What's biting me?

[Katy May]

For the last month, when I wake up in the morning I have 3-4 bites on my neck/arms/legs/body. Insect repellant reduces the number of bites but not all. Can't find any mozzies in the room, not any sign of bed bugs. Have got cats but they've all been deflea'd recently and the first sign is usually bites on my ankles, which i haven't had. My partner hasn't had any bites at all. I know it's the bedroom as was away for a few days and had no poblems at all. Am so fed up with being itchy and freaked out by thought of something feeding of me at night! Any ideas?

[Dassie]

Cats may have been de-flead but fleas live on in your carpets, pillows etc. You need a good steam-clean of your carpets and at the same time redo your cats.

[RATTER15]

Hiya, I am an ex Pest Control Officer, You say you have been away for a while! this is a clue, whilst you are away any flea infestation would become far worse on your arrival back home as all those dear fleas have been starved and are now in feeding frenzy, that's the first possibility!!
The second is bed bugs! whilst away did you stay in a hotel, B&B etc they are prime suspects for Bed Bugs, Bed Bugs are usually identified by small specks of blood on you bedding, sheets pillows etc, to find the actual Bed Bugs you will need to search further, they will be found under the mattress buttons, under the cording around the mattress, behind and stitch work on the headboard, also look remove the headboard and check where the headboard makes contact with the bed, you will need a torch to look for them and they hide really well. Should you have either infestation call a pest control company and get them to treat it, you will not effectively eradicate either of these pests yourself, especially in the case of Bed Bugs!!

Good luck!!

Oh and if you find Bed Bugs do not throw away your bed!! the treatment is more successful to be able to treat the bed before removing it and all the Bed Bugs drop all over the floor and once the bed is treated there is no reason to dispose of it!!

[dot.hawkes]

it may not be insec\t bites at all, it may be static, especially if you tumble dry your bedding, static causes round bright red lumps that are very very inflamed and itchy. they can appear anywhere on the body and are larger than frea bites.

[O'Reilly]

I have to agree with Dassie.

You can deflea a cat or dog but often before you have done this a flea will lay eggs somewhere in furnishings/carpets and hatch and although your pet is clear it will pick up a flea that has been 'born' somewhere within your home. Some people actually get a bad reaction to a flea bite (this answers the difference between you and your boyfriend) you need to treat an animal and also carpets, bedding, and furniture at the same time. There used to be a gell pack available (from the vets) that you put in your room - like a fresh air pack - that killed all fleas and insects so have a word with your vet. meanwhile, you need to clean carpets and all furnishings and treat the cat again.

[bigmamma]

RATTER , I have just read your reply and have now got the creeps .....as I have bad lungs I change my bed linen very frequently and wash my mattress cover often to lessen dust mites , does the average house also have to worry about bedbugs !!! ? What should we do to prevent ever having them ?
Katy May , mossies are real good at hiding :-)

[moonshadow]

OMG Ratter you've started me off ,I have done nothing but scratch since I read your description of bed bugs. Never thought of it before but suppose you could bring the little devils back in your suitcase. That's very interesting what you have written about static Dot. Bigmamma I want to know as well what we should do to prevent them !!I Hope you find out soon what it is Katy May.

[Katy May]

Thanks all. Ratter15, I've just checked the mattress (no headboard) and have found a few black grit-like specs under the mattress buttonsnbut no bugs - is this their poo? Eeergh. This all started shortly after I went to Greece for a week, I didn't get bitten there - are bed bugs repulsed by Mozzie-repellant? Same goes for fleas?

I've got some flea spray from the vets which kills all the eggs. We moved into this house about 8 weeks ago and have been replacing the carpets gradually so I was waiting to get the whole house finished before treating the carpets, but I shall do the bedroom now. I'll ask for that gel pack O'Reilly - I'm adopting a shock and awe approach to these insects!

Dot - interesting about the static, especially snce the prev occupants kindly left us their tumble dryer which is much more static inducing than my old one.

Bigmamma, I get my bf to do a mozzie hunt each night (to prove he loves me!), problem is we have some kind of air vent thing in the wall so I suspect it's possible they sneak in in the night.

Am off to hoover mattress and spray carpet before catching cats and anointing them.

Thanks again.

[1955]

We had bed bugs in our old house - my husband was bitten a lot but I was not - I blame it on husband and son staying at a cheap hotel and bringing them back in suitcase but don't really know - husband was back and forward to Doctors and given stuff for scabies - it was me who spotted them one morning - some under pillow and in corner of bedding - they only come out at night and feed on human blood - spotted one one night which was all fat and red from feeding - got rid of bed but it was old anyway - think they can also live in upholstery and cracks in skirting board

[O'Reilly]

The thing you have to remember is that some people are more likely to get a bad reaction than others. I can get bitten by a horsefly and come up in a huge red itchy lump - my friends can get bitten and just get a small itchy pimple. So you really can't compare the bites you have to what (if at all) your other half has.

You should vacuum the bed - turn the mattress too - wash all bedding, move the bed and clean under it as well as all around the floor and change the pillows. get to the vet and get a spray/gel that is good to be placed in a room and sort of do everything in a day. You'll clear the problem but I would say start with cleaning pillows and when changing bedding turn pillow cases inside out first.

[Elizabeth ll]

I have had the same problem in the past, I had flea collars on all of my animals and still I had flea bites, they are on your ankles because the fleas are in your carpets, did you know that flea eggs hatch every 7 days, so you must refumigate after doing it the first tyme. It took me weeks to erraticate them, what a nuissance, fleas will live thru a nuclear war,lol lol.

[Katy May]

What did the bugs look like 1955 - were they easy to see? Gross, it makes my skin crawl! What were the bites like?

Ratter15 - don't know if this is connected, but about a wk after we moved in one of the cats had an allergic reaction to a bite and scratched herself raw/bald. The vet said it was most likely not a flea bite as she hadn't shown any signs of allergy before. Also, they bring in rats, mice, shrews and someone mentioned rodent mites. However, the cats are rarely allowed in the bedroom (especially now!)

[1955]

The bugs were oval shaped like little beetles - some small and some larger - they hide through the day and come out at night - just noticed there is a link at the side of this thread called "Got Bedbugs? Need Help"

[dot.hawkes]

http://electrostaticsolutions.blogspot.com/200 5/08/can-static-electricity-cause-skin-rash.ht ml

[moonshadow]

Katy May if you can put the black grit-like specs you mention on a damp tissue and you get red streaks then it's flea poo.

[lizzydrippin]

Katy May, I have exactly the same problem and my cats have all been flea treated, the whole house has been sprayed with Acclaim (very expensive from the vets but works well), we have a new mattress and still I come out in these itchy 'bites', mine seem to be mostly on my stomach and neck areas rather than on my arms and legs. Ive tried to get to the bottom of this for ages but still its a complete mystery as to whats causing the problem. I have even tried not going out at all in daylight for a few days to see if it could be midge bites, but it made no difference.
By the way be careful not to de-flea the cats again too close to when you last did them. The last lot will still be in their system and they could overdose.
Elizabeth11 Flea collars are totally useless, they don't work and are just a waste of money, (not too good to have round the cats neck either). Im not surprised you had such a job getting rid of the fleas! Horrible critters!

[Katy May]

Ok, mattress hoovered, bedding washed at 60 degrees and line dried, carpets, curtains and rooms sprayed with 'staykill', cats anointed with advantage (it's been 6 weeks Elizabeth II but good point) and remaining carpets in the house removed and taken to tip (not just coz of this, the carpet fitter's coming tomorrow anyhow!). Will let you know Elizabeth in a couple of days if the bites continue, if so I'll take Ratter's advice and call in the pest control people.

Thanks again.

[RATTER15]

see these pics, http://images.google.co.uk/images?q=bed+bugs&h l=en&cr=countryUK%7CcountryGB&safe=off&um=1&ie =UTF-8&sa=X&oi=images&ct=title

[Katy May]

Thanks Ratter.

[SMH13]

Katy May, I have your exact problem ! What happened in the end? Thanks

[Katy May]

We called out a pest man who found no sign of bed bugs - what he did find was a blocked gutter outside the bedroom window and the air vent which had gone stagnant and was attracting mosquitos. Once we cleared that the problem was solved! Hope it's as easy for you.