Bed bugs are a major nuisance. Their bites can be irritating and cause allergic reactions. Beyond the irritation of the bites, it can be difficult to sleep because of either the anxiety of having bugs in your bed or the pain that comes with a significant amount of bites. While you’re often certain that you have bed bugs in Decatur because of strong evidence, you must have an inspection performed to assess the extent of the infestation. Did you know that you can hire a bed bug detection dog to inspect your home for bed bugs? If this isn’t something you knew about or considered, our team at Black Creek K-9 Pipeline Leak Detection has put together a short guide to outline the advantages of using dogs for bed bug detection.

Fast inspection

It’s not uncommon for bed bug inspections to take an hour to an hour and a half, depending on the size of your property. If you’re a business owner or have a home with many bedrooms, this can take even longer. It’s going to take time for the exterminator to thoroughly examine every room in the house so that nothing is missed. With a dog inspection, bed bugs can be quickly and easily identified in each room. Inspections can be cut to a fraction of the time as an inspection dog can move from room to room much more efficiently than a person.

Early detection

If a bed bug infestation is just starting and hasn’t grown to a significant size, it can be difficult for even the best experts to find any bed bugs as they are often in the fibers of your bed during the day. The scent of bed bugs in small amounts can’t hide from bed bug detection dogs. Early detection can help to save you time and money as you’re more likely to prevent a large infestation that might lead to you having to throw out your mattress, couch, or clothes. The earlier you can confirm that you have bed bugs, the easier it will be to get rid of them for good.

Incredibly accurate

Dog breeds that are used for detection are known for having sensitive olfactory nerves, which are the nerves that pick up smells. This makes them especially adept at detecting small amounts of scents that we could never sense as humans. Detection dogs are trained to be able to identify the scent of bed bugs through the fabric of beds and couches without having to get deep into the material to find where they are. This leads to highly effective and accurate inspections that even expert exterminators might miss.

Less invasive

When you have an exterminator come to your home for a bed bug inspection, you’re often going to have to strip your bed or couch to give them access to the mattress and box springs. In contrast, a bed bug detection dog can still sniff out the scent of bugs through a made bed. You don’t have to worry about anything other than allowing the dog and its handler to come into your room for the inspection.

Cost-effective

As with most things in life, time is money. When you pay an exterminator to come to your home for an inspection, you’re paying for their time and labor. This is often calculated into their base price beforehand so it feels like you’re simply paying an inspection fee. Instead, you’re paying their hourly wage on top of the labor. With a detection dog, the job is done in a much shorter time so you’re going to be saving on the hourly rate.

Get in touch for an inspection

If you’re worried that you have bed bugs in Decatur, get in touch with us at Black Creek K-9 Pipeline Leak Detection. We can bring our detection dogs to your home to confirm whether or not you have an infestation or even the beginnings of one. Give us a call at 817-771-0008 or 253-444-8089. You can also send any questions you might have about our processes through our online contact form.