Category Archives: Bed Bugs Illinois

LIBERTYVILLE, Ill. (WLS) --

Lambs Farm says the bed bugs have been found in six of its 11 residential buildings. There have been chemical and heat treatments and specially-trained dogs have even brought in to spot the bugs, but the problem continues.

The infestation began last September in one of the group homes on the sprawling, 72-acre campus in north suburban Libertyville.

"They say you can get them from an airplane, from anywhere. All it takes is for one person to come in with them on their clothes or something I guess," said Dianne M. Yaconetti, Lambs Farm president and CEO.

After exterminators were brought in, the bed bugs were thought to be gone, only to turn up in more residential buildings. An unspecified number of residents reported minor bites.

"Every time it was detected in a room the staff would have to go in, take all the clothes out, wash them in a certain temperature, and be very careful with how everything was handled," Yaconetti said.

For the last 50 years, Lambs Farm has helped adults with special needs lead productive lives. More than 200 people live here and work in the various businesses, which include a petting zoo, stores, a restaurant and a bakery.

Now, the non-profit that helps people overcome their challenges, continues to deal with one of its own.

"The problem is that we don't know where it came from, and so if it came from a resident that went on a trip or came from a home visit or something we have no guarantee that that won't happen again," Yaconetti said.

Lambs Farm says this is the first time they've had a problem with bed bugs. And they say OSHA and the Illinois Department of Public Health have had inspectors here, and they've complied with all recommendations.

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Lambs Farm battling bed bug infestation

MILWAUKEE -- The extermination company Orkin is out with a report that ranks Milwaukee as 16th in the nation when it comes to bed bugs, up six spots from the year before. But the city said the report is misleading.

"This is a marketing ploy to hype the problem of bed bugs," said Todd Weiler, spokesman for Milwaukee's Deparment of Neighborhood Services.

Weiler said Orkin never contacted the City to get its data.

"What they are quoting is the number of treatments they applied in the various cities. What it does not show you is what are the actual trends, what are the actual numbers, whether bed bugs are growing or not."

Weiler said bed bug cases have not changed much from 2013 to 2014.

"Verified complaints dropped from 286 to 278 for a difference of 8 or -2.80 perecent change. I rate the trend as flat holding at about the same rate."

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Milwaukee challenging Orkin report that bed bugs are on the rise

CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) -

For the third year in a row, Chicago has topped the list for being the bed bug capital of America, according to Orkin.

Orkin's list ranks cities by the number of treatments it had in 2014.

"Bed bugs are a serious issue across the country, and they're very difficult to control," Orkin Entomologist and Technical Services Director Ron Harrison, Ph.D. said in a statement. "Bed bugs are not limited to any level of cleanliness or income, which means they can be found in any home or hotel. They're great hitchhikers, and people often bring them inside on their clothes or in their luggage."

1. Chicago

2. Detroit (+2)

3. Columbus, Ohio

4. Los Angeles (-2)

5. Cleveland Akron Canton, Ohio (+1)

6. Dallas Ft. Worth (+7)

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Chicago ranked as worst city in America for bed bugs

Bed Bug Central public relations associate Calvin Allen shows a vial containing live bed bugs at the Bed Bug University North American Summit 2010 on September 22, 2010 in Rosemont, Illinois. Getty Images, Brian Kersey

Right now, there's only one surefire way to know if you've got bed bugs -- and it itches like crazy. By the time you notice the lines of red, itching, burning bites, the bugs could have been multiplying in your mattress for days or even weeks. But researchers in Canada have a plan to catch the critters early and make it easier to stop an infestation from spreading.

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The Country is Crawling with Blood Suckers. Find Out Who's the Worst

A team of biologists and chemists at Simon Fraser University have identified for the first time a chemical scent that will lure bed bugs out of furniture and into traps. They published their research on the attractive pheromones in the chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie.

"The biggest challenge in dealing with bed bugs is to detect the infestation at an early stage," said Gerhard Gries, one of the biologists who has spent years on the project. "This trap will help landlords, tenants, and pest-control professionals determine whether premises have a bed bug problem, so that they can treat it quickly. It will also be useful for monitoring the treatment's effectiveness."

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Don't Let These Bloodsuckers Get You!

Bed bugs were largely eradicated ages ago, but in the last decade they have reemerged in plague-like proportions around the world. Cities across the U.S. have seen infestations in homes, hotels, movie theaters and designer stores.

And once you've got bed bugs, they're very hard to get rid of -- but very easy to pass around.

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Scientists developing first bed bug trap

This article was originally published on August 22, 2011 and expired on September 22, 2011. It is provided here for archival purposes and may contain dated information.

Bed bugs continue to be a problem around central Illinois. Rhonda Ferree, University of Illinois Extension, horticulture educator, reports that she recently had bed bugs brought into her Jacksonville office for identification.

The bed bug feeds at night on the blood of humans and other warm-blooded animals including chickens, cage birds, and other birds as well as dogs, cats, and other mammals. Infestations can come from bird nests on buildings as well as in clothes, luggage, and other materials transported from infested areas. People generally do not react to the bites for several weeks, but eventually develop red welts similar to those of poison ivy. Frequently, several welts are produced in the vicinity of a single bite and may even be produced on other parts of the body remote from the bites. Bed bugs do not transmit diseases with their bites, but secondary infections can result from scratching the bites.

Bed bugs are active from about 9 p.m. until 7 a.m., being most active from midnight to 3 a.m. They are relatively fast-moving. Unfed bed bugs are flattened, tan, circular bugs up to three-sixteenths inch in diameter. Bugs that have recently fed are blackish and somewhat rotund from their blood meal. Eggs are white and elongate, being of the size and color of house dust. They are cemented to harborage surfaces and are difficult to see without a hand lens.

During the day, bed bugs hide in cracks and crevices near where the person or other host sleeps. They are most common in or near beds and upholstered furniture, being most common under the dust cover of the box springs and in cracks and crevices of the bed headboard. They are also common along piping on the edge of the mattress and springs, behind pictures and electrical outlet plates, under baseboards, along the edge of carpeting and rugs, and in cracks and crevices associated with the bed frame, bedside table, and dresser. Most are located within three to four feet of the sleeping person, but a few may be twenty or more feet away. Detailed searching of these areas is essential in locating them. They produce black fecal spots in their harborage areas, making it easier to identify these areas even if the bugs are not found.

According to Phil Nixon, Extension entomologist with University of Illinois Extension, control of bed bugs involves a multi-pronged, IPM approach. Bugs are killed with direct application of various insecticides, steam, and cold. All are used by various pest management professionals. Bed bugs show varying levels of resistance to pyrethroids, but are effective when sprayed directly onto bed bugs. There are no labeled insecticides that are effective as a dried spray residue against all bed bugs, but local populations are likely to susceptible to one or more labeled insecticides.

Bed bugs are also killed by exposure to at least 120 degrees F for 30 minutes. Bugs may not be killed by washing, but are killed by typical drying in a clothes dryer. Cold treatment is less consistent in effectiveness, requiring sub-zero degrees F for 2-3 weeks. Mattresses and box springs should be encased in high quality covers such as Protect-A-Bed to eliminate many harborage areas and to avoid direct application of insecticide to them, although proper insecticide application is acceptable. Traps, such as Interceptor, are effective when placed under the legs of the bedstead to catch migrating bugs.

Because bed bug control is very time consuming and involves a multi-directed approach, costs of proper bed control are considerably higher than that for many other pests, whether done by a pest management professional or as a do-it-yourself project.

For those with students returning to college, the Bed Bug IPM website focuses specifically on University of Illinois residence halls and apartments. However, the information applies to anyone in apartments or other schools in the area. For more information, photos, and recommendations, go to bedbugs.illinois.edu

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Bed Bugs- U of I Extension