bedbugs on your list of suspicions is usually the first thing you want to do.
Finding infestations early
Bedbugs have an amazing ability to hide in the smallest of places. The key to a short and easy clean-up is to find bedbug infestations before they have had time to multiply. The dogs' amazing sense of smell means they can find individual bedbugs that are easy to miss during a visual inspection.
Feel safer
A pest technician has about a 40-60% chance of finding a trace of an early bedbug infestation. A well-trained sniffer dog and handler has an accuracy rate of about 90%.
Our dogs at work
Our services
Preventive work
For all types of activities where people stay overnight, sit or lie down for long periods of time.
Bedbugs multiply exponentially, i.e. they become numerous very quickly, and therefore it is incredibly important to detect them as soon as possible! Bringing in a bedbug is not in itself a major problem. It’s no worse than having a mosquito in the room. However, it is a completely different matter if you get a fertilized female or two lice of different sexes. If you don’t find the lice relatively quickly, you will have a major problem with thousands of bed bugs within a few weeks.
Being one step ahead, and working with preventive inspections means that we find infestations at an early stage and therefore minimize:
- The risk of contagion
- Remediation costs
- The risk of lengthy clean-up operations
- The risk of guests or customers being affected
- The risk of negative reviews
Spread control
When bed bugs have established themselves in a room for a long time (longer than about 4 months), and become very numerous, there is almost always a high risk of spreading.
The spread of a major bedbug infestation can be very extensive depending on the environment. The lack of tightness between rooms and apartments, ventilation systems and people moving around are contributing factors to the unhindered spread of bedbugs.
A resident with a bedbug problem who may not know what is causing the itchy bites on their body and shakes their sheets on the balcony may unfortunately spread the bedbugs to their neighbors. A bedbug can also simply walk right out of an ordinary front door and on to a neighbor.
The risk of spreading is also high in apartments or other spaces that have been evacuated due to the fire. bedbug problem or other reason. Bedbugs are real survivors. If there is no food (humans) in their vicinity, they will, sooner or later, go to where the food is.
Suspicion of bedbugs
Hiring a bedbug dog when bedbugs are suspected can be money well spent to either eliminate or confirm a suspicion. An early detected infection is much easier to remediate.
Very many people do not react to bedbug bites and it is often quite difficult to see the traces left by bedbugs.
There are several reasons why you may suspect that you have bedbugs in your home or business.
Examples of reasonable grounds for suspicion:
- You have had sudden bites or itching on your body
- You have found a bedbug, a shredded shell or dots resembling faeces.
- You have been travelling
- You have stayed in a hotel, hostel, been on a cruise or backpacked (stayed in a boat cabin or slept on a train).
- You have a neighbour who has bedbugs
Securing after decontamination
There is currently no decontamination method that works 100% every time. There are a number of factors that can affect the outcome of a clean-up.
- the size of the bedbug population (how long the problem has been going on)
- The type of space to be decontaminated
- If the decontamination method is correctly adapted to the two above points
- How carefully the precautions have been followed during the clean-up period.
Then there are hundreds of cases where decontamination has been carried out in an exemplary manner and the rules of conduct have been followed to the letter, but they have not managed to get rid of all bedbugs within a reasonable time. Relying on the experience of decontamination is not always advisable. All people are bitten by bedbugs but about 30-40% of the population does not get itchy from the bites. You can also build up a resistance to the bait after some time.
In addition to the fact that a person may stop reacting to bedbug bites, there is also a risk that single eggs, nymphs or adult lice have survived the clean-up due to their incredible ability to find good hiding places. Depending on the type of bedbug (egg, nymph or adult) that has survived decontamination, it can take anywhere from two weeks to three months to discover that you still have bedbugs.
Having a remediation technician try to ensure remediation is far from being a reliable method. It is extremely difficult for a human being to try to find a surviving bedbug on the move or a live egg by sight alone.
Working with a bed bug dog to ensure remediation is a way to have full control over the whole process from detection to clearance.
What does a dog search cost and who pays?
We want to help as many people as possible to sleep well at night without worrying about bed bugs. That’s why we have the whole of Sweden as our workplace.
We have dog handlers based in different parts of the country but we may sometimes have to travel further to help customers who want our particular help and expertise, therefore the cost of a dog search can vary. We always try to send dog handlers who have the shortest distance to drive to keep costs down as much as possible.
It is very quick to get accurate price information by contacting us by email or phone.
You can find our contact details here.
When it comes to who pays for a dog search, it is usually you who does it yourself unless your association or landlord has ordered a dog search through us or the pest control company their insurance company has an agreement with.
The clean-up costs themselves are covered by the association’s or landlord’s insurance. Dog searches are not included in any insurance policy. If you are lucky, your association or landlord will have negotiated directly with a pest control company regarding dog searches and you can get this free of charge through them.
What does the law say?
Under the Environmental Code and the Land Code, it is always the property owner’s responsibility to prevent and clean up pests and vermin.
Regardless of whether you live in a rented apartment or a condominium, you always have an obligation to report the presence of vermin or pests in your home without delay.
If you find bedbugs in your condominium, you should contact your association, and if you live in a rented apartment, you should contact your landlord. Your landlord or association has insurance and a partnership with a pest control company that carries out all the cleanup. You do not have to pay for any clean-up costs.
On the other hand, if you have been negligent, not paying attention or delaying or failing to report a pest problem in your home, which has resulted in the pests spreading to several flats, you may be liable to pay damages to the owner of the property and, in very serious cases, you may be considered to have forfeited your right to the flat. You may also be liable for damages if you obstruct a clean-up process.
You may be entitled to a rent reduction if you have been infested with bedbugs due to a so-called spread. This means that you have brought bedbugs into your home through a neighbor who has a larger infestation.
It is also important to know that you have an obligation to allow access to your apartment for the inspection of pests or vermin if it is on behalf of the property owner.
Other indoor pests
Carpet beetle
Carpet beetles are a common pest, but it is the larvae that feed on natural fibers that cause damage in our homes. The adult beetles feed on pollen and plant food outdoors and fly indoors to lay their eggs, which usually happens in spring and early summer. Carpet beetles come in many different colors and shapes but the larvae are "hairy" and light brown in color.
- Size = Adults 1.5-3 mm long, larvae 4-5 mm long.
- Can bite people = No
- Ether = Textiles
- Sanitation = See advice
Puffin
The pork beetle is a beetle that feeds on food of animal origin. Outdoors, the pork beetle is a scavenger and eats dead small animals, but indoors it is considered a pest as it can feed on anything from skin products to food waste. The larvae laid indoors can gnaw through wood. The hallmark of the pork belly is the black dots on its back.
- Size = Adults 7-9 mm, larvae 15 mm
- Can bite people = No
- Eats = Animal products
- Sanitation = See advice
Furrier
The three most common species of rams found in Sweden are the common, the brown and the wavy-banded. The full-grown furry warbler is an oval-bodied beetle that comes in a few different colors from black to brown. The larvae are light brownish-yellow in color and you can often find the shells or pupae in closets or in furniture. The common furrier actually lives outdoors but in.om. they are good fliers, they can get in through an open window.
- Size = Adult 3-6 mm
- Can bite people = No
- Feeds = Textiles, down, feathers
- Sanitation = See advice
Dust and book lice
There are around 60 different species of dust and book lice in Sweden and the vast majority live outdoors. The species that can be found indoors can be almost white or light yellow in color and are completely wingless or short-winged. They move quickly and jerkily but can also jump. They are shy of light and thrive in dark and damp places. They do not harm people or property but can be unpleasant in large numbers.
- Size = Adult 1-3 mm
- Can bite people = No
- Eating = mold spores
- Sanitation = See advice
Biting vermin indoors
fleas
Fleas are blood-sucking parasites that live on humans, mammals and birds. The most common way to get fleas is from a pet that does not have a flea and/or tick preventative or from a bird's nest near your home. Like mites, they need the blood of their own host animal to reproduce.
- Size = 2-4 mm
- Can bite people = Yes
- Bed = Can be similar to bedbug bites but often located where clothes tighten, can be several in a row. Itchy.
- Sanitation = Wash, vacuum, change sheets and treat cats and dogs for fleas.
Bird mite
Bird mites are a parasite that lives among the feathers of birds but can also be found in bird nests. If you are unlucky, you can get bird mites into your home if, for example, you have a bird's nest near a window that you usually keep open. Bird mites, like bed bugs, are bloodsuckers but, unlike bed bugs, they cannot breed on human blood. They simply need blood from birds to survive. If you get 20 bird mites, you can be bitten 20 times, but they will not multiply indoors.
- Size = Adult individual about 1mm
- Can bite people = Yes
- Bites = May resemble bedbug bites but are often smaller and more numerous. Itching.
- Sanitation = Wash, vacuum, change sheets
Trips
Thrips are a plant pest and feed on plants, not blood. There are many different types of thrips, all of which look different. Thrips are very common and can settle on indoor houseplants. Although thrips can bite people by accident and the bites can cause large blisters and itching. Thrips have wings and can fly.
- Size = 1-2 mm
- Can bite people = Yes
- Bites = May resemble bedbug bites often single and become large blisters that itch.
- Sanitation = Check potted plants and look at the Wexthuset website for advice.
House spindle
House spiders thrive indoors but prefer slightly damp and cooler places such as garages or bathrooms. They feed on smaller insects that they catch in their webs but can bite people if they are disturbed or frightened. You can experience a larger number of house spiders indoors especially in late summer and fall when the males are looking for females. There are both a smaller and larger house spider but they are both brown and have a sick-sack pattern on the upper side of the abdomen. They are not poisonous.
- Size = female can reach 9-10 mm in length, and male 6-9 mm
- Can bite people = Yes
- Bed = Often becomes a very large round red blister that can sting.
- Decontamination = Clean up and keep doors and windows closed. See advice
Book a search dog with Quality Detection Dogs!
We help both individuals and businesses with pest control.