“Juno checked the unit next door and the one below the same morning, and the report listed each room separately. My owners could read it without a call.”
Fay B.Property manager, courtyard building
Bed bug detection in Chicago
Juno looks for bed bugs. We keep it quiet.
Wilhelmina Alford and Juno inspect apartments, hotel rooms and rentals. The dog searches, a person checks every alert by eye, and a written report goes to you and only you.
JunoDetection dog, with her handler Wilhelmina Alford
A page from a report
What you get is a page like this
Written for illustration. Every room has its own line: what the dog did, what the handler saw, and what comes next.
| Room | The dog | The handler's check | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bedroom, unit 3B | The dogAlerted at the headboard | The handler's checkLive bugs at a mattress seam | Next stepTreat; prep sheet attached |
| Living room, unit 3B | The dogAlerted at the sofa arm | The handler's checkShed skins, no live bugs | Next stepTreat with the bedroom |
| Kitchen and bath, unit 3B | The dogNo alert | The handler's checkNothing seen | Next stepNone |
| Bedroom, unit 3A (shared wall) | The dogBrief interest at the baseboard | The handler's checkNothing seen | Next stepRe-check in two weeks |
Discretion
You decide who knows
Bed bugs carry a shame other pests don't. We run each visit so the people you choose are the only ones who hear about it.
An unmarked car
Nothing on the vehicle says what we do. We park where you ask us to.
Plain clothes
No coveralls and no spray gear at the door. Juno wears a plain harness.
A text from the door
We text when we arrive, so nobody has to buzz up or wait in a lobby.
One reader
The report goes to the person you name. Who else sees it is your call.
A visit, in order
From your call to the re-check
Most visits follow these steps. The page for the visit has the prep list.
- 01Your call
Step 1: You ask, we scope
Tell us the property type and how many units. Raghav calls back to confirm what is in scope and who should and shouldn't be told.
- 02Before the visit
Step 2: A written number
You get a flat figure in writing for the scope. Nothing is booked until you say yes.
- 03The visit
Step 3: A text from the door
We arrive in an unmarked car and plain clothes. Juno works room by room in short sessions, along baseboards, bed frames and seams.
- 04Every alert
Step 4: An alert, then a look
An alert tells us where to look. We check with a flashlight and a mirror, and the report calls something a finding only if we see it.
- 05After the visit
Step 5: The report
A written report goes to the contact you named. Each room is listed with what the dog did and what we saw. In most cases it arrives the next business day.
- 06Later
Step 6: The re-check
If treatment follows, we come back to re-inspect at the interval whoever treats advises.
Who we work with
Managers, hotels and tenants
The visit is the same. What changes is who is asking and who has to be told.
A unit, a floor or a whole building, scoped in a written plan, with a line in the report for every unit we open.
Room-turn windows before check-in, one report per room, and a plain way to hold a room while you wait.
If you rent, we write the report so you can hand it to your manager. We don't give legal advice.
How the price is set
No figures on this page. The number depends on the property, and it comes in writing before we arrive.
What decides the price
The size of the job, not the dog's time. Four things move it.
Rooms or units in scope
Whether neighboring units are included
Access through halls and lobbies
Re-check visits
What the estimate includes, and what it doesn't
It lists the units or rooms in scope, the visit, the written report and one re-check of any room we flag. Treatment isn't in it: that is a separate quote from whoever treats.
What happens at the visit
We walk the unit with you or your manager. Juno works room by room, and every alert is checked by eye. What was found is never read out in a hallway.
When you get the number
Before we come, in writing, as a flat figure for the scope you approved. If we find something that changes the scope, we stop and ask first.
What clients wrote
Quiet is the point
“We booked a room-turn window before check-in. Guests saw a woman and a dog in the corridor, and nothing else about it.”
Said A.Front office manager, boutique hotel
“I was embarrassed to call. Wilhelmina asked who I wanted told, and that was the only name on the report.”
Jackeline M.Tenant, Rogers Park
Sample reviews.
Where we go
Chicago, and the suburbs closest to it
If your address isn't listed, send it and we'll say.
- Chicago neighborhoods: Lakeview, Wicker Park, Bucktown, Uptown, Edgewater, Rogers Park, Andersonville, Pilsen, South Loop, Hyde Park, Gold Coast
- North suburbs: Wilmette, Winnetka
- West and south suburbs: La Grange, Riverside, Brookfield, Westchester, Elmwood Park, Lombard, Hinsdale
We don't work past Cook and DuPage counties. For anywhere else, ask and we'll say who to try.
Questions
Before you book
Will anyone know why you're here?
We arrive in an unmarked car and plain clothes, and we ask you who may be told. We can't promise that a neighbor won't notice a dog in a hallway, so we plan the route with you.
How reliable is the dog?
A detection dog is a first screen, not a verdict. That is why every alert is checked by eye, and why the report says what was seen and what was not.
What do you do about kids and pets during a visit?
An inspection uses no products. We ask that pets be in another room while Juno works. If treatment follows, we ask for the label and product list before work starts, and the applicator says where and when to keep people and pets away.
What if bed bugs show up again after you've cleared a room?
Our re-check promise: if live bed bugs turn up in a room our report cleared, within 14 days of the visit, we come back and re-inspect that room at no charge. It applies to rooms that were empty of new luggage and furniture in those 14 days, and it covers the inspection only, not treatment.
Ask for an inspection
Ask for an inspection
Tell us the property, how many units and who should be told. We write back in business hours.