A Milford woman has put her dog to work to sniff out bed bugs around town. Addie the Beagle is known as the canine bed bug detective. She's trained and paid to find the creepy critters so people can get rid of them. 

Addie On the Radio 

(bedbugk9.net)

Bed bugs are becoming a huge problem here in Michigan but one local company has a secret weapon in the fight against those creepy crawlers.

Oakland County based Bedbug K9 Detectives uses a dog named “Addie” to sniff out the insects.

Maureen Abbott is the owner and explains how the dog gets the job done…”We’ll do a walk through the home, following a special search pattern, and when Addie detects a bed bug, she scratches. And that’s how I know there’s a bed bug. I have to watch her and she looks to me for guidance.”

Maureen says her company gets calls from other pest control companies who need her help to eradicate the bed bugs when their methods don’t work. 

She says “Addie” is 97% accurate in locating bed bugs.

For more info click on www.bedbugk9.net.

(Copyright 2010 WWJ Radio.  All Rights Reserved.)

Detroit Tops National Bedbug List

A leading pest control company has released a list of the 15 most bedbug-infested cities, and New York, Philadelphia, and Detroit have scratched their way to the top.

Detroit Tops National Bedbug List

My FOX Detroit.com Staff

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Bloodsucking bedbugs are biting in New York, and Philadelphia, and all over Ohio.

The pest control company Terminix released Tuesday a list of the 15 most bedbug-infested cities, based on an analysis of call volume reporting bedbug infestations and of confirmed bedbug cases reported by sales professionals in 350 of the company's service centers.

The Big Apple topped the list, followed by Philly and Detroit.  Ohio has four cities in the top 15 -- Cincinnati is fourth, Columbus is seventh, Dayton is eighth, and Cleveland is 14th.

Bedbugs can be found in mattresses, furniture and clothing, and they feed off animal and human blood.  Insect scientists say bedbugs are showing up on a scale not seen since before World War II, due to the rise in international travel and the elimination of certain chemicals once used to fight them.  High-traffic areas such as hotels, airplanes, and cruise ships are especially prone to infestations.                                                                                                                       

     Bedbugs have been found in the Empire State Building, along with theaters, clothing      stores,office buildings, housing projects, and apartments in New York.  An outbreak of the  quick-breeding bedbugs ended a 4-H science camp on the campus of North Carolina Wesleyan College earlier this month.  And, in northern Kentucky, the Boone County Public Library brings in a dog four times a year to sniff out the pests.                                                                    

In Ohio, the Department of Agriculture is seeking federal approval for its residents to use Propoxur, an industrial-strength pesticide, to attack bedbugs.  But the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it is concerned about children being exposed to Propoxur, because EPA research has found their nervous systems could be harmed.                                         

Terminix recommends that travelers check headboards and mattresses for bedbugs and the dark blood spots they leave behind.  Baggage should be stored far from the bed and clothing should be hung rather than placed in hotel drawers or left lying on hotel furniture.       

After a trip, people should vacuum suitcases and wash clothes in hot water.

The EPA, which held a summit on the critters in April, warns consumers not to treat the problem on their own or use strong outdoor pesticides to get rid of bedbugs.

Other cities rounding out the list are Chicago, fifth; Denver, sixth; Washington, ninth; Los Angeles, 10th; Boston, 11th; Indianapolis, 12th; Louisville, 13th; and Minneapolis, 15th.

"It's the bedbug problems in cities like Dayton and Louisville that prove bedbugs are back and can pop up anywhere," said Paul Curtis, an entomologist.  "The bedbug problems in these cities outpace markets of far greater size despite their having a fraction of the population and typically fewer travelers and hotels."

Copyright AP Modified, Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.  All rights reserved.  This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

http://www.freep.com/comments/article/20100820/FEATURES07/8200307/Around-the-metro-area-bedbugs-are-biting

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/health/2010/08/20/dnt.wi.bed.bug.dogs.wtmj?hpt=T2

New updated Aug. 27, 2010

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38382427/from/toolbar