We
provide only licensed, experienced, bonded and insured technicians.
We
are proactive, implementing strategies and finding solutions before
a little problem becomes a big problem.
We
provide our valued customers with environmentally responsible, affordable
and sustainable solutions.
We help ensure (if applicable) compliance of Community Health Department
Dine Safe programs and industry specific audit requirements
where pest management is concerned.
We have a wildlife management team licensed by the Ministry of Natural
Resources.
We
provide service frequencies ranging from weekly to monthly for our
commercial and industrial accounts, to customized
service programs for residential
customers.
We deliver an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach which includes
but is not limited to; inspection, evaluation, consultation,
prevention, awareness, monitoring,
and precise pesticide application.
We
have a retail location that offers free insect identification and
a wide range of products to help the DIY customer choose the right
product for the right pest.
WE
GUARANTEE... EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS IS OUR PRIORITY!
Ants
Ants can range in size from 0.8 mm to 1.63".
They are either black, brown, yellow, or red, or a combination of
these colors. Ants can become a serious problem in a hurry. As soon
as someone sees an ant, he knows there is a problem. Ants can be
a nuisance to humans because they infest foods or cause structural
problems to homes. Adverse effects are defoliation of certain plants,
gnawing holes in fabrics, removing insulation from wires, and possibly
transmitting disease after crawling over waste and refuse. The best
prevention of an ant infestation is professional perimeter treatment
around your home.
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Carpenter Ants
The black carpenter ant is a common invader of homes in Canada.
In their natural habitat, carpenter ants aid in the decomposition
of dead, decaying trees. They normally nest in logs, stumps, and
hollow trees. However, the large, dark-colored workers often invade
homes in search of food. These ants seldom tunnel into dry, sound
wood, but they may excavate moist, rotting wood and other soft materials
(such as foamed plastic insulation board) to make satellite nests.
Homeowners should watch for ants that are foraging indoors and try
to find their nests. Look for piles of coarse, stringy wood particles,
dead insect parts and other debris that are sifting from cracks
in the siding, behind moldings, in the basement and attic, and under
porches. Because carpenter ants do not consume the wood as food,
excavated particles are dumped outside the nest. Unlike termites,
the tunnels or galleries of carpenter ants are smooth-sided and
contain no soil particles or fecal pellets. Satellite colonies within
homes can sometimes be located by listening for a rustling sound
in walls and ceilings.
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Bedbugs
Bedbugs are a light tan color, but turn dark-reddish brown once
they have fed on blood. The adult bed bug is about ¼ inch
long and flattened. Bed bugs can be easily seen with the naked eye.
For the last 40 years, bed bugs have rarely been seen outside of
cramped living quarters and less than sanitary conditions in jails
and homeless shelters. Not anymore ! In the last five years there
has been a resurgence. Bed bugs have become a particular problem
in hotels, motels, and hostels where there is a high rate of occupant
turnover, even five star hotels are having problems with bed bugs.
Unfortunately your home is now more vulnerable than ever before
to a bedbug infestation. A bedbug feeds once per week on a sleeper’s
exposed skin and the bite is nearly painless and is not felt by
most people. Some people have no reaction afterwards, but most people
develop a hard bump with a whitish center which can itch for days.
Although bed bugs suck blood like other human parasites, there has
been no evidence that they spread diseases. Prevention is your best
way to peace of mind be wary when travelling or visiting, have a
bedbug detection system in your home and while travelling.
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Bees & Wasps
Stinging insects such as ants, bees and wasps belong to the order
Hymenoptera other hymenopterous insects such as sawflies and horntails
do not possess stingers. Most bees and wasps are social insects
living in colonies, where tasks are divided among three castes:
queens, males and workers. Queens are responsible for nest establishment
and egg laying in most species, only one queen is present during
most of the season. Workers are all females equipped with stingers
they constitute the vast majority of the colony's individuals The
ability to sting, coupled with great mobility, makes bees and wasps
the most feared of all insects. Bee and wasp stings cause several
human deaths each year. Wasps can sting repeatedly, but honey bees
can sting only once they have a barbed stinger that remains in the
victim's skin tissue. When the bee moves or is brushed away, the
stinger is pulled from the bee's body along with the venom sac,
which continues to pump venom into the victim.
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Birds and Bird mites
Many birds are friends of mankind. You might even build them houses
and baths. In exchange some birds eat mosquitoes and other harmful
insects. Starlings were brought to North America from Europe in
the late 1890s. Since that time, they have greatly increased in
number and spread across most of the continent. Adult starlings
are chunky birds the size of robins. House Sparrows are the most
abundant songbirds in North America and the most widely distributed
birds on the planet. House Sparrows are not actually sparrows, but
are Old World Weaver Finches, a family of birds noted for their
ingenious nest-building abilities. But when birds congregate on
buildings, they become nuisances. Their droppings are not only unsightly,
but can harbor bacteria or corrode roofs and nests can block air
vents or cause fires. The greatest threat to your health when a
bird chooses to nest in or around your home is the invasion of birdmites.
Most bird mite species can complete development in five to twelve
days with optimal temperatures and host presence. This short life
cycle makes it is possible for mite populations to attain tens of
thousands of mites in bird nests during the rearing of young birds.
Bird mites have piercing mouthparts that enable them to take blood
meals from their bird hosts. Although the mites will inadvertently
bite people, they cannot reproduce without their bird hosts. Birds
should be discouraged from building nests in or adjacent to buildings.
Close all openings large enough for birds to enter attics, soffits
and similar areas. Install hardware cloth, sheet metal, or other
materials to prevent birds from nesting and roosting on porches,
breezeways and other exterior sites. Disrupt nest-building efforts
by removing partially completed nests in shrubbery and on air conditioners
and windowsills.
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Cluster Flies
Homeowners are accustomed to swatting flies in the kitchen during
the summer months. However, cluster flies make their debut in the
autumn when they fly to the sunny sides of homes in search of protected
over-wintering sites and may be found flying about inside, often
in great numbers, throughout the winter. These flies are not reproducing
within the structure, but become active on warm days and crawl out
of wall voids and attics in a confused attempt to go back outside.
There may be three to four, or more, generations of cluster flies
per season. The adults leave their protected over-wintering sites
in the spring and will lay eggs on the soil. Cluster flies will
not damage your home, occasionally the flies may leave small dark-colored
spots of excrement on windows and walls but they are not known to
carry any diseases of medical importance to humans. In addition
to the ‘clustering’ on the sunny exterior of buildings
in the fall, the flies will gather in large numbers at windows within
the home on warm winter days. The flies are typically sluggish in
flight and can be easily swatted or captured.
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Cockroaches
Cockroaches are typically easily visible when exposed but are built
to be very capable of remaining out of sight. They are commonly
found in kitchens, bathrooms particularly around appliances and
pipes. Their droppings are easily confused with pepper and are found
near sites of infestation. Cockroaches feed on a variety of foods,
but decaying organic matter is preferred. They also feed on items
that contain starches and can damage book bindings, paper goods,
and clothing. Their droppings or oily bodies can contaminate counters,
walls and exposed food products.
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Crickets
Crickets are omnivores and scavengers feeding on organic materials,
as well as decaying plant material, fungi, and seedling plants.
Crickets live under rocks and logs in meadows, pastures and along
roadsides. Many are nocturnal. To attract mates, males produce a
sound made by rubbing their forewings against each other. The resulting
chirping sound is picked up by the female's ears on her front legs.
The chirp sounds are different for each species so that individuals
can find their own species. Crickets may injure seedlings and large
numbers can be destructive and males mating songs can be quite loud
in the basement and patio areas of your home.
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Earwigs
The name earwig, which literally means “ear creature,”
originated from the widespread superstition that these insects crawl
into the ears of sleeping people. Moreover, many individuals believed
that once the earwig gained access into the human ear, it could
bore into the brain. Actually these insects do not crawl into the
human ear. The most distinguishing physical feature of the earwig
is the claw-like forceps (or erci) located on the end of the abdomen.
These forceps are straight-sided on most females, but are more pincer-like
on males. Earwigs use their forceps mainly as protective weapons,
but they also use them to capture prey. Earwigs are active at night
and hide during the day in cracks and crevices. They are mainly
scavengers and occasionally feed on plants. Because large numbers
may seek shelter in and around homes, the European earwig also has
become a notorious household pest in some areas. Although population
explosions of this insect are not as intensive as those following
its initial introduction into Canada, it is not uncommon to have
isolated areas with high populations during periods of warm and
humid weather. When earwigs do invade homes, they can get into everything,
including laundry, furniture, loaves of bread, and even clothing
and bedding. They hide in cracks and crevices throughout the home
and are difficult to keep out, even with the use of screens and
other mechanical barriers.
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Fleas
Fleas are small, wingless insects that are flattened from side to
side. Fleas are covered with many spines and bristles that project
backwards. The spines are positioned to keep the flea from being
removed from its host during grooming. Adult fleas have piercing-sucking
mouthparts they use to feed on blood from their host. The most common
flea is the cat flea, although this flea mostly infects dogs and
cats. Fleas can be detected on pets by rubbing animal fur backwards
and looking for their presence next to the skin. Visual sightings
of fleas are rare before evidence of bites surface on both you or
your pet(s) therfore your health is at risk quickly with a flea
infestation.
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Fruit or Phorid
Flies
Phorid flies resemble fruit flies in appearance but lack the red
eye color that is the classic trademark of the fruit fly. These
flies are in the small category of flies, measuring up to 1/8 inch
in length, including the wings. Color: Tan brown with black eyes;
small head; a severely arched (humpbacked) thorax when viewed from
the side.The reproductive potential of these flies is tremendous
and very large numbers of them may appear in a short time. Adult
flies are strong fliers, having been known to travel as far as 6
miles within a 24 hour period. They are found throughout the world,
in nature, they are typically associated with dead animals and heavily
decaying vegetation. In buildings, they may be found breeding in
drains, trash containers, dumpsters, rotting produce, recycle bins,
grease traps, garbage disposals, crawlspaces, and any site where
moist organic matter can accumulate for a few days or longer.
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House Flies
House flies are not the neatest of insects. They visit such places
as dumps, sewers, and garbage heaps. They feed on fecal matter,
discharges from wounds and sores, sputum, and all sorts of moist
decaying matter such as spoiled fish, eggs and meat. The eggs are
deposited in decaying matter such as grass clippings, garbage, human
and animal excrement. Horse manure is the preferred breeding medium.
About l00-l50 eggs are deposited by each female on appropriate food.
Eggs may hatch in 7 l/2 hours when temperatures are high (about
99× F), or it may take two days if the temperature is only
59×F. Eggs hatch into worm-like creatures called maggots.
Maggots lack definite heads, eyes, antennae or legs. House flies
are strongly suspected of transmitting at least 65 diseases to humans,
including typhoid fever, dysentery, cholera, poliomyelitis, yaws,
anthrax, tularemia, leprosy and tuberculosis. Flies regurgitate
and excrete wherever they come to rest and thereby mechanically
transmit disease organisms.
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Ladybugs
The multicolored Asian lady beetle is a native of eastern Asia.
These insects were released in Toronto in the early 2000s for biological
control of aphids. The multicolored lady beetle looks very similar
to other lady beetles but is generally larger, about 1/3-inch long.
Its appearance is quite variable, ranging from orange to yellow
to red or even black From the exteriors of buildings they crawl
under siding and roofing and into cracks and gaps in foundations
and around windows, doors and other openings. They may continue
to move into the living areas of homes or they may spend the winter
inside the attic or wall voids. Mild, sunny winter days can wake
these dormant insects. They become active and move into the home's
living quarters. Once spring arrives, the remaining lady beetles
wake up and attempt to move outdoors. Not all succeed and many are
trapped indoors.
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Mice and Rats
The house mouse has large ears and is light brown to dark grey with
a lighter colour on its belly. It is often found in urban areas.
The deer mouse is brown or grey with a white belly and feet. The
white colour on the underside of the tail is an easy way to spot
a deer mouse. It may invade buildings near fields and woodlands
in the fall. A rat is larger than a mouse and can weigh up to 0.5
kilograms (1 pound). The Norway rat and the roof rat look similar,
but their habits are different. The Norway rat builds elaborate
systems of tunnels and burrows at ground level. It prefers damp
areas like crawl spaces or building perimeters. The roof rat is
an agile climber and prefers to live in trees, vines and other dense
vegetation. It will infest attics, rafters or roofs, and upper stories
of buildings. Scampering and scratching sounds in the walls of your
home at night, signs of gnawing or chewing, or damaged food packages
can mean you have an infestation of mice or rats. Other signs include
droppings and urine, burrows or holes in and around foundation walls,
or tracks on dusty surfaces. Mice and rats are prolific breeders.
Tackle the problem of occasional invaders right away to avoid a
severe infestation. Mice and rats are carriers of disease, and can
damage property. The deer mouse is the most common carrier of the
deadly Hantavirus.
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Millipedes
Millipedes can be easily identified by their two pairs of legs per
body segment (except for the first three segments that have one
pair each). Because of the many legs, they are often called ‘thousand-leggers’.
Sometimes they are called ‘wire worms’ because of their
cylindrical wire-like body shape. Millipedes normally live in cool,
damp places such as those found under stones, leaf mold, mulch,
compost heaps, piles of grass clippings, and brick pathways. At
certain times of the year millipedes become restless and migrate
from their normal living places; they appear in window wells, basements,
garages and other places where they become an annoyance.
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Pigeons
Pigeons and doves are of the same family (Columbidae). They are
stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with
a fleshy cere (the waxy fleshy covering at the base of the upper
beak). The species most commonly referred to just as the "pigeon"
is the feral rock pigeon, common in many cities and small rural
areas. You have seen pigeons and birds on street signs, traffic
lights, and all over ledges of buildings. Homeowners, Property Managers,
and Maintenance Professionals are constantly battling bird problems.
Maintenance costs can certainly add up, especially if maintenance
is required daily. Bird droppings are acidic and can eat through
paint, damage properties, and clog drains. Not to mention the diseases.
Pigeons tend to breed and roost in groups. The largest problem that
they cause is the amount of feces they produce. It is the accumulation
of pigeon feces that may pose a health hazard to the general public.
Pigeons have been associated with a variety of diseases, including
histoplasmosis and cryptococcosis. Histoplasmosis is a disease caused
by a fungus that grows in pigeon droppings.
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Silverfish
and Firebrats
Silverfish and firebrats are often referred to as the bristletails
because of the three, tail-like appendages that protrude from their
last abdominal segment. Silverfish have silvery-metallic scales
covering their body and antennae as long as their body; they can
grow to 12 mm in length (head to tip of abdomen). Firebrats have
tufts of brown scales that create a mottled appearance and antennae
which are longer than the length of their body; they are similar
in size to silverfish. Both species move rapidly (including sideways),
and their flat bodies let them hide in narrow crevices. They are
mostly a nuisance pest, but they can destroy cereals, books, papers,
wallpaper, and other starchy items with their excrement. During
severe infestations, these starchy targets may develop irregular-shaped
holes from the insects’ feeding. Silverfish and firebrats
do not feed on wool or other animal products.
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Sowbugs
Sowbugs are actually closer related to lobsters and crabs than to
centipedes and millipedes, they get their name from the habit of
rolling into a ball when bothered, protecting their soft underside.
There can be two or three broods per year and their lifespan is
about two years.In the spring and summer, these creatures sometimes
migrate by the thousands, marching toward and into your house. No
one knows for sure what causes these migrations. The best guess
is that it's a combination of temperature and humidity. Adverse
conditions such as too much or too little moisture in their environment
can make them leave these areas in huge numbers and be seen in various
areas of your home.
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Spiders
Spiders are easily recognized by most people because of the characteristics
they possess. They have eight legs, and they lack wings and antennae.
They only have two major body regions. Spinnerets are also located
on the tip end which produces silk. You have a problem if you see
spiders or spider webs inside your home. Under most conditions,
spiders are beneficial because they feed on insects that annoy us
however the main problems people have with spiders is simply a natural
fear of them or the mess they cause with their spider webs.
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