Got bed bugs? If you live in Hampton Roads, you just might.
Last year, the region was named 20th in the nation for bed bug infestations by Orkin, a national pest control company.
Bed bugs may be wreaking havoc across the area, but a group of local bed bug-detection canines are helping combat the problem — and proving, once again, why dogs are man’s best friend.
The four dogs work for Surfside Services. The Sandbridge-based pest control company is contracted by Orkin to do commercial jobs for more than 250 local properties each month, including hospitals, call centers, and multi-million dollar vacation homes.
Just like drug-sniffing dogs or bomb-detection canines, Ginger, Sadie, Joker and Seymour are certified through the World Detector Dog Organization, and have been extensively trained to zone-in on the scent of live bed bugs, according to canine handler and pest control expert David Engelbert.
“The dogs use odor recognition. Once they begin to associate the scent with treats, they develop search patterns,” he said. “It’s pretty simple, but training can take anywhere between eight and 16 weeks, depending on their consistency.”
The job takes a special kind of dog, but no breed in particular, said Engelbert, who rescued Ginger and Sadie from shelters.
“I got one of my dogs from a kill shelter in Alabama. The other is from the Virginia Beach SPCA,” he said. “All I look for when I evaluate dogs is that they are sniffing.”
A dog with a good nose and a drive to work is a huge asset, but also hard to come by, Engelbert said, noting he looked at 23 dogs before finding Sadie.
Sadie is still a puppy, and relatively new to the business, but Engelbert has been handling bed bug-detection canines for more than four years, and addressing pest problems for nearly three decades.
In his experience, the use of canines in bed bug detection is not only less expensive and less invasive, it’s also four times more accurate than human inspections, Engelbert said.
“Depending on how large the infestation is and how long it has been here, the dogs can detect the odor of live bed bugs from the doorway of a room.”
Surfside Services may have an extensive list of customers, but according to Engelbert, many of the clients have never had an infestation, and simply utilize the service for peace of mind.
Anyone concerned about bed bugs on their property should look out for clusters of bugs or fecal matter around the seams of beds or furniture, Engelbert said.
Pohl may be reached at [email protected]
