How Do You Know if It is a Mattress Bug Chew or a Flea Chew?

What are bed bug and flea bites?

Both fleas and bed bugs can live indoors and bite people to feed on their blood. Bed bug bites appear in a group or line. Flea bites are itchy, raised bumps.

Both fleas and bed bugs can live indoors and bite people to feed on their blood. How can you tell the difference between your bites? Learn more about flea and bed bug bites.

Insect bites are irritating and uncomfortable. The situation is even worse when you are at home as the house needs treatment to get rid of the insects.

Bed bugs and fleas are both bed bugs that feed on human blood. There are some differences between the two types. Finding out what type of flaws you have can help you determine what type of bite you have.

What are bed bug bites?

Bed bug bites come from bed bugs, which are tiny parasitic bed bugs. Bed bugs are no larger than an apple seed and brown with a balloon-like shape.

Female bed bugs can lay anywhere from 1 to 3 eggs per day and 200 to 500 eggs in their lifetime, so the infestation can spread quickly.

What are flea bites?

Flea bites come from fleas – tiny black or brown parasitic insects. They feed on blood and prefer to live on a human or animal host at all times. You can jump up to six inches and easily access an unsuspecting dog, cat, or human.

They lay 40-50 eggs a day, which without a host can mature in carpets and other soft fibers. Flea infestations grow quickly once there are fleas in your home.

What are the symptoms and signs of bed bug bites compared to flea bites?

Bed bug and flea bites are very similar, but there are a few differences that can help you tell them apart.

Symptoms of bed bug bites

Bed bug bites inject an anesthetic into your skin so you don’t feel the bite. It may be a day or more before you notice the bites turn into itchy, red bumps on your skin.

The bites appear in a group or line, usually on the arms and legs. New bites are most likely to appear in the morning after sleeping.

Symptoms of flea bites

Flea bites are small, raised bumps that itch. They tend to be in groups of three, sometimes referred to as “breakfast, lunch, and dinner”. People often notice flea bites on their feet and ankles as fleas migrate on the carpet or floor.

Fleas defecate when they bite, leaving bacteria on the skin around the bites. This makes flea bites prone to infection, especially if you spread the bacteria by scratching with your fingers.

Flea droppings, also called flea dirt, are the reason why fleas spread diseases like plague, typhoid and tapeworm.

What are the causes of bed bug bites compared to flea bites?

Flea and insect bites have obvious causes once you know what bug is in your home.

Causes of bed bug bites

Bed bugs prefer to live on fabrics or other soft surfaces like furniture. They don’t live on animals or people. You could enter your home with suitcases or other cloth items from a previously infested room. They can’t jump or fly, but they can crawl very quickly.

You can tell if a house has bed bugs by looking for these signs:

• Reddish stains on the bed caused by crushed insects.
• Tiny dark spots from bed bug droppings.
• Bed bug eggs, egg shells and the exoskeletons.
• Live bed bugs.
• A musty smell in the rooms where bed bugs live.

Causes of Flea Bites

It is easy for a person or a pet to carry fleas around the house. Other animals such as mice, rats, or raccoons can also bring fleas into the house.

As soon as fleas lay eggs on the animals, the eggs fall off and mature in the carpet or other places in the house. Then new fleas hatch and bite people and pets.

You can tell if an animal has fleas by looking for fleas on the skin under its fur. You may also notice black spots or “flea debris” that fleas leave when they bite.

How to diagnose bed bug bites versus flea bites

Most of the time, you can identify bed bug or flea bites without seeing a doctor.

How to diagnose bed bug bites

You can tell bed bug bites by how the bites cluster together in a zigzag pattern. Bed bugs have a tendency to bite exposed skin such as arms and legs. You may notice new bites in the morning.

If you think you may have bed bug bites, check for other signs of bed bugs in your home, such as:

• Bed bugs in mattresses, sheets, or clothing
• Insect exoskeletons from molting bed bugs
• Rust-colored spots
• Musty smell

How to diagnose flea bites

Flea bites in humans are typically on the feet and ankles. You can notice them in groups of three.

If you think you may have flea bites, it is a good idea to examine your pets’ skin for fleas and check for other signs of fleas around the house.

Treatments of bed bugs for fleas

In most cases, you can treat bed bug and flea bites at home.

Bed bug bite treatment

Most bed bug bites are not serious. Unlike other parasites, bed bugs do not carry disease. You can relieve the itching and discomfort caused by bed bugs by using over-the-counter anti-itch creams and by keeping the bites clean and dry.

In some cases, the bites can cause other problems that require a doctor to be seen. Talk to your doctor if your bites are infected or if they get worse instead of getting better.

Once you get the bites off, you can try and get the bed bugs out of your house. You may need to speak to a professional exterminator.

Flea bite treatment

It is important to clean the area around flea bites to minimize the risk of other infections from flea feces. You can relieve itching with over-the-counter antihistamines and anti-itch creams.

Call your doctor if your bites get worse instead of getting better, or if your skin is infected.

To get rid of fleas, you can talk to your veterinarian about treating fleas in your pets. An exterminator can suggest ways to kill fleas in your home. Careful vacuuming and dusting will remove flea eggs in carpets and furniture.

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Medically checked on 02/26/2021

References

SWELL:

American Academy of Dermatology Association: “Bed Bugs: Diagnosis and Treatment.”

American Osteopathic College of Dermatology: “Flea Bites”.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “FAQs About Bed Bugs”.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “Flea-borne Diseases of the United States.”

Environmental Protection Agency: “Appearance and Life Cycle of Bed Bugs.”

Environmental Protection Agency: “Fight Fleas and Ticks in Your Home.”

Environmental Protection Agency: “Get Rid of Bed Bugs.”

Environmental Protection Agency: “How to Find Bed Bugs.”

Seattle Children’s Hospital: “Bed Bug Bites”.

University of Kentucky: “Flea Control and Prevention.”