Pest Management Professional, September 2012
Bed Bug Supplement Sandy Ladybug Honess Contributor The Adventures of Daisey and Dolley D aisey and Dolley have been working together sniffing out bed bugs as a team since September 2011 Before I share their exploits heres a little background on D D and how they came to be an important part of the Ladybug Pest Management team Daisey is our veteran sniffer She was a rescue dog and our pet for a short while before being sent off to bed bug boot camp for training Master Trainer Blaine Lessard of American Canine Scent Detection in Welcome Md trained her As one of his brightest students she graduated with high marks Once back at the Ladybug home base Daisey continued daily training while beginning work in the field Daisey has a personality like no other beagle we ever encountered Of course shes cute and bears the markings of a typical tri color beagle We believe shes approximately 4 years old She is very friendly and when not working loves to socialize Daisey give me your answer true To watch Daisey perform an inspection one might wonder about her scenting technique Unlike the frantic nose to the ground scenting of the beaglehound breeds we see on TV Daisey is calm focused and practically cavalier during her inspection scenting protocol However her handler my husband Frank knows by her behavior when shes scenting Daisey and Frank developed a bond from the hours and hours of daily training and fieldwork they have shared Daisey knows when its time to go to work and looks forward to pleasing her handler Frank Once the bed bug scent hits Daiseys nose her alert behavior is to sit motionless If a false alert faking out her handler is suspected she gets up from her seated position when Frank gently pulls her lead With a true alert Daisey sits firmly and wont budge until she receives her reward Once Frank confirms her targetedarea alert he asks Daisey to show him the bug At this command she normally points her nose toward the location of the bed bugs or viable eggs scent One of her first inspection missions was at a very proactive hotel in our area The general manager was knowlegdable about bed bugs and wanted to do all he could to avoid detect and prevent infestations at his establishment Daisey was successful in targeting specific locations of bed bugs harboring in hard to find areas Daiseys Continued on page S22 www mypmp net Pest Management Professional September 2012 S21
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