On the one hand, winter chills will kill off many pests, but on the other, just as many will seek refuge in your home! Nestled in your cozy heated house, many pests can actually thrive: think mice, rats, bed bugs, and other small but stealthy critters. It isn't fair, but luckily, these pests leave behind signs that a trained eye can recognize.

Select Pest Control, Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky's leading team of exterminators and wildlife removal experts, has put together these tips for finding pests and taking action:

• Check Your Bedding & Mattress Regularly: Bed bugs are notoriously hard to get rid of, but they still leave behind clues — the most obvious of which are large reddish welts on your skin, usually two or more in a row. In addition, their feces will be strewn about on your bedding, or in the seams of your mattress. 

• Check All Crawl Spaces: Rodents often hide in places like basements and cupboards. Check these areas regularly during wintertime to look for chewed wood or feces. Call Select Pest Control if you suspect you have rodents or possibly termites.

• Seal Up Your Walls (Bed Bugs): Bed bugs frequently breed behind walls. To protect yourself from recurring infestations, seal them up with grout. Your exterminator will help you identify additional areas that need sealing.

• Follow Your Nose: Bed bugs are known occasionally as the “coriander bug,” because of the coriander-like odor of their feces. If you smell something unpleasantly sweet and musty, and notice other bed bug signs, call Select Pest Control.
• Take Photographs: There's a lot of misinformation out there, with many people mistaking carpet beetles for bed bugs (and vice versa). To correctly identify something, show a professional. Bed bugs in particular tend to stay hidden, so if you think you see one, snap a picture!

Need a pest identified and eradicated? Call Select Pest Control at (513) 352-0080, or visit their website. They work out of Hebron, KY, and serve all of the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky areas.