New Puppy? How to Keep Fleas Out of the Picture

By Chris Williams on December 22, 2016

We’re getting my son a puppy for Christmas. The pet store suggests that we pick it up after Christmas since that’s less stressful for the puppy (and maybe for us too!). I’m worried about ending up with fleas in the house. What should we do to prepare and prevent that possibility? Thanks.  L. W., Lunenburg,…

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Yikes! Beetle Larvae in Your Holiday Ham!

By Chris Williams on December 19, 2016

For the holidays, a good friend gave us an “old country ham” that she purchased at a farm market. Apparently, these are hams that are cured or dried unrefrigerated for a year or more. They look terrible with mold on the surface (that’s normal) but supposedly taste great. The problem is that we have seen…

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A Moment of Silence for Our Native Forests?

By Chris Williams on December 16, 2016

This blog is about a pest problem that an exterminator normally doesn’t face but that we all should be concerned about. Unprecedented damage is being done to our native forest trees by pest invasions that are further encouraged by climate changes. Being hit the hardest are forests in California, Colorado, North Carolina, Florida, parts of…

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Why Can’t We Get Rid of Fungus Beetles?

By Chris Williams on December 9, 2016

We have an ongoing problem with what we were told are fungus beetles. We found dozens of them on the ceiling in a corner of the kitchen. We had an exterminator treat the area and my husband found a roof leak in the attic that had dripped onto that area. The leak has been repaired…

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Got Bugs? – From Your Christmas Tree?

By Chris Williams on December 7, 2016

Last year when we put up our Christmas tree inside, we had these strange black bugs crawling all over. What can we do differently this year to make sure we don’t bring tree insects into the house? S. K., Loudon, NH You don’t say whether you cut your own tree or purchased one from a…

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