PLEASE check for bed bugs before accepting your room.

Bearzabout - thank you so much for the great advice! I'm checking in to Cedarcide today. I'm so tired of this and it has only been two months. Others deal with it a year or more before getting rid of them. I just can't imagine. I'll send you a PM as I would like some more advice!

One question - could bb bites appear and then be gone within an hour? I ask because that is what happened with my daughter Saturday, Sunday, and again last night. Seems odd as when I get bites they linger for weeks. Bites she had in the past lingered for weeks. So now I'm wondering if what I've seen the last three days are not bb bites at all but something else. Of course my first thought is bb bites (plus she says she is itching - really pitiful as she is only 20 months old) but perhaps what has been happening is an allergic reaction to something. She has also had a rash around her mouth for 3 weeks now that comes and goes. We assumed the "rash" was due to bed bug bites but I can't believe they'd keep biting her in the same area for three weeks. I guess I'm holding out hope that the dogs were right last week and her welts (that very quickly disappear), rash, and itching are due to something else. Probably unlikely but I'm trying to be optimistic.

What does everyone think?

Food allergy.

Denise in MI
 
I was starting to suspect food allergy as well. While I don't want her to have a food allergy....we can deal with that better than bed bugs that won't go away.
 
I'm also thinking allergy to something - food or the pest treatment chemicals. I've personally had a hive last longer than a day and then I've had some that lasted just as long as it took to wash and dry the affected skin. :confused3 Food allergies are by no means fun (DB#3 is DEATHLY allergic to tree nuts) as it can take a while to pinpoint what the allergen is and then taking precautions to avoid it, but I do hope that's the issue behind the temporary welts/itching.
 
I've been following this thread and never even thought about bedbugs in hotels before reading this so another big thank you for posting this! We are going to be staying at POR in September for 13 nights. I did see that POR had several bedbug complaints on both Bedbug Registry and Tripadvisor, so I've been making notes and know what to look for now.

There is a website called Bedbugger Forums that you can search different products and see reviews/discussion threads that are pretty informative. I don't know if you've seen that already or if that would be of any help. I've felt so bad for you reading about your experiences! The only thing close to this I've had to deal with was a highly contagious bacterial illness (C-Diff) we had a year ago, after which we had to sanitize like crazy and wash everything we could. It was weeks of first illness and then manic cleaning. I was stressed out for sooo long afterwards worrying that I had missed something and the spores would still be somewhere. Everything turned out fine but the idea of encountering a bedbug infestion fills me with dread.

Aside from the initial check of rooms and using plastic bags for clothes etc. I have been considering putting lotion on us all at night before bed as an extra precaution. Some organic lotions contain things that act as repellents- cedarwood oil, lemon oil, rosemary oil etc. I know the Badger Bug Balm we use has cedarwood oil in it and that's worked really well as a repellent for us. I also will spray my luggage and bed area with Thieves oil (It's clove, rosemary, eucalyptus, cinnamon, and lemon oils with grain alcohol). I've tested it on the edge of a white sheet at home and it doesn't stain. It's good as a natural alternative cleaner that works on germs and bacteria as well.

We have two other stops on the drive there and back so I'm hoping we have 3 bedbug free hotel experiences.
 
Score: Bed Bugs 7 Me 0

Seven weeks since signs started (signs every week). My score reflects the number of weeks since this all started that we have been bed bug symptom free. I thought this nightmare was ending. Wrong again. Guess I'll make a game out of it to *attempt* to lighten the situation.
 
Are they worse than parasites like pinworms or roundworm?? I worked in the health care field and know someone who had them. Sheets had to be washed and everything put in the dryer on high for a while. These people had a clean house and had money so its not like they could not afford, but still a pain the butt (literally and figuratively).

How do I protect my family from this in hotels on the way down?? I always check the sheets and wipes everything down with Lysol, but i don't "overkill". Anythign else I can do??
 
Hi PrincessMom4. I wish I knew how to avoid them....but not sure as they can hide well and you may not even see signs of them. Above checking the room here's what I am doing for our upcoming trip (may seem excessive but we CANNOT go through this again):

1. I am planning to pack outfits in plastic ziploc bags. I figure I can get two kids outfits in one bag and one per bag for me and DH. May make luggage more bulky and necessitate more bags but worth it to me. Each day will remove the clean outfit and at night put it back in an empty bag till the clothes can be washed. Will also take extra bags (or buy them there) to put shoes in at night. I've been told to never leave your shoes on the carpet....never knew that and that is what we always did. Not this trip! Everything we take will be in a plastic bag except when being used. May be overkill but if it prevents bringing them home then it is worth it.

2. DO NOT UNPACK LUGGAGE IN THE ROOM! I think this was my fatal mistake last time. Normally I live out of the suitcase on vacation. This time I unpacked and think the bed bugs may have been in the dresser as my bites started around my ankles (and my socks were in the dresser).

3. Keep luggage off the floor but not on the bed. I'm going to use whatever I can - luggage rack, table, may even put luggage on the balcony if no room inside.

4. Any linens taken with us (crib sheet, towel) will be disposed of and will not come back home with us. I'm not sure if you are the PP who said you are taking pillows but I'd get cheap ones and don't bring them home. For the hotels on the road I'd bag them before heading to your next destination and then dispose of them at the last hotel. If you are the same PP who said you would need pillows for the car....I think I'd even throw those away when you get home. Can't be too careful in my opinion.

5. We will leave a change of clothes for all four of us in our garage and upon our return home will change our clothes before entering the house. The clothes we were wearing and all clothes in the suitcase will be brought in the house in small loads to wash in HOT water and dried on HIGH heat for at least one hour past when the clothes are dry. Our luggage will be put in the sun for a few days (assuming it is still hot when we get home....but may not be as it'll be October). If the temps are not high enough I'll put our luggage in large sealed trash bags (in the garage) with a Hot Shot No Pest Strip for at least a week to kill any bugs or eggs. I don't like to use the chemicals but after what we have been through (and are still going through) I will take no chances. Nothing will come back in the house without being treated. Not sure what I'm going to do about our shoes just yet, though.

All these steps probably seem obsessive and maybe even a bit crazy. But this is how we will travel for the rest of our lives now. Pain in the rear but if it keeps us from bringing bed bugs home again then it is well worth it.

Hope this helps you some!
 
I'm feel so bad for anyone who has to deal with this, but I'm so confused.

To the OP, you said that you checked for BB when you got into your room and said that there wasn't any physical evidence of BB. Isn't there usually evidence, and if there is no evidence, we basically have to trust that there aren't any BB in our room? That's a scary thought. I always check the mattress and in front and behind the headboard in EVERY hotel we stay in, no matter how nice. Now, I'm freaked out because they could be there even if there is no evidence. Basically, you are just taking a risk staying at any hotel.

I believe it also was the OP who said that the bites started on her ankles, and she thinks they got in her socks that were in the drawers. My question is, wouldn't you have seen them in your socks? From my understanding of BB, they aren't super tiny like fleas. They are small, but you can definitely see them with the naked eye. That's why people have been able to spot them and take them in ziplock bags down the the front desk. If they were as small as fleas, this would be a difficult thing to do. I'm not trying to question if they were or weren't BB, I'm just trying to get informed for when we take our trip in September.

Finally, I've always put my suitcase on the bed, initially, while I'm unpacking. People are saying not to do that, but wouldn't it be ok, just to unpack? I doubt the BB would immediately know that there's a suitcase on the bed and come running to feed. Also, I would be happy to use the luggage stand that the hotel provides, but usually, there is only one. What do you do if you have 4 people staying in a room? I'm bringing a couple hanging sweater holders for the closet, and I plan on putting our clothes on those, however, DH likes using the drawers. What should I look for in the drawers? I'm planning on putting suitcases on the closet shelf, but mine isn't a carry on, so DD, DH, and mom's suitcases on the shelf, and mine on the luggage rack.

Thanks for all the insightful information, and I hope the OP gets these nasty things out of her house. :hug:
 
AlyJoy - unfortunately I wasn't wise to look for BB on our trip so I didn't even check. Hard lesson learned. What I was referring to was in our home. We know they are there as we are getting bitten and the dogs have found them - but we have yet to see any bugs, feces, anything. Our first sign initially was I woke with bites, then started waking with blood spots on my clothes. Recently I have found what MAY be the cast skins....but I'm not sure and it has only been one here and there....not a pile of them like I've seen on the internet. I have yet to see a live bug (and really hope I don't - I just hope they disappear). I didn't mean to cause panic as it bed bugs are established you will see the signs so you are doing all the right things by checking. I guess I gave that warning because if the person before you brought the bugs in then signs most likely will not be there when you check in right after them as the bugs haven't been established long enough. I guess my theory is check for bugs, if you don't see signs then rest easy and assume you are good - but still treat your belongings as though they have been exposed even if they haven't. Can't be too careful!

As for being able to see them - yes, you can see them as they get bigger. But at the tiniest nymph stage they are very tiny....and clear...and would be hard to spot. Newly hatched nymphs would be very hard to see with the naked eye so I think it is possible they could have been in my socks and I wouldn't have seen them. I also think they were in the bed as the bed did not have a fitted sheet. They used two flat sheets that overlapped - guess where - at my ankles. That would have been an easy route to get from the mattress to me via the overlap in the sheets. Of course now that we are home they don't care where they bite. We get bites any and everywhere.

Please don't be too overly concerned about bed bugs on your trip. Check the room as you always do and if you don't find signs of them, rest easy and enjoy! In case I haven't mentioned before, I didn't want to alarm people by starting this thread. Just wanted to warn and inform so others don't meet our fate!
 
You can see the larger adult bugs (especially if they have been feeding because they are darker in color). Apparently some of the new hatched or young bugs, and ones that haven't fed are not as detectable. They may only be the size of a pin head and lighter in color than the adults.
They are also masters at hiding and will seek out any little nook and cranny (it's as if they "know" you're looking for them).

Put it this way, you could inspect a whole white pillowcase inside and out and not see the one little bug that decided to scrunch it's way into a seam so it could hide until it's ready to come out and feed.

I think a large infestation of adult bugs would be fairly easy to detect if you did a thorough inspection, but if a room was just at the beginning of an infestation with smaller bugs that may not have fed yet or at least for awhile, it may not be as easy to detect.

I think it's best to treat every room as if there could be a possible infestation and just do your best to use some of the precautions in this thread, but let's be honest, there are going to be situations where no matter what someone does, it might not be enough, especially if you don't know they're there.

TNDISLVR - Still thinking about you and I sent you a PM. Lots of good thoughts and prayers still coming your way :hug:
 
Tndislvr. Thank you for posting this to warn others!

I am a little confused by one thing. You still have an active infestation and you will be returning to Disney in October? I am not trying to be mean or upset you or anyone else, but I hope you understand my concern.
 
Thanks for the clarification and reply's.

I've seen a lot of information on here regarding sprays that you can use to keep that at bay or kill them. Not sure which, but I'm ok with either/or/both. Does anyone have a spray that they particularly like that they know works? If so, where can I buy it. Thanks!
 
Friendly Frog - totally understand your concern....and it is on my mind as well. My hope is that things will be well under control within the next month but if not.....we will have to rethink our trip. Unfortunately someone carrying them to the hotel is how we got them....and I certainly don't want to do this to someone else. I totally respect your question and concern. I'm trying to stay positive, though, as the bugs are gone from our upstairs now. The bed bug dog comes again today to let us know where things stand downstairs. Hope for the best but prepared for the worst.
 
Thank you Tndislvr for being so understanding about my concern. I feel very sorry for all that you are going through and I am quite relieved to know that you are a responsible and caring person.

I can't help but wonder if the reason you are going through all of this is because someone else in a situation like yours, was not as responsible.

Sending pixie dust your way!
 
Thanks, Friendly Frog! It is possible that is how this happened to us.....or the person who brought them may not have even known they had them (as a lot of people don't even react to the bites). It has been hard not to blame someone for this....but I've tried to just believe that no one knowingly did this and deal with it as best I can.

I'm crossing my fingers that tonight has good results. I'm starting to think my daughters "bites" over the weekend were really hives due to dad giving her cow's milk a few times (we are trying to wean her from soy as she didn't tolerate milk well as a baby) as they disappeared so quickly. As for my son - his allergies have been acting up this week so his "spots" I mentioned in a previous post could simply be an allergic reaction as they don't really look like bites either. I've just been so paranoid.

We'll see what tonight brings when the dog comes. I'm trying to be optimistic because just a week ago the dogs said we were clean with the exception of a closet (which was treated and we have not opened in the past week). I'll let everyone know what happens.
 
I recommend Cedarcide's product Best Yet. I checked on the site someone listed earlier (http://www.topbedbugproducts.com/) and found it is the only bed bug product that is rated 5 stars. It is also the only one with a residual effect.

I ordered it from Cedarcide's website. We bought gallons of Best Yet and the fogger. We also bought some Pro Choice to wash our clothes from the trip so we didn't have to throw anything out. We thought we'd use a lot of it, but one fogging has kept our house free of wasps, flies, spiders, lady bugs, box elder bugs, bed bugs and fleas for 6 months so far. Cedarcide sent small spritzer bottles that I refill with Best Yet and use everyday as a bug repellant. This is the product I spray in our luggage hoping that it will discourage pests from coming home with us in the future.

I don't mean to scare anyone, but bed bugs are not the only concern anymore. We went from getting eaten alive by bed bugs in Vegas to a pet friendly hotel in Scottsdale where we picked up fleas. More and more hotels are allowing pets in the rooms. Some set aside a few specific rooms for people travelling with pets, but many we stayed at allowed pets in any room. This means that it is possible to pick up fleas from any pet friendly hotel. Both the Marriott and Hilton in Scottsdale and Phoenix allowed pets in any room so fleas can be a problem in nice hotels, not just inexpensive ones (just like bed bugs).

We sprayed with Resmethins and Pyrethrins (commonly used flea killers) on the trip but still brought them home in our luggage. I think many bugs are building up resistance to frequently used pesticides. We found dead fleas in our house by our luggage after spraying with Cedarcide.
 
Great news!!!! The bed bug dog came again last night and for the second time in a week she did not alert for bed bugs in the house!!!!! I think my paranoia was getting the better of me when my daughter got hives the other day. The dog even got up on the suspected bed, sniffed all the linens, pillows, complete bed frame and NOTHING. Nada! The handler even took her out and brought her in again for a second round and same results second time. So really, three times in the past week the "experts" have indicated no bed bugs (well, last week they were still in one closet but not now!). The handler said the dogs are 95% accurate but she said that two different visits within a week with the same results she feels the dogs are a lot closer to 100% in this instance.

Now, the next hurdle will be me not assuming bed bugs every time one of us has a blemish. I think I will probably make that assumption for quite a while. This whole experience is something I will never forget.

We will still live out of plastic bags for a while longer and I will probably have the dogs come again in 2 or 3 weeks to do one final check. Yeah, I know that is probably overkill and money we could better spend on something else but for the peace of mind it'll give me I think I'll have them come again in a few weeks.

Thanks again to all of you! I hope I can soon close this thread or change the title to "I had bed bugs.....and beat them!".
 

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