Oshawa moves up to #4 on annual bed bug list; Whitby ranked #21
Published March 21, 2023 at 9:21 am
Oshawa and Whitby have made the Orkin Canada annual list that no city wants to be on – the top bed buggiest cities in Canada, with Oshawa moving up from the five spot last year to claim #4 in this year’s ranking.
Whitby, #20 last year in the rankings compiled by pest control company Orkin, dropped to 21 in the country this year.
In the top spot is Toronto – for the fourth year in a row – followed by Vancouver and Sudbury. One significant newcomer to the list was London, which went unranked in 2021 but climbed to eighth in 2022.
Cities are ranked by the number of bed bug treatments the company performed from January 1, 2022 through December 31. This ranking includes both residential and commercial treatments.
The top 10 bed buggiest cities in Canada in 2022, according to Orkin’s Top Bed Bug Cities of 2022 list are:
- Toronto
- Vancouver
- Sudbury
- Oshawa
- Ottawa
- Scarborough
- Sault Ste. Marie
- London
- John’s
- Hamilton
Bed bugs are tiny pests, averaging just 4-5 mm long, and but the oval shaped, red to dark brown bugs are still identifiable. These insects are classified as hematophagous, meaning that blood is their source of nutrition and are known to live where there is a steady supply of food, and move from room to room through clothing, personal belongings, vacuum cleaners and infested furniture, making homes, hotels and businesses ideal spots.
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Primarily nocturnal bugs, they hide in the daytime and come out to feed at night when humans and pets are asleep. Physical signs of bed bugs include bite marks on legs, arms, neck, or face that are swollen or itchy.
You can keep your home and pets bed bug-free through proactive prevention tips such as careful examination of furniture and clothing after guests leave your home, drying potentially infested bed linens or clothing on the highest heat setting, and sealing cracks in walls, trims, and bed frames.
As Canadians begin to plan their 2023 adventures, Orkin Canada wants to remind travellers how to recognize signs and traces of bed bugs, so that you can avoid bringing any unwanted hitchhikers back home.
