As the bed bug epidemic continues to grow, bed bug detection dogs will begin to play a larger role in bed bug detection and elimination. So what makes these dogs so special and why would you want to use one?
- A Powerful Nose – A dog’s nose generally has between 125 and 220 million smell-sensitive receptors making their nose nearly 100 million times more powerful than the human nose. Dogs can be trained to detect just about anything including explosives, blood, plants, produce, currency, cancer, mold, and even insects.
- Speed – Because a dog’s nose is so powerful, they can search a small apartment for bed bugs in a just a few short minutes. If a human were to inspect the same apartment for bed bugs, it could take 1 to 2 hours, depending on the thoroughness of the inspection.
- Accuracy – Bed bugs are small and can hide anywhere, even in electrical outlets. Humans are known to be only about 30-35% accurate in finding bed bugs during an inspection. However, well trained bed bug detection dogs are between 90% and 95% accurate in finding bed bugs. In addition, they can pinpoint the exact location of the bugs.
