Brand new to forum -- freaking out -- question about feces?

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Brand new to forum -- freaking out -- question about feces?

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flea dirt

acs80

newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 14

Posted 2 months ago
Fri Sep 11 2009 21:12:15
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Real classy subject line: "question about feces." This is what I've been reduced to.

This post may be a bit long, but this is my first time here, and I want to explain my situation. I've read many of the forums on this site thoroughly but want to give a little background to my story. Please, please, if you have any time to spare, take a moment to read through this...I'm getting pretty desperate. I think the easiest way to explain my bed bug concerns of the past few weeks is with a timeline:

last week (Wednesday, Sept. 2): I wake up with what I think are a few spider bites -- one on my right thigh, and two (spaced about six inches apart) on my left thigh. I don't think anything of it, assuming that I was bitten by a spider or mosquito or something.

Over this past weekend (Sept. 5th and 6th) I go away to a friend's beach house in Indiana with my boyfriend (I live in Chicago). No problems there. Return to Chicago Sunday night. My boyfriend and I do not sleep together Sunday night -- he stays at his place, I stay at mine.

Monday morning (Sept. 7th): I wake up and see that I have about twenty bug bites, only on my calves -- about ten on the left, ten on the right. The bites are INSANELY ITCHY. I freak out, and immediately think bed bugs, since I've NEVER been bitten by a spider so many times, and I had heard talk of a "bed bug infestation" in Chicago. I talk to my boyfriend later that night and he tells me that HE has weird bites on his foot -- about five of them. This actually makes me relieved, since we hadn't slept in the same place the night before, and I wonder if this is all coincidence? I HOPE that maybe I was experiencing a delayed reaction to being bitten while I was gone in Indiana...? Just to be on the safe side, though, I put both my boxspring and mattress in those zipper aller-safe covers. No new bug bites on Tues-Thurs. morning, as far as I can tell. I even went so far as to circle all the old bites on my legs with a permanent marker, so I'd be able to see if I got any new ones. Yes, that is crazy.

This morning (Friday, Sept. 11th): I wake up with what appear to be two more bites on my stomach. BUT. They aren't itchy (remember that the ones I found on the morning of Sept. 7th. were CRAZY itch). And these new ones almost seem to be gone by tonight, about twelve hours later, where the bites from Sept. 7th are still there (albeit much smaller than they were the first day). So the nature of these new bites seems to be different from those that I found on the 7th. But it's still weird to have these bites, all the same.

So here I am now. Like so many others on this site, I've taken apart my bed. Looked at mattress and boxspring (both top and bottom), along the seams and the ticking. Looked in the crevices of my bedframe and headboard. I don't think I've found anything. Certainly nothing alive. I washed my sheets in hot water and dried them for about two hours on the highest temp. setting in the dryer. I usually have beige or green sheets on my bed, but I replaced them with white sheets so that I'd be able to see any of the tell-tale signs (blood stains, fecal smears). The only thing I *have* noticed are some small dark specks on my sheet, but they actually look more like little dark flakes. They are dry, and I would equate them to the flake-like consistency of goldfish food, if anyone knows what I'm talking about. I probably found four of these on my sheet since changing my bedding. They're super tiny -- about 1 mm long. Are bed bug feces normally dry like flakes, or do they appear as actual smears in the fabric? It's hard to tell from the pictures I've found online. It's also possible that this is just dirt I'm carrying into the bed on my feet or something (I have hardwood floors). Since I usually don't have white sheets on my bed, every little speck of dirt is obvious now...plus, I'm really scouring (sometimes with a magnifying glass, no joke) my sheets for signs of these critters, so any tiny speck, even lint, is cause for me to freak out.

I have found a bed bug-sniffing dog online that's in the Chicago area. I gave that number a call and left a message. I also spoke to two exterminators today, both of whom didn't seem overly concerned, even though I was pretty much hysterical. The second one with whom I spoke told me to go buy a bunch of glue traps and put them all around my bed...I had read this many times before, and I actually have double-sided tape on the legs of my bed already, but I'm going to go out and buy a buttload of glue traps and just make a little glue moat around my bed.

I live in a condo and I called the management company today to tell them about the problem. They didn't mention that anyone else in the building had complained. Nor did they seem overly concerned. Maybe they don't realize the severity of this problem, when it gets out of hand?

I'm not sure what else to write, at this point. I'm literally scared. I've always been a bit of an anxious person, and this has really helped ratchet up my anxiety. I purchased my condo relatively recently and the knowledge that I actually OWN this problem, in a sense, is overwhelming and terrifying, to put it bluntly.

I guess all I'm looking for is an answer to my question about what the bed bug feces looks like...if it is actual flakes, like I described, or smears. Other than that, I wrote you all an entire novel and if you have any words of support or hope, they would be *much* appreciate at this really miserable moment.

Thank you!!!
spideyjg

oldtimer
Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 1,405

Posted 2 months ago
Fri Sep 11 2009 21:25:38
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Got animals? Consider fleas. See this thread on some table top science on flea droppings....

http://bedbugger.com/forum/topic/flea-droppings-table-top-science

Jim
acs80

newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 14

Posted 2 months ago
Fri Sep 11 2009 21:52:24
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No, I don't have any pets. I sort of wish I did and at least had some alternative explanation for the bites. DISGUSTING.
spideyjg

oldtimer
Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 1,405

Posted 2 months ago
Fri Sep 11 2009 22:08:40
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Flaky feces and bites on the lower extremities are evidence that points towards fleas. Doesn't matter if you have animals or not really, just that if you do there will always be some on them.

A flea trap is cheap, easy to find, and can help in the investigative process. Based on your story fleas need to be ruled out. Get a camera and examine the various traps for captured critters for ID.

Jim
ilovemyseniors

newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8

Posted 2 months ago
Sat Sep 12 2009 0:05:11
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acs80 - 2 hours ago »
Real classy subject line: "question about feces." This is what I've been reduced to.
This post may be a bit long, but this is my first time here, and I want to explain my situation. I've read many of the forums on this site thoroughly but want to give a little background to my story. Please, please, if you have any time to spare, take a moment to read through this...I'm getting pretty desperate. I think the easiest way to explain my bed bug concerns of the past few weeks is with a timeline:
last week (Wednesday, Sept. 2): I wake up with what I think are a few spider bites -- one on my right thigh, and two (spaced about six inches apart) on my left thigh. I don't think anything of it, assuming that I was bitten by a spider or mosquito or something.
Over this past weekend (Sept. 5th and 6th) I go away to a friend's beach house in Indiana with my boyfriend (I live in Chicago). No problems there. Return to Chicago Sunday night. My boyfriend and I do not sleep together Sunday night -- he stays at his place, I stay at mine.
Monday morning (Sept. 7th): I wake up and see that I have about twenty bug bites, only on my calves -- about ten on the left, ten on the right. The bites are INSANELY ITCHY. I freak out, and immediately think bed bugs, since I've NEVER been bitten by a spider so many times, and I had heard talk of a "bed bug infestation" in Chicago. I talk to my boyfriend later that night and he tells me that HE has weird bites on his foot -- about five of them. This actually makes me relieved, since we hadn't slept in the same place the night before, and I wonder if this is all coincidence? I HOPE that maybe I was experiencing a delayed reaction to being bitten while I was gone in Indiana...? Just to be on the safe side, though, I put both my boxspring and mattress in those zipper aller-safe covers. No new bug bites on Tues-Thurs. morning, as far as I can tell. I even went so far as to circle all the old bites on my legs with a permanent marker, so I'd be able to see if I got any new ones. Yes, that is crazy.
This morning (Friday, Sept. 11th): I wake up with what appear to be two more bites on my stomach. BUT. They aren't itchy (remember that the ones I found on the morning of Sept. 7th. were CRAZY itch). And these new ones almost seem to be gone by tonight, about twelve hours later, where the bites from Sept. 7th are still there (albeit much smaller than they were the first day). So the nature of these new bites seems to be different from those that I found on the 7th. But it's still weird to have these bites, all the same.
So here I am now. Like so many others on this site, I've taken apart my bed. Looked at mattress and boxspring (both top and bottom), along the seams and the ticking. Looked in the crevices of my bedframe and headboard. I don't think I've found anything. Certainly nothing alive. I washed my sheets in hot water and dried them for about two hours on the highest temp. setting in the dryer. I usually have beige or green sheets on my bed, but I replaced them with white sheets so that I'd be able to see any of the tell-tale signs (blood stains, fecal smears). The only thing I *have* noticed are some small dark specks on my sheet, but they actually look more like little dark flakes. They are dry, and I would equate them to the flake-like consistency of goldfish food, if anyone knows what I'm talking about. I probably found four of these on my sheet since changing my bedding. They're super tiny -- about 1 mm long. Are bed bug feces normally dry like flakes, or do they appear as actual smears in the fabric? It's hard to tell from the pictures I've found online. It's also possible that this is just dirt I'm carrying into the bed on my feet or something (I have hardwood floors). Since I usually don't have white sheets on my bed, every little speck of dirt is obvious now...plus, I'm really scouring (sometimes with a magnifying glass, no joke) my sheets for signs of these critters, so any tiny speck, even lint, is cause for me to freak out.
I have found a bed bug-sniffing dog online that's in the Chicago area. I gave that number a call and left a message. I also spoke to two exterminators today, both of whom didn't seem overly concerned, even though I was pretty much hysterical. The second one with whom I spoke told me to go buy a bunch of glue traps and put them all around my bed...I had read this many times before, and I actually have double-sided tape on the legs of my bed already, but I'm going to go out and buy a buttload of glue traps and just make a little glue moat around my bed.
I live in a condo and I called the management company today to tell them about the problem. They didn't mention that anyone else in the building had complained. Nor did they seem overly concerned. Maybe they don't realize the severity of this problem, when it gets out of hand?
I'm not sure what else to write, at this point. I'm literally scared. I've always been a bit of an anxious person, and this has really helped ratchet up my anxiety. I purchased my condo relatively recently and the knowledge that I actually OWN this problem, in a sense, is overwhelming and terrifying, to put it bluntly.
I guess all I'm looking for is an answer to my question about what the bed bug feces looks like...if it is actual flakes, like I described, or smears. Other than that, I wrote you all an entire novel and if you have any words of support or hope, they would be *much* appreciate at this really miserable moment.
Thank you!!!

If you can flick them off more than likely they are just dust. Bed Bugs usually leave a matter that can not be easily removed. I know that you are freaked out, because I check my bed every night at least twice because I am around them on a day to day bases. The fecal matter is blood fecal that absorbs in the bedding, when it is a heavy infestation you can brush it off, but it seems that you have checked all the common places with no signs, so I think that you are fine. I itch all the time from the thought of them so it is only natural when you think about them. I hope this helps you rest easier.
ilovemyseniors

newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8

Posted 2 months ago
Sat Sep 12 2009 0:07:34
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If you can flick them off more than likely they are just dust. Bed Bugs usually leave a matter that can not be easily removed. I know that you are freaked out, because I check my bed every night at least twice because I am around them on a day to day bases. The fecal matter is blood fecal that absorbs in the bedding, when it is a heavy infestation you can brush it off, but it seems that you have checked all the common places with no signs, so I think that you are fine. I itch all the time from the thought of them so it is only natural when you think about them. I hope this helps you rest easier.