Maria Garcia's furniture covers the lawn outside the Bakersfield home she rents. Garcia had to move everything out when she found out she had bed bugs and contacted 17 News to find out what to do about the problem.
"I had to leave for a whole day and then I barely came back yesterday, but I have all my stuff in the back," Garcia said. "I've been washing all my clothes, I took everything out."
Garcia found the bed bugs in her son's mattress after he had red bites on his arm. All across Kern County the bugs are infesting our beds, pillows, carpeting and clothing, just waiting to feed at night.
Banks Pest Control says it gets at least 20 calls per week for bed bug infestations. Just a few years ago those calls were few and far between.
"They are called the 'traveling bug'", said Frank Daigle with Banks Pest Control. "It's real common to pick them up when you travel to hotels, motels, either locally or overseas."
Health officials said the number of bed bug complaints has increased overall, but Kern County has not seen an explosion like New York, where bed bugs were found in an AMC Theater.
"Bed bugs are one of those persistent insects that are difficult to control," Matt Constantine, Public Health Department Director said. "Sometimes they are not easily identifiable, but still can cause some concerns, obviously if you live or are staying in a room that has insects."
Getting rid of the pests is expensive. Garcia paid several hundred dollars to treat her home. Bed bugs are immune to most pesticides and it sometimes takes several costly treatments to get rid of them. It is up to tenants and landlords to decide who will pay for the treatment.
