All I Want for Christmas is… Bedbugs?

For some people, there is nothing better than spending Christmas at home. However, if you’re not up for cooking and you’d rather get away from it all, going on holiday can seem like a very good idea. Someone else doing the cooking, new surroundings to explore, maybe even a white Christmas if you go up to the Scottish Highlands and beyond… it all sounds very appealing.

But while you might bring back some souvenirs of your festive break, you wouldn’t want to bring home bedbugs. Very few people will, but while they can be a problem in the summer months, they can rear their ugly little heads in the winter too. Bedbugs can be a problem all year round, and if you stay somewhere that doesn’t practice good hygiene, you might end up bringing them back with you.

The telltale signs of bedbugs

Bedbugs are tiny, but that doesn’t mean they don’t cause problems. The first thing you are likely to spot is the bites. Mind you, lots of bugs and insects bite, as we are all unfortunately aware. Hence there could be any number of things causing you to suffer bites. For example, if you own a cat or a dog, they could have fleas that are biting you for a nice meal.

There are other signs that bedbugs might have come home with you when you’ve stayed in affected accommodation. One of the best signs (we say ‘best’ but we mean identifiable, really) is the staining that occurs when the bedbugs go to the toilet after biting you in bed. These stains are quite easy to see (fortunately or unfortunately, depending on which way you look at it). They tend to spread out over the bedding too, so a small stain can spread further than you’d think.

Should you get the pros in?

If you suspect you might have brought bedbugs home, don’t panic – and don’t start grabbing all your bedding and flinging it around to strip it. This merely moves them from one area to another and causes yet more problems. Call in the experts and we’ll confirm whether you have bedbugs and what can be done about it.

If you are going away this Christmas, at least you’ll know what to look for if you are staying somewhere nice, although the odds of being this unlucky are slim. Happy Christmas!