News & Updates

Bed Bugs Are taking Over

The Bed Bug problem in Ontario and around the world is getting worse not better.

Bed Bugs are spreading rapidly throughout our society and getting foot holds everywhere they show up.

Hotels and their patrons are increasingly at risk for infestations. Apartments and multi dwelling buildings are at extreme risk. Now even work places such as office towers etc. have had Bed Bug infestations popping up. Public transit such as buses and taxis are now at risk. Ultimately, we are running out of places these blood sucking critters aren’t a threat. Back in the 1930's when Bed Bugs were at epidemic proportions in order to move you had to get a certificate form your landlord signed by a licensed exterminator guaranteeing you and your stuff Bed Bug Free.

The problem is these little vampires are not easily killed. Most pesticides do very little to control them. A very involved and well planned control procedure is required.

These critters are going to get worse before they get better. The epidemic is coming...

Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite!

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Python hunting season set for South Florida

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- State wildlife officials have created a special python hunting season to try to stop the spread of the nonnative snakes throughout the Everglades.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says anyone with a hunting license who pays a $26 permit fee can kill the reptiles from March 8 to April 17 on state-managed lands around the Everglades in South Florida.

The season is open for Burmese and Indian pythons, African rock pythons, green anacondas and Nile monitor lizards.

For full article, follow this link SOURCE

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Mosquitoes won't bite if they can't take flight

Mike Funston STAFF REPORTER

Researchers believe they are on the cusp of a major breakthrough in combatting what one of them calls "the most dangerous animals in the world," infecting millions of people and causing countless deaths in tropical countries.

To Canadians, they can be everything from a minor irritant to a major pest that can, in rare instances, cause death.

We're talking mosquitoes, transmitters of viruses that cause diseases such as dengue fever, malaria and yellow fever in tropical countries.

Dengue fever infects 50 million to 100 million people a year and causes 40,000 deaths. There are no vaccines or drugs to stop the disease. Insecticides are used to control dengue outbreaks, but are "grossly ineffective," said microbiologist Anthony James.

James, of the University of California, Irvine, and colleague Luke Alphey of the University of Oxford in England have come up with a new way to combat mosquitoes that transmit dengue fever using genetic engineering instead of insecticides.

Their research, described in Tuesday's edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, involves creating genetically altered male mosquitoes to breed female mosquitoes - the ones that bite - without wings.

The idea is simple. They won't bite if they can't take flight.

For full article, follow this link SOURCE

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Dealing with bedbugs

By Ami Kingdon, The Ottawa Citizen January 19, 2010

Bedbug infestations are on the rise in Canada. But while awareness is growing, a lingering stigma about the pest is inhibiting treatment and educational measures

OTTAWA -- There is nothing in Chris Larsen's McLeod Street apartment to suggest uncleanliness. Her one-bedroom home, where she has lived for six years, is clean and bright, with gleaming floors and the scent of coffee.

But Larsen, 58, dealt with an infestation of bedbugs in September when she began finding bites on her ankles. "I saw something on television regarding bed bugs and where to look," she said, "and I thought, I'm just going to take a gander. And that's when I found them." She makes a face as she recalls the experience. "It's an icky, icky thing."

Bedbugs are on the rise across Canada. While awareness is growing, a stigma about infestation inhibits treatment and effective education. But unlike other vermin, they feed on blood and are linked to high-traffic buildings such as hotels and apartments, not to dirty dwellings.

Larsen can understand the shame. "There's people in the building who have them and are not saying anything," she said, "and I think that happens everywhere, not just here. They're scared."

Jo-Anne Poirier, chief executive officer of Ottawa Community Housing, administers Larsen's building. She said she tries to make it easier for tenants to speak up. "We're doing more pest education with our tenants," Poirier said. "We tell them not to feel ashamed and let us know as soon as possible if you see something."

When Larsen saw something, she phoned OCH, where workers explained the standard procedures to get rid of bedbugs -- an onerous process that would include two exterminations. "All my furniture had to be put into the middle of the room," she said. "Everything that I had clothes-wise was to be put into bags, and washed in a very hot washer and a very hot dryer. I was told to vacuum around the perimeter of my bed every two to three days."

Bedbugs don't spread disease, but can really harm quality of life. "I had trouble sleeping," said Larsen, who suffers from depression and anxiety. "Through the day, I was just kind of nervous, feeling like my privacy had been taken away, like these bugs were intruding in my apartment." She still has no idea how she got them.

For full article, follow this link SOURCE.

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Dogs and cats at risk as epidemic kills raccoons

Published On Thu Feb 18 2010, Raveena Aulakh Staff reporter

If you see a raccoon lying on a sidewalk in the middle of the day, call Toronto Animal Services -- and keep your dog on a tight leash.

The animal is likely sick and dying, and could infect your pet with a lethal strain of distemper, an epidemic that has killed hundreds of raccoons and skunks in the GTA since May.

"It's not transferable to humans but there is definitely a high risk to unvaccinated cats and dogs," said Eletta Purdy, manager of Toronto Animal Services. "It's not rabies but it kills quickly."

Distemper is a potentially fatal viral disease similar to measles that affects animals, especially dogs. Puppies and older dogs are more susceptible to the disease, which is spread by food, water, body fluids and feces. Cats are not as susceptible.

Distemper hits dogs in two phases: initially, they experience vomiting and diarrhea, dehydration, excessive salivation, coughing and/or laboured breathing, loss of appetite, weight loss and even pneumonia.

If the animal survives, the virus winds up in the brain. "That's when you see the neurological signs," said Doug Campbell, a pathologist at the Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre in Guelph.

For full article, follow this link SOURCE

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How to prevent a bedbug infestation, and what to do if you get one

Institute for Clinical Pathology & Medical Research; Reuters January 19, 2010

Avoiding bedbugs:

• Inspect hotel or hostel rooms for bedbugs or their signs when travelling.
• Inspect luggage and clothes before returning home. If you suspect bedbugs, keep your luggage and clothing in a sealed plastic container until it can be washed.
• Vacuum regularly, especially around the bed.
• Consider using a sealed plastic mattress cover (available at most department stores).
• Do not pick up secondhand furniture, especially beds, from the curb. If you buy secondhand furniture, inspect it carefully.

How to detect bedbugs:

• Inspect mattresses and box springs, especially around seams and corners.
• Look for blood spots on sheets, small black smears (droppings), or shed bug skins.
• Bedbugs are most active about an hour before dawn. To see them, keep a flashlight in easy reach of your bed. Don't move too much, as that will startle the bugs, but shine the light along mattress seams and baseboards.

For full article, follow this link SOURCE