Deadly Kissing Bug

 

 

Dear Friends,

I talked to someone in Kerrville today who was bitten by a kissing bug while working at his desk at home. He did not feel the bite, but saw the bug and killed it and it was full of blood. That’s when he found the bite on his foot; he was wearing sandals. The next day his foot and entire leg were swollen. Once he ID’d the bug and found out about the danger of a bite, he called his doctor, the CDC, the hospital and other places, but was told there was nothing they could do. The disease—Chagas Disease—can even be fatal and affects animals too. He did not get Chagas from the bite, but many do. His wife did a search outside their home and killed 10 of them one night. One link below is to a Forbes article on the kissing bug; the other is about the status of the problem in Texas. Please study the picture below and kill these bugs when you see them! They are very dangerous both to you and to your pets. There is a huge problem with dogs in kennels getting bitten. These bugs are spreading through Texas. In the first link below the author says hotspots are San Antonio, Houston and Dallas. There are many more articles if you do a search. They are called kissing bugs, because they come out of hiding at night and a favorite place to bite is on the face and lips—eek! Be vigilant!

Sincerely, Kathy

 

 

 

Use above link to see pictures of these bugs.