The Nose “Knows”!

Get the canine advantage with Western Pest Services

As expert hiders, bed bugs are notoriously hard to detect. Luckily, their aggregate pheromone odors are not hidden to animals with sensitive noses, like dogs. Bed bug issues can be discovered quickly and accurately by the help of man’s best friend. Especially our dogs because our pups are trained daily using live bed bug scent and are even trained and evaluated with more frequency than the national scent detection standards! The Western Canine Bed Bug Detection Services are based on scientific research principles. The Western pups receive 600 hours of training before entering into the field, and our handlers have extensive field experience working with and managing canine behavior under real-life working conditions and in many different environments. This training allows them to be 98% (the highest level validated) accurate at sniffing out just one bed bug – and even just one bed bug egg.

With such highly trained dogs and trainers – and continuous training throughout the year – you can trust that our bed bug sniffing dogs will sniff out bed bugs early enough to save you money and reputation. Working canines have a long, trusted history using their powerful sense of smell for rescues and drug and bomb detection. If they can be trusted to find a bomb, they can be trusted to find your bed bug! Listen to our podcast to hear straight from two of our handlers about why our dogs are so effective and read about a real life example of how our dogs helped a local college.

Our Expert Technician + Western Dog = an unbeatable bed bug detection team!

  • Inspects up to 125 rooms per day
  • Can detect even just one bed bug egg
  • Have 45 more smell receptors than humans
  • Ongoing training keeps our canines sharp
k9 Chart
Our dogs can detect at the earliest introduction – way sooner than the naked eye. The chart shows how quickly a bed bug introduction can become a full-blown infestation. It also shows how few bed bugs there needs to be for our bed bug dogs to detect them. That can save you a lot of money in the long run. With recurring services, our canine teams can help identify new introductions before they turn into full-blown infestations, saving your brand and allowing for treatment early on in the infestation cycle.


MEET THE DOGS

All of our dogs were rescued from kill shelters. These pups received 600 hours of training before entering into the field, and our handlers have extensive field experience working with and managing canine behavior under real-life working conditions and in many different environments. They also continue to train almost every day to keep their noses up to snuff. But they are more than that. They are our trusted employees, and we love them. Meet the dogs:

Mr. Tony

Mr. Tony joined the team in November of 2025. When he’s not expertly sniffing out bed bugs, he loves playing with his herding ball and then relaxing with a nice pup cup. But, having a July 3rd birthday means Mr. Tony is a Cancer – which also means he’s loyal and nurturing. So, his real favorite thing to do is cuddle with his best friend and handler, Faith.

Dakota

Meet the wonderful Dakota. Hired in November of 2024, she is a huge love bug that just wants to cuddle. Her favorite things are playing fetch and, of course, a nice pup cup. But please don’t tell her no. After all, it’s Dakota’s world and we are all just living in it

Nico

Sweet Nico was hired in 2021. Bed bug sniffing runs in his blood since both his mom and his dad worked in the industry, too. Besides sniffing for bed bugs, his favorite thing to do is to play with his favorite toy: his Chuckit! ball. Nico’s favorite treat is pieces of cucumber. We could all learn a thing or two from Nico.

Oliver

Oliver is approaching his 10th birthday and his favorite thing to do is still playing with his doggie friends and his human sisters. His favorite treats are kibble treats but he doesn’t want to talk about bed time. Let’s just say he doesn’t love it, and he’s like you to just stay up with him please.

Fidget

Fidget was hired in 2018, and his favorite treat is crispy bacon. Fidget is all of us. He loves kids and other dogs but is NOT a fan of squirrels. He could use our exclusion services.

Lex

Lex has been with Western since 2018. When he’s not sniffing out bed bugs, his favorite thing to do is swimming, but if you throw any type of ball… he’s on it. He will find it and it will suffer.

Raven

Raven has been with Western since 2017. Although she’s small in stature, she has super high endurance and energy. Unfortunately, an eye issue caused her to retire in 2022. Her favorite activity is wrestling with her best buds, Tess and Nico.

Tess

Tess started with Western in 2015 and retired on December 22, 2023, after a long, successful career. She’s actually a celebrity having rung the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange. No photos, please. Sigh, the paparazzi is insufferable.

Dixie

Dixie was hired in 2011 and retired in 2017. Her favorite treats were pizza crust and carrots. She knew it was all about balance. We sadly lost Dixie in January 2021. She will be forever missed.

MEET THE HANDLERS

Our handlers are not only highly trained, but they have bonded with the dogs. They are fully trusted by the dogs and they are continuously providing positive reinforcement (that doesn’t always mean treats) to keep their noses sharp.

Pete

Pete Mattiace has been with Western since 2008. He has had the pleasure of working with Raven, Tess, and Dixie. Right now, he is working with Nico. In his free time, he enjoys making underwater videos of Caribbean blue water, tropical fish, and sea turtles. He even edits and adds music to the videos to post on his snorkeling YouTube channel!

Faith

Faith Harley Pearson has been with Western since 2023. She currently works with Dakota and Mr. Tony. But that doesn’t seem like enough for her. She is lucky enough to have 5 dogs in total! Talk about bringing your work home with you. We don’t envy her treat budget.

Request an Inspection (800) 768-6109
Pests are smart. Western’s smarter. Schedule your inspection today!
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