Bobby Corrigan: The Rat Man

Calling Manhattan a "Ratropolis" Bobby Corrigan shared with M&M his rat-related expertise yesterday morning when trying to determine possible causes for a client's rodent issues. Bobby Corrigan is one of the country's leading experts on rodents and has been studying the vermin for 25+ years. Corrigan consults for NYC's department of health as a Research Scientist/Rodentologist and had tons of helpful information to share with M&M about rats and their routines like:

-Rats do not see very well.
-It's very rare for rats to bite or attack because of this poor vision.
-Where there's rats, there is a food source
-For NYC, subways play a minor role in rats whereas sewers play a major roll.
-Manhattan, The Bronx, and certain parts of Brooklyn are hotspots for rats.

Rachael Ray Show Talks Bed Bugs With M&M

"Anyone can get them and no one is safe." We relate here about bed bugs during our October 23rd, 2009 appearance on the Rachael Ray show where we talk about what happens when bed bugs start biting the least suspecting victims (AKA yours truly).

Rachael Ray brought in her in-house health counsel, Dr. Ian, to talk about bed bugs and bed bug-related products. You can see a thorough report on his knowledge of the pests here on bedbugger.com.

In this clip, you'll see Rachael and Dr. Ian discussing bed bugs, and you'll also see us tell our story about going through this process from start to finish.

"The Bug Apple"

Talk about breaking news...Today's front page article from one of NYC's free papers, AM NY, titled The Bug Apple is all about this crazy bed bug epidemic. The article quotes friends of M&M Environmental like Louis Sorkin, who explains that,

"If things continue the way they are, and infestations in homes increase, it's much more easily transferred to businesses, theaters, hospitals, doctor's offices..."

We learned this and much, much more after our own talks with Mr. Sorkin here when he shared with M&M how and why bed bugs have gotten so out of control in NYC. The article also goes on to talk about what the city is doing to wage this war, including a quote from another friend of M&M, Gale Brewer, who shares information about proposed legislation and the newly formed bed bug task force. We also spoke with this Upper West Side council member here when she shared with M&M details about what is being done officially by the city.

As the Bed Bug Bites...

Here's what a normal apartment should look like:





And here's what an apartment looks like when the bed bugs are biting:





Now I really understand that bed bugs can happen to anyone. Unfortunately, this particular case was brought over from a roommate's boyfriends apartment. Regardless of the origin, having bed bugs in your apartment makes you feel like you are in the twilight zone. The whole process is a lot more tolling than it seems from afar. The hardest part was having to go through every single item, wipe it down, and place it in a plastic bag. It's impossible to gauge how many "things" you actually have until you end up having to go through all of them. And now living out of these actual bags? Not so easy or desirable. Living through this experience makes me empathize wholly and completely with anyone who has ever had to deal with kicking bed bugs to the curb.