Itch Alert! Bed Bugs Biting

A recent slate of news reports about bed bugs has innkeepers and hoteliers scratching for solutions. An outbreak could wreak havoc with one’s reputation so owners and managers would do well to take precautions.

Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite!

Written by Paul Morin - Sales Manager - Modern Pest Services

A bed bug crisis is looming in the hotel industry. Despite the fact that sanitation has nothing to do with bed bugs, lawsuits are being field and reputations are being tarnished. It may not seem fair, but what’s fair doesn’t always win in court.
New York attorney Timothy Wenk, who has defended national hotels in bed bug lawsuits, makes the following recommendations to protect their guests, liability and reputation.
• Secure a pest-management professional to train housekeepers to recognize early signs of bed bugs.
• Have a written plan to quickly deal with signs of bed bugs.
• Immediately isolate a room suspected of infestation.
• Do not move affected guests to an adjoining room, as bed bugs may travel up to 100 feet.
• Do not vacuum or remove anything from the room.
• Do not lower the thermostat, as this may cause them to migrate to a warmer room.
• Contact your pest management firm immediately.

Here’s how bed bugs operate. They suck the blood of their hosts while they’re sleeping in part because people are warm and bed bugs are attracted to the carbon dioxide we exhale. Bed bugs may take three to 15 minutes to gorge themselves on a blood meal, swelling to up to six times their body weight. The housed is not awakened because the parasite’s saliva is equipped with a topical anesthetic. People may experience scores of bites in the course of one night’s sleep.
Equip each room with a metal luggage rack and, ideally, a metal bed frame, as bed bugs have a natural aversion to metal. Bed bugs usually hitchhike in luggage, not on people.
Now, back to the life of a bed bug. A female, once impregnated by a male, is pregnant for life and lays two or three eggs per day. One pregnant female leaving a suitcase and making her home in a bed is just the beginning. Hatchlings in the first of five instars (developmental stages of insects) are roughly the size of a spec of dust and will leave a bite like an adult. Mature bed bugs will usually feed every two weeks, but have been known to live a year without another blood meal.
Make sure that everyone is aware that a facility is at greater risk for bed bugs if it frequently entertains guests from outside the U.S., especially those from Eastern Europe or Canada.
Because of the stigma, local media will jump on any reported encounter, a move that could plague your reputation for years.

Article Published by New Hampshire Hospitality News


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