A Brief History of Bed Bug Dogs

Although bed bugs can be detected by their smell, their scent is largely undetectable to humans. This is why a highly trainable animal with a keen sense of smell – the canine – is now finding employment as bed bug dogs. Long used for sniffing out drugs and other often hidden and otherwise imperceptible items, research studies have proven dogs have been proven to pinpoint bed bug infestations with an accuracy rate of 97.5%.

A Relatively New Bed Bug Strategy
While no exact timeline has been established, the use of bed bug dogs is a fairly recent strategy with some companies beginning to employ them in the early 2000s. It was noted that, as of 2009, there were 100 bed bug dogs thought to be used in the United States, according to The National Entomology Scent Detection Canine Association.  However, the International Forensic Detection Canine Association now estimates that there are more than 200 now employed. This as a growing number of companies that now recognize their benefits as well as the increasing need to address the ongoing bed bug infestation that is spreading across the country in a more effective manner. 

A Research-Based History
According to one scientific journal article: 

“Detector dogs are useful for locating bed bugs because they use olfaction rather than vision. Dogs were trained to detect the bed bug (as few as one adult male or female) and viable bed bug eggs (five, collected 5–6 d after feeding) by using a modified food and verbal reward system. Their efficacy was tested with bed bugs and viable bed bug eggs placed in vented polyvinyl chloride containers. Dogs were able to discriminate bed bugs from Camponotus floridanus Buckley, Blattella germanica (L.), and Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar), with a 97.5% positive indication rate (correct indication of bed bugs when present) and 0% false positives (incorrect indication of bed bugs when not present).”

The research available has also produced a strong foundation as to why more companies may want to adopt bed bug dogs as part of their inspection process:

“In a controlled experiment in hotel rooms, dogs were 98% accurate in locating live bed bugs. A pseudoscent prepared from pentane extraction of bed bugs was recognized by trained dogs as bed bug scent (100% indication). The pseudoscent could be used to facilitate detector dog training and quality assurance programs. If trained properly, dogs can be used effectively to locate live bed bugs and viable bed bug eggs.”

The green movement in pest management has also provided an impetus to look to bed bug dogs to help address this problem. Even the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently weighed in, indicating that there was the potential to certify bed bug detection dogs to add credibility to what they offer.

In Review
Here are the key points from this blog post:

• Bed bug dogs are a relatively new detection and inspection tactics for bed bugs.
• In the last two years, the numbers employed have gone from 100 to over 200 across the United States.
• Research studies in 2008 uncovered considerable evidence as to why dogs were such an excellent candidate for accurately sniffing out the exact location of bed bugs both dead and alive.

About The Author

Jeremy Ecker has worked in the pest control industry for the past 17 years. The last 8 years was spent as a Vice President of one of the most well respected regional Pest Control Companies in New York. He is part of a NESDCA Certified Dog Team