BRITISH PEST CONTROL ASSOCATION/FLICKR
Hotel Pests
The End of Tenancy Cleaning service in London has surveyed 1,448 British tourists who booked a trip during summer to identify any cleanliness issues they would most likely complain about with regards to their hotel room.
The results of this survey found that the majority of Brits feel inclined to complain if there are visible spot stains on the bed and towels. These stains could be a sign of bed bug faecal deposits.
81% of Brits would ask to be immediately moved to another room if they found an infestation of bed bugs, flies, rodents and/or wasps/bees. 73% of these people would then expect the hotel to offer them a partial or full refund, having complained once.
65% would then leave a negative review of the hotel if they were not satisfied with how the pest problem was resolved.
Rodent Risks
Infections that are transmissible from animals to humans are called ‘zoonotic infections’. Some diseases are carried by mice but not rats, and vice versa, but the majority are carried by both.
Diseases that used to be relevant, like bubonic plague, may not be relevant nowadays in the UK. Others are diseases that are either on the increase or ones where our knowledge, understanding and ability to detect are improving, like Hantavirus. These are called ‘emerging zoonoses’.
Some examples of zoonotic infections:
- Campylobacter
- Cryptosporidium parvum
- Hantavirus
- Leptospirosis
- Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV)
- Q Fever
- Salmonella
- Toxoplasma gondii
Rodents can pass physical, microbiological, chemical and allergenic forms of contamination onto food packaging and directly into foods, just by moving about. The main focus, however, is that rodents are a reservoir of zoonoses, meaning they are infected and they then pass the disease onto people directly or indirectly through food.
Another health hazard associated with rodents is an allergic reaction, Mouse urine contains a small lipocalin protein that they use to mark their territory using their scent. This is considered to be a risk for allergic sensitisation and asthma.
Call us today on: 0800 234 3602 to discover how we can help you with commercial pest control and any rodent issues.