Where Hamilton ranks among Canada’s top ‘bed bug cities’

Even reading the words bed and bug in the same sentence can send chills up our spines.

Pest control company Orkin released its annual top 25 list of bed bug cities on Tuesday, and Hamilton cracked the top 10.

Toronto was the bed-buggiest in 2022; followed by Vancouver and Sudbury.

One significant newcomer to the list was London. After going unranked in 2021, the southwestern Ontario city of just over 400,000 people rose to the eighth spot.

The top 10 bed buggiest cities in Canada in 2022 were:

1. Toronto
2. Vancouver
3. Sudbury
4. Oshawa
5. Ottawa
6. Scarborough
7. Sault Ste. Marie
8. London
9. St. John’s
10. Hamilton

Cities are ranked by the number of bed bug treatments that Orkin performed from Jan. 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022. It includes both residential and commercial treatments.

“Contrary to popular belief, bed bugs are visible to the naked eye but are excellent at hiding. Involving a trained professional to identify bed bugs that have been introduced or are in the early stages of an infestation is recommended,” says Dr. Alice Sinia, a Ph.D. Entomologist at Orkin Canada.

“Bed bugs are extremely resilient, making them difficult to control. As people begin to ramp up their travel plans this year, it’s important they know how to protect themselves through pest identification and proper control.”

The City of Hamilton advises those living in rental housing to report the bed bugs to their landlord as soon as possible. Landlords are responsible for providing pest control services. Tenants are responsible for reporting the pests and helping to prepare their homes for treatment.

If you own your own home, the city recommends hiring a licensed pest control company immediately.

“Delaying the start of treatment will lead to a more difficult and costly effort to get rid of the bed bugs,” according to the city.

Bed bugs are known to live where there is a steady supply of food — moving from room to room through clothing, personal belongings, vacuum cleaners and infested furniture. This makes homes, hotels, and businesses ideal breeding grounds.

They are also known for their rapid reproduction and long-term survival capabilities. These insects can produce one to five eggs a day, with females laying from 200 to 500 eggs throughout their life, which can be from 4 months to almost a year.

Bed bugs can survive for months at a time without a meal.